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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.7 o0 {8 W* X' X4 }0 I
2 }* ?6 E0 K( Z) H6 q& m; ABy 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.* L6 ]; Y/ U7 ~3 F. q
$ _6 F+ r) |/ e- {2 kIt will replace a two-storey complex of low-cost apartments that have been in the south-Edmonton community for 60 years.) J" ~. M% i/ n+ B
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Strathearn resident Allan Tchida has fought the high-rise project for three years.: c# Y8 c# _! m+ g5 |& e
(CBC)
9 ~3 F5 L) \8 y; q, N7 n/ HResidents have fought the project for more than three years, complaining the development will forever change the single-family community.
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3 m: e; b3 U6 e' Q/ w; F4 C"There's many reasons why we lived there for such a long time," said Allan Tchida, who has lived in Strathearn since 1980.
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: R* I: I% M6 D0 N8 b) b( o$ z/ q* o7 C"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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) E: q0 m2 A3 s5 R+ I$ h) y! EJohn Logan, with the neighbouring Bonnie Doon Community League, was also dismayed by the city council vote.
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/ b0 s! }9 ]7 K' i! ?The developer's vision of the Strathearn project.
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: `& C& b; ~; M5 i& I"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. r5 w! W2 W5 [' X* Y4 k" r
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New life to area: developer
/ ?0 U5 W! @0 }2 lThe 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.7 y" s* V, T$ j, J0 m
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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.1 u$ a+ ]4 T- p. n9 F1 W
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Edmonton 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.9 b f1 ~8 ~# F1 l$ ]4 n' P0 g+ l
% j8 s c/ _8 {# R8 L8 @( vConstruction is expected to start in the summer of 2009, with the full project taking about 10 years to complete, the developer said.. s. a& `4 @/ O! f" h2 h7 T2 M" b
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This is the second major project approved for a mature neighbourhood in Edmonton as many months.1 s2 |+ k* O2 o8 ]) A
! K% S0 ]9 S( g( e; |, ZIn 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.$ d) @' p8 Y( t7 U5 @/ Y9 y
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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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