 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.0 M) P' O7 P5 N1 T4 D; M4 V7 w
. P( C* r4 o. D. d# p, q6 vBy 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.2 G t5 N- Y" _
- R$ r) D; d% q" R
It will replace a two-storey complex of low-cost apartments that have been in the south-Edmonton community for 60 years.3 E8 h% y& P- l
# p/ K7 g( L5 |) KStrathearn resident Allan Tchida has fought the high-rise project for three years.
/ z5 B. A. Z' ~(CBC) " x2 o2 E- Q0 f) G5 F# \- H+ |
Residents have fought the project for more than three years, complaining the development will forever change the single-family community.
. L3 Q" N' Q7 e! j7 k9 O. e, ?/ T# Z6 G+ l) i$ I" v
"There's many reasons why we lived there for such a long time," said Allan Tchida, who has lived in Strathearn since 1980. + x; |! G8 S) q
, Y* q- h+ C) `5 g4 i
7 u: M% t5 f9 N
"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.
y* u/ {8 b: |$ C# c* k2 f; E* \' c6 l" D4 B7 w
John Logan, with the neighbouring Bonnie Doon Community League, was also dismayed by the city council vote.8 w/ R! }/ q# x. H k d
. o$ h; C8 F* u- C) ^4 }The developer's vision of the Strathearn project.
" Y/ c4 e/ C. _) `, z! Z* q(Nearctic Group) 1 l& o* o8 i( D* Q 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., Z# q% } ^6 M
* _# j' s# @1 s( cNew life to area: developer
0 u% @+ d: ]% ^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.
( l# J0 V+ [5 J( j
: Z- y$ O! M+ z2 a' p"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.
7 J2 W; ]+ B! }2 @3 D. D+ Q
2 I8 [$ f1 }* \2 SEdmonton 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.% y/ \5 n2 I. V, n: ]
- c4 i3 p- H3 Z9 Y' x
"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.- r6 p( A# J: B2 [, A% z
) x( p3 a a1 |
Construction is expected to start in the summer of 2009, with the full project taking about 10 years to complete, the developer said.' e9 u' C* r2 K3 N4 X1 o, I
2 f: E4 d+ @4 H( w3 uThis is the second major project approved for a mature neighbourhood in Edmonton as many months.
. |4 K, v3 Y7 C$ h3 ~- d# R# a% k/ S3 P- k
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.
- U+ Y5 c2 m# t) L; Y
1 H$ }) O' T# B- [% V f( K8 YIt's part of a push by the city to slow urban sprawl by encouraging more development in older areas of the city. |
|