A Vancouver councillor’s motion to re-open Robson Square to traffic may have failed, but a University of British Columbia professor says the move may be the conversation starter needed to make vital changes.

Lawrence Frank, a professor in the School of Community and Regional Planning at UBC, believes the plaza, should not be reopened to traffic — and should instead be extended to three city blocks.

“It needs to connect over to Granville to the east and it needs to connect