 鲜花( 17)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
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.
- f6 ]2 r* L* ^3 A# Q. L$ C
7 Y& S l4 i5 o7 \' cBy 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.! n! N a v6 M* \! T
7 P( k: p' b) ~% V, B( n
It will replace a two-storey complex of low-cost apartments that have been in the south-Edmonton community for 60 years.( K- W9 p# B. X F5 ?8 x5 e! L
* |6 c- r6 o. m6 r ]Strathearn resident Allan Tchida has fought the high-rise project for three years.
$ W+ X; v+ G+ V(CBC) # d, l( ? N- h0 L) i
Residents have fought the project for more than three years, complaining the development will forever change the single-family community.
& L2 H& Q+ O$ Z. }7 z4 R/ v5 y$ `" ^7 l& T9 I0 ~3 X: j# H: O
"There's many reasons why we lived there for such a long time," said Allan Tchida, who has lived in Strathearn since 1980.
" }( Y* X0 R' ^9 B7 v5 r6 j# U3 B0 c1 e: E( H) {
1 K, E, y. c9 |. c1 ^3 v! X
"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.
1 a c! M! j) I. D) T. w: h9 Q/ O; c) R9 x" P2 V
John Logan, with the neighbouring Bonnie Doon Community League, was also dismayed by the city council vote.) y4 g! k5 d- z9 U
0 N& a! I6 p8 ]2 b* C: F3 iThe developer's vision of the Strathearn project.
) b: b0 w# E3 D* E7 k(Nearctic Group)
|1 y$ P6 O5 r/ 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.
! D9 H6 Y" w v# K" Z# I5 p8 d7 [" ~, j, ~. P
New life to area: developer6 L) M6 @/ y2 x0 d8 J! ~
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./ J+ P; V$ D: R% |! d7 R& V
6 i& ?& a ~: X r! |"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.; Y( G# y7 N( {! N3 X
" L5 p* x3 T( q' N9 S5 V
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.+ f3 @/ w. [2 U
$ l4 y3 o- C5 Q% [( M8 Y7 ^% X6 s z
"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 ^. B3 M$ w' n- R! f+ R
% l" X6 S8 {9 n/ I- R
Construction is expected to start in the summer of 2009, with the full project taking about 10 years to complete, the developer said.9 d- A1 A% l2 [, T$ G. d
+ m8 W" o% C- q; i5 @( S, eThis is the second major project approved for a mature neighbourhood in Edmonton as many months.+ r4 p6 u/ u' A% y( g" v3 I- X
0 ~' z$ B5 B9 e3 o6 G# ^
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.9 N' |# _5 ^3 X3 h z/ u1 p
& @9 @( c, i' x1 W% Z7 Y* UIt's part of a push by the city to slow urban sprawl by encouraging more development in older areas of the city. |
|