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Edmonton city council gave the go ahead Thursday night to a controversial 1,750-unit housing development in the long-established community of Strathearn, overlooking the River Valley." v4 Y% m4 E1 D( d0 B
5 N$ c8 r" t( P( d' a- y- KBy a vote of 12-1, councillors supported the mix of high-rises towers, ranging from 20 to 24 storeys, combined with townhouses and retail space, to be developed on a nine-hectare site.4 w) i! P$ n y" A9 t0 \$ Q3 O/ L' f
; _2 Q, c* F" x. Y, cIt will replace a two-storey complex of low-cost apartments that have been in the south-Edmonton community for 60 years.4 f7 Z( p/ X+ s9 h; V
4 r/ ^% P- [9 ~( o0 B! }7 I) { MStrathearn resident Allan Tchida has fought the high-rise project for three years.
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Residents have fought the project for more than three years, complaining the development will forever change the single-family community.7 R+ u9 }; s7 [* ^2 n
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"There's many reasons why we lived there for such a long time," said Allan Tchida, who has lived in Strathearn since 1980. 7 K3 F$ a! n6 P1 X6 g% c
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"Those reasons are going to be gone once this project reaches its full potential. We'll have to see whether or not we're going to stay," he said.( K9 W- l9 D1 T x- k* e
0 r6 r7 I& P' cJohn Logan, with the neighbouring Bonnie Doon Community League, was also dismayed by the city council vote.
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The developer's vision of the Strathearn project.( l& \" D5 Q+ V- L0 t, O, O* |
(Nearctic Group)
( O' \7 ~1 E v' b0 s, o. z: a"I am appalled. I think that from the beginning the wishes from the community and of the people most directly affected have been ignored in a way that I've never seen before in the 30 odd years that I've been involved in community affairs," Logan said.
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New life to area: developer
3 v7 j/ }% W2 i2 G% BThe developer insists the project will breathe new life into an aging community, turning it into a modern, mixed-use neighbourhood on the edge of the city's downtown.- A; X* T+ A0 ]: i# O0 o
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"We feel now we can present the city with a leading-edge design development that integrates within the community, and we can hardly wait to get started," said Guy St. Germaine with the Nearctic Group.. d% q+ W7 U! f. r2 R n2 v
% P& Y+ x( c: G- tEdmonton Mayor Stephen Mandel was among those who voted in favour of the project. He said the developer's promise to help build 400 units of affordable housing was a major factor for him.
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"We are having a tremendous challenge in meeting the housing needs of people who are moving to this city and if we don't do something about that we will be in trouble," Mandel said.
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6 f5 ?3 }' p ?8 l1 k# PConstruction is expected to start in the summer of 2009, with the full project taking about 10 years to complete, the developer said.
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This is the second major project approved for a mature neighbourhood in Edmonton as many months.
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/ l& K9 @4 O6 M2 MIn January, council gave the go-ahead for a high-rise development in the west end community of Glenora, which will see four towers as high as 21 storeys built.
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It's part of a push by the city to slow urban sprawl by encouraging more development in older areas of the city. |
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