Are we fenced off from imagining bold new options for the St. John's harbourfront?

To fence or not to fence, that is the question. And it's a question that has divided residents of St. John's for more than a decade.

In 2013, the St. John's Port Authority installed a temporary fence along the harbourfront. And in 2015, replaced that with a black metal fence.

The construction brought a slew of controversy, from city council upset to social media campaigns . The issue is still active. Just last year, Premier Andrew Furey lobbied to reopen the debate with the federal government.

Furey is not the only one wondering how the harbourfront might change. Cynthia Williams, who wrote her master's thesis in architecture at Dalhousie University on a new focus for the harbourfront, suggests removing the fence and rethinking how Harbour Drive might work if it was tailored to pedestrians and quality of life for local residents. "I think there [are] different solutions and different ways that we can tackle it," said Williams.

What would you change about the St. John's harbour? There's a lot of history to this story (and we'll describe it for you in detail soon), but first, please take a moment to tell us what you would do in the form below. CBC News will sort through responses we receive, and double back to you.

For her design, Williams suggests removing the harbour fence and on-street parking along Harbour Drive. Residents would have year-round access to the area, which would function like the annual pedestrian mall each summer on part of Water Street. That would be a real .