Since the Kingsway was chosen as the site for a new events centre, the Sudbury project has been quietly moving ahead.
At a brainstorming session held on Wednesday, the city was looking for ideas from the public.
"We're starting off with a clean slate," said Dave Shelsted, City of Greater Sudbury.
"We're looking at some input from the public on what they see for the site for the future, how they can create a positive experience for themselves and what should we include."
The new event centre is part of Sudbury Wolves’ owner and local developer Dario Zulich's vision for an 'entertainment destination' that will include a casino, hotels and restaurants.
Zulich said he welcomes the public's input.
"We're taking everyone's ideas in terms of what it should look like, what it should feel like, and then we're going to put it all on a big table, and professionals are going to be able to take all this and design something that's going to be spectacular," he explained.
Derek Young is a Sudbury resident who came to this session to share his ideas on how to keep the Kingsway and the downtown connected.
"Something as simple as having a bus stop downtown that would bring you to the event centre means you can come downtown, have your burger and your beer, get on the bus, go to the event centre and come back downtown after," said Young.
The city will now take all of the public's suggestions to its site plan consultant; who will then work with the key stakeholders - Gateway Casinos and Zulich - to come up with the best design for the new event centre.
Zulich hopes to have shovels in the ground by the spring.
