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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 v$ J% R5 N& S
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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.
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5 Y* d! K }# }! Q1 q8 TStrathearn resident Allan Tchida has fought the high-rise project for three years.6 w# z! m, i* e) }
(CBC)
( |6 B0 U! Y$ }' E" xResidents have fought the project for more than three years, complaining the development will forever change the single-family community." K& P/ C. ^4 ?3 t. `/ g) f
( F0 e! n+ `9 n"There's many reasons why we lived there for such a long time," said Allan Tchida, who has lived in Strathearn since 1980. ( d4 d, T6 U6 T) E7 ?1 i8 J# x
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6 R3 k( D* L: H: _. \( x1 P* t* |"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.$ u6 q' v+ }/ _
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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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The developer's vision of the Strathearn project.& X2 ^; Y* h& Q$ d
(Nearctic Group)
/ p0 U, a% v$ f7 ^+ l"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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: H8 V9 u3 ?/ ~! d# HNew life to area: developer
$ ?" [9 `- S; v, SThe 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.& b c- a" C7 Y9 R8 }$ R a
# V. O4 i9 r0 I/ K, X2 S"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.
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4 l! d( M+ `1 }& C( ~2 t9 c7 X% j! NEdmonton 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.+ W6 w) e7 u5 c. v( I
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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.! y2 Z. _" N, o d) C3 [( U% i; X
6 G0 m8 f6 `) O, B$ PThis is the second major project approved for a mature neighbourhood in Edmonton as many months.
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$ I( a B( e% c& _8 H" @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.+ I: Y5 }5 Y/ t
( Z0 z8 m4 A& B) f1 F W S9 P: gIt'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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