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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.' {6 f0 `5 y% r3 w
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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." Z& |0 f4 b3 z) D+ M
* y5 ~0 d+ w8 gStrathearn resident Allan Tchida has fought the high-rise project for three years.5 d* Y& t0 E& }
(CBC)
5 ~! n+ K/ q7 |8 MResidents have fought the project for more than three years, complaining the development will forever change the single-family community.& a& U1 v0 p/ j
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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. ! l- [) M w( I0 ^: {. j* B$ g
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i: r, E; v/ C A0 [& A"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.: a% w/ b$ V" g* A' d; d" _
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John Logan, with the neighbouring Bonnie Doon Community League, was also dismayed by the city council vote.
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7 U% _- |: x; k% `The developer's vision of the Strathearn project.) J0 w* }1 d+ ^8 ~% q
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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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New life to area: developer
/ I- o z3 O- U* P! ^2 |. HThe 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., s6 ~" o! E! f# l7 K% v+ D2 ~
1 z J" l/ r8 h+ f- j"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 a8 \) O" C- W, V5 d! |+ E# D
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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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2 `& n) X- C: P5 ?9 b4 \0 B"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.* _, [& J/ J" ?9 E; ^4 D% w$ M
! d; \* T7 P8 e7 \% h0 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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This is the second major project approved for a mature neighbourhood in Edmonton as many months.- m% P* u, U) q9 O8 [9 \
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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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r8 |. Z' x" S5 Z( _+ w; l! qIt'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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