Bonnie Doon Mall Redevelopment | ?m | ?s

What do you think of this project?

  • I neither like nor dislike it

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I dislike it

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I dislike it a lot

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    35
August 15, 2015.

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This is one historical photo where things are quite a bit more grim in the present. Sears and Zellers are gone and even the cheap clothing store (that I can't remember the name of) is closing up shop.
 
Tony Roma's in the mall is no more. A Notice posted on the door stated non-payment of rent... I guess the food court will get a little busier.
Not surprising. We joined a few friends of ours for a drink there on a Saturday around 8:30 a few months ago and there was one other table when we arrived. They left shortly after and then they were closing at 10 pm.
 
PCL is also working on pre-construction for Morguard for the redevelopment of the mall itself. Future phases may be big towers, but initial phases are more likely to be low to mid-rise buildings.
Wasn't Morguard quoted as saying they intend to build on the east side of the site first - specifically, two towers? Sounded like they were further along last year in that process? No idea what tower means in this context. Perhaps the LRT construction delays are having them re-evaluate their plan.
 
 
Interesting. I emailed a month ago about any status update and haven't heard back since. I should attend and tell them they need to do better at ongoing communication with residents in the area.

So far, TOD, doesn't really work in Edmonton. We have a bunch of projects that haven't really gone forward as of yet. Will be interesting to see who can move forward first and how fast each project moves forward.
 
This is probably going to come across as a bit harsh, but I don't think any local developers actually understand TOD. They love the idea and they love it as a marketing buzzword, but none understand how to actually design or build it. And that's why we've been left with nothing that could be called TOD so far:
  • West Block probably comes the closest, but until there's an LRT on its doorstep, the T part is still missing.
  • Stadium Yards I think will be the next closest thing to TOD, though they too are starting as far from the LRT station as possible for some reason, and as far as I know it won't be a true mixed-use TOD as I don't believe any offices are proposed, and retail so far is pretty limited.
  • Holyrood will probably be the next one that's closest to a TOD. They are also starting at the furthest point from the stop (but it's still even closer than SY or CP), but like SY will not be true mixed-use TOD given the limited retail and no office.
  • Clareview and Belvedere are abject failures, but at least the later still has some potential. Clareview is a total write-off.
  • CP still has high potential as they start building closer and have flexibility on future uses.
  • Bonnie Doon is probably the best true TOD proposal in waiting.
  • Strathearn remains to be seen with the redo and the investors' finances, but still has some potential. Again, though, very unlikely to see the level of mixed-use that should define TOD.
 
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This is probably going to come across as a bit harsh, but I don't think any local developers actually understand TOD. They love the idea and they love it as a marketing buzzword, but none understand how to actually design or build it. And that's why we've been left with nothing that could be called TOD so far:
  • West Block probably comes the closest, but until there's an LRT on its doorstep, the T part is still missing.
  • Stadium Yards I think will be the next closest thing to TOD, though they too are starting as far from the LRT station as possible for some reason, and as far as I know it won't be a true mixed-use TOD as I don't believe any offices are proposed, and retail so far is pretty limited.
  • Holyrood will probably be the next one that's closest to a TOD. They are also starting at the furthest point from the stop (but it's still even closer than SY or CP), but like SY will not be true mixed-use TOD given the limited retail and no office.
  • Clareview and Belvedere are abject failures, but at least the later still has some potential. Clareview is a total write-off.
  • CP still has high potential as they start building closer and have flexibility on future uses.
  • Bonnie Doon is probably the best true TOD proposal in waiting.
  • Strathearn remains to be seen with the redo and the investors' finances, but still has some potential. Again, though, very unlikely to see the level of mixed-use that should define TOD.
This is a great list. Jasper Gates has potential as well - this is probably good for a split into the Real Estate section for a TOD thread.
 

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