Come one, come all to the Downtown Development Commission’s Fifth Annual Busker Festival! This year offers an exciting mix of National, International and local talent from sword swallowing to death defying coffin escapes, as well as a few familiar faces from previous festivals!

Taking place August 8th, 9th and 10th, the Busker Festival provides audience members with a unique opportunity to see a different act every half hour starting at 1:00 pm all the way until 10:00 pm on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. If you miss a performance one day of the festival, no problem! You can catch it at another location downtown during the same day or another day of the festival.

A new shoe store has hit the Downtown shopping scene at 254 Water Street not far from Auntie Crae's. You You Shoes has hundreds of women's shoes and a few purses in styles that seem quite new to this city.

Tony Qi and Meng Zhu are a couple from China who moved here separately 5 years ago and met at MUN while completing degrees in math and Business. They are running the place on their own for now, and since they opened up on June 7th, Zhu says despite the cold weather, lots of people have been stopping by to have a look.

Water Street East - Prescott Street to Cochrane Street

Water Street east of Prescott Street to Cochrane Street should be open to through traffic by no later than July 1. The City of St. John's plans to have the topcoat of pavement laid on Water Street east from Prescott Street to Gills Cove prior to the Cochrane Street intersection at Water Street being opened to through traffic.

Starting Monday Modern Paving will have its carpenters on site raising manholes on the section of Water Street from Prescott Street to Gills Cove at the same time getting the intersection of Cochrane Street and Water Street ready for base coat paving.

Access to all businesses and parking in the area will be maintained at all times.

Work Zone 1 - Waldergrave Street to Rear of former Woolworth’s building.

Work Zone 1 will be in affect as of Monday, June 2, 2008. Through traffic will be restricted at the Waldegrave Street at Water Street intersection and at Bishop’s Cove at Harbour Dirve.

Bishop’s Cove will remain open to one-way traffic going from Harbour Drive to Water Street. Beck’s Cove will remain open to one-way traffic going from Water Street to Harbour Drive.

Vehicle access to parking lots off Steers Cove, the former Woolworth’s building and the rear of Templeton’s building will be maintained at all times. Access to the Steers Cove parking will be permitted through a temporary access point at Steers Cove and Water Street.

Through traffic on Harbour Drive will be restricted between Bishop’s Cove and Waldegrave Street at Water Street intersection, however access to all off-street parking areas and local businesses will be maintained.

A net loss of approximately 30 on-street metered spaces will occur on Harbour Drive for the majority of the construction season.

For more information contact the City of St. John’s at 311 or visit www.stjohns.ca/csj/NewsDetails?id=697

Metrobus Kiss & Ride - a new route system and program that takes you from the west end of St. John's to Downtown in 10 minutes, every 15 minutes!

Take advantage of Metrobus' convenient peak-time transit services. Let's say for example, you live in the east end. You work at Confederation Building and your husband works Downtown. Instead of always using two cars or driving all over the city, you drop your husband at Torbay Road Mall, kiss him goodbye and he catches a convenient route 3 to Water Street and he's there in 10 minutes.

That was easy. You've cut down on CO2 emissions and left a little more fuel in your tank!

For more information visit www.metrobus.com