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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.
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7 g( j8 E* t" P3 l* Q+ ^3 ]: fBy 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.0 l) v1 Y B: ~
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It will replace a two-storey complex of low-cost apartments that have been in the south-Edmonton community for 60 years.% }' p8 X6 f8 J% j# e& n
# t8 e( _; d. ]3 _# f4 U% OStrathearn resident Allan Tchida has fought the high-rise project for three years., W6 u& R l3 ^$ [5 H3 j9 P% i
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Residents have fought the project for more than three years, complaining the development will forever change the single-family community./ M& n' Q! Q) |7 K0 g
* _; g" M G V"There's many reasons why we lived there for such a long time," said Allan Tchida, who has lived in Strathearn since 1980. ! i; k; }% @- F
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) p8 v) g, b- |: a' H) H8 W O"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.
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o h8 G V: E2 ?! P! O" b% C# ]John Logan, with the neighbouring Bonnie Doon Community League, was also dismayed by the city council vote.1 e( ], l- M; S3 j) F/ R
8 i1 w7 D4 c+ h. k' SThe developer's vision of the Strathearn project.
2 G# G4 k0 y/ h( n, O(Nearctic Group)
7 k/ g' Q7 c# L& b. A$ V"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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# c3 Z% ]: ~! v4 _% a6 [; D( L7 K. oNew life to area: developer Z$ F) g+ m( K; f
The 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.
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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.
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K. U2 C3 b2 q, _& G5 gEdmonton 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.; L$ ]. @! I h' q% u
1 Y3 R+ w0 I, l1 {"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.' c P1 a/ q- N! \# ~4 W
# q& l, S9 l2 WConstruction 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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# Q+ F1 j3 d% B: qThis is the second major project approved for a mature neighbourhood in Edmonton as many months.
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In 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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/ _9 }% E& ?" C+ E k9 Z6 Y6 {3 sIt'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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