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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.0 F R0 c4 X* H( g Y9 W% G
& w9 Z6 @ ~4 j% ]* K7 _By 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.
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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.- }4 H6 ^4 q* _, r/ K, p
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Strathearn resident Allan Tchida has fought the high-rise project for three years.. _1 I0 t. {4 f# i# r2 b/ W& w- ]
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Residents have fought the project for more than three years, complaining the development will forever change the single-family community.9 W$ X( G8 p- ~( u a( s4 k& N4 @
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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.
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; [; U0 H& n5 R) M% y"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.9 @9 @6 Q0 y* Q" s: ~* n
: ^* k' Z' _7 V; g2 W. G) }John 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.
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"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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2 p' C; B+ J6 O# [. GNew life to area: developer. T" f3 J g4 v5 C' P+ j" f8 v! p) O
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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; k; k0 f+ ^) J& j1 W3 L5 B6 M( V"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 S- y: f: M0 ^) R
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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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0 [8 a( \0 b& C" u3 ]9 P"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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Construction is expected to start in the summer of 2009, with the full project taking about 10 years to complete, the developer said.3 I: B3 C0 j8 O& p: s/ s
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This 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.7 E+ Q/ G$ \, X* S4 h
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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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