Thousands of residents and visitors attended the Princess Street Promenade, where downtown Kingston businesses and organizations take over the street to sell their wares.
What started as a rainy Saturday didn’t stop the music at the 9th annual Fall Princess Street Promenade.
Hosted by the Downtown Kingston BIA, more than 150 local businesses and community groups took part in the daylong event — spanning a kilometre along Princess Street, between Division and Ontario streets.
A similar event occurs in August.
“It’s a great event for everyone to come out and see what Kingston has to offer, as well as shop”, says Patrice Oliveira with Downtown Kingston BIA. “We’ve got petting zoos. We’ve got inflatables, fun stuff for the kids.”
With free transit all day to the historic downtown, it’s also an opportunity for new customers to see what’s on offer, on the street, Bethany Telford said.
“Sometimes it’s intimidating to go into stores you haven’t been in before,” says Telford, an employee at Modern Primitive. “But with this opportunity, you don’t have to go in.
“Everyone has their products out and about for you.”
And for families, the promenade is an opportunity to see something a little different, on a street closed to all traffic.
“Have her run around and see other kids and people,” young mother Heather Buchanan said of her daughter. “We got to see the police horse.”
And if you’re lucky at a game of chance, the Kingston Destination Group was giving away free tickets to win a ride with the popular Trolley Tours.
“We love our city and we want other people to love it just as much as we do,” says Gillian Kent with the Kingston Destination Group
What started as a partnership between the City of Kingston, the Kingston Coalition for Active Transportation and the Downtown Kingston BIA, to encourage active transportation, has become a much-loved bi-annual event for Kingstonians.
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