IanO
Senior Member
Really curious to see this project once completed given the ludicrous ideas floating around of making this stretch into an 'urban patio'...
oh planners.
oh planners.
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103 Avenue Civic Precinct Renewal
- Thread starter Daveography
- Start date
Airboy
Senior Member
Every one of the avenues between Rice Howard and 104 has construction on it as of Monday. 2 lanes closed north of ECC
Gronk!
Senior Member
Apologies for the crappy location
thommyjo
Senior Member
Please someone build on that parking lot… it would make such a difference
TAS
Senior Member
3 of the 4 corners in this prime intersection are undeveloped with two currently parking lots, so getting something going would be so nice.
What kind of development in this busy vehicular intersection seems most likely - a hotel, an office space (which we don't seem to need right now and could depend on what happens with the Regency site) or condos? Or a large dog park maybe?
IanO
Senior Member
Who recalls Aspen's office tower proposal? Any renderings?
Edmcowboy11
Senior Member
Hopefully the owners of those properties will be encouraged to build something within the next few years.
JNO1
Active Member
And so it begins. Taken Wednesday.
JNO1
Active Member
We seem to be very good in this City at cutting down large, old trees. Not sure what the health of these were or the importance of their removal to the overall scope of the project but sheesh, it takes 30 years for trees to grow this big in this part of the world. I hope there was a valid reason for their removal.
ChazYEG
Senior Member
To be honest, an AAA office tower would be nice. Regency will likely take forever and it is HARD do find AAA space in the city for a competitive price.3 of the 4 corners in this prime intersection are undeveloped with two currently parking lots, so getting something going would be so nice.
What kind of development in this busy vehicular intersection seems most likely - a hotel, an office space (which we don't seem to need right now and could depend on what happens with the Regency site) or condos? Or a large dog park maybe?
For comparison, I have a client paying $1.36 + operating costs per sq ft in one of the BMO tower's top floors in Calgary, for a total below $25. Here the cheapest AA office space is going for at least $7 more than that, and you can find B towers close to that price range.
Because out office supply (and high quality office supply) is much more constrained, out prices are getting too high (on of the reasons why I've heard a few of my clients with offices here saying they're staying put in the South instead of even considering downtown, as easier as it would be to be DT)
tkoe_
Active Member
Still way too many parking lots in DT Edmonton.
David A
Senior Member
It wouldn't be so bad if we just continued to work away and fill the empty lots, which has been done with some success. However, people seem to keep on insisting to tearing down older buildings downtown that could be repurposed or fixed up and adding to the number of empty lots.
After some progress over the last decade it now seems like one step forward, one step or more back. I wish the city would crack down on letting people tear down older buildings. It is becoming a problem again.
ChazYEG
Senior Member
I will point out again, since it seems to be an issue:
You cannot force people to sell land they don't want to and, if you simply ban developments that are not done on empty parking lots, you'll simply push developers away from downtown.
If we start dictating too much and regulating the market too much, we might as well sign off on a dictator to rule and decide what is to be done and join the commie side of the force.
As much as I appreciate preserving our heritage, thanks, but no thanks.
Edmcowboy11
Senior Member
And I think there in lies the problem. The buildings are a bit more troublesome for the speculator owner so those tend to be more available for the developers. The lots that are empty or were made empty years ago don't require as mush cost so those individuals who own those are willing to sit on the empty lot a whole lot longer waiting for a developer with deep pockets.
Fun but probably bad idea: after a demolition permit is granted for a DC2 zoned lot, start a timer. After X years, the city assesses the property as if it were complete (even if it's not).
Maybe it starts at 10% of completed value, but increases every year. If the land gets sold to the city, the assessment returns to normal and can be auctioned off.
As a less punitive alternative, you could use the pre-demolition assessment instead.