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Holyrood development decision delayed until after Edmonton city election
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmon...ne-holyrood-develop-council-hearing-1.4285055
Excerpt:
A controversial development proposed for Edmonton's Holyrood neighbourhood has been shelved until after the October municipal election.

The project was to be discussed at a public hearing on Monday, but a jam-packed city council agenda meant councillors ran out of time to discuss the proposed rezoning of the site and it was pushed back to the next hearing date in November.

People who came to speak on the issue waited until 10:30 p.m. to learn the issue would not be heard until November. A public hearing will be held at that time solely to deal only with this single item.
 
That part of the meeting was a gong show. I've never seen so many professional planners, managers, and engineers - many of whom I have seen amazing work and know they are exceptional folks - stutter and stammer their way through questioning like they did last night.

This entire proposal was extremely rushed, and we've been trying to say that for months. The fact that everyone was so unprepared and that an 11th hour (almost literally) drainage issue came up just before the bylaw public hearing and wasted everyone's time only went on to prove it. /rant
 
Industry expert urges council to learn from Holyrood Gardens scramble
City council’s last-minute scrambling on the Holyrood Gardens redevelopment has one industry expert calling for a new approach to planning these new mini-downtowns around LRT stations.

Edmonton treats large-scale transit-oriented development — which involve new streets, retail strips and multiple residential towers — the same as any single building or commercial property that needs a zoning change.

It schedules them for the end of the biweekly public hearings which, last Monday, meant the 45 people registered to speak for and against had to wait for nine hours, only to be disappointed.

It also risked a key city-building project on something as simple as a utility line.

“That is such a simple thing, so simple. And yet we leave it to the last minute,” said Jeffrey Hansen-Carlson, founder of the developer-led Canadian Transit-oriented Development Institute, calling for a new committee of residents, developers, financing experts, city officials and politicians to figure out a better approach.
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http://edmontonjournal.com/news/loc...uncil-to-learn-from-holyrood-gardens-scramble
 
City Signs Memorandum of Understanding with Regency Developments
September 13, 2017

The City of Edmonton has signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Regency Developments, owner of the lands at 8310 - 93 Avenue and 8311 - 93 Avenue.

The MOU allows Regency to proceed with construction of underground infrastructure at this location. Given the current construction of the Valley Line LRT along the 83 Street / 85 Street corridor, this will allow Regency to install necessary utilities in coordination with the LRT, minimizing disruption to neighbourhood residents and both projects.

The MOU does not extend beyond the construction of infrastructure. Utilities infrastructure improvements are required for any redevelopment at this site, and are not specific to a particular development proposal.

Regency Developments has proposed to redevelop this land into a mixed use, high density, transit oriented development that contains a mixture of middle and high-rise housing. City Council has deferred the public hearing and subsequent decisions on this proposed Holyrood Gardens redevelopment project until the new Council convenes in November of this year.

The Valley Line is scheduled to open in December 2020.

For more information:

September 13, 2017 Council Meeting - Holyrood Utility Corridor

Media contact:
Holly Budd
Communications Manager
780-442-2104
 
Edmonton development delayed as residents divided on density
A contentious Edmonton neighbourhood redevelopment plan is facing delays and division on how to proceed. The City of Edmonton's ambitious Valley Line light rail transit (LRT) project includes a stop in the Holyrood Gardens neighbourhood, located southeast and across the Saskatchewan River from the city's downtown core.
001_RBI-image-1027611.jpeg

But the planned extent of redevelopment, using the new station as an anchor, is receiving mixed reviews from stakeholders.

A public hearing about the Holyrood Gardens redevelopment will now take place in November, after the Edmonton municipal election in October. The hearing was originally scheduled for Sept. 11 but Edmonton City Council was unable to devote substantial discussion time to the issue and instead decided to move it forward.

But fundamental issues remain, including push-and-pull on the potential size of several highrises that are slated for construction by the new Valley Line LRT station.

"The frustration is that this community wanted this line developed and there was an expectation of density, but somewhere along the line the scale of the proposal diverged," said Edmonton city councillor Ben Henderson.

"There is pressure to densify. We have the station there and we need to get more around the station, but we don't need to go from one extreme to the other. If we do densification as carelessly as we've done sprawl, we may end up with neighbourhoods no one wants to live in anymore."
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http://journalofcommerce.com/Infras...yed-as-residents-divided-on-density-1027610W/
 
Dozens petition city to rethink Holyrood development project
city-council.JPG

Councillors hear from one of about 60 speakers in council chambers on Friday about their concerns over the redevelopment of Holyrood Gardens. (CBC)

About 60 residents packed Edmonton's city hall Friday for a chance to address councillors over a bylaw that would see significant development at Holyrood Gardens, the site of a new Valley Line LRT stop.

The plan would see three highrise towers that could reach as tall as 22 storeys, and four mid-rise towers built at Holyrood Gardens.

The site, which runs along 85th Street between 95th Avenue and 90th Avenue, has been designated as a neighbourhood station for the new light rail line.

The new development is slated to include up to 1,200 living units, street-level commercial space, underground parking and public green spaces.
Holyrood is one of the first neighbourhoods in Edmonton to incorporate a transit-oriented design (TOD) and members of the community league say they want to make sure it's done right.

"We are not saying no, we are saying we can do a lot better," said Holyrood Development Committee member David Sutherland in a written statement.

"We are not just thinking of our own neighbourhood. The outcome of this hearing will shape future discussions for TOD proposals."
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http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/holyrood-gardens-development-edmonton-1.4408585

Mayor Don Iveson wants extra design review for developments near major LRT stations
Mayor Don Iveson said he’ll push for all major new developments around LRT stations to get an additional design review after more than two dozen people turned out Friday to oppose towers proposed for Holyrood Gardens.

The project would have three 22- and 18-storey towers lining 85 Street in the Holyrood neighbourhood, but neighbours worry new site rules sought by Regency Developments are too vague.

Residents say the buildings don’t follow Edmonton’s planning guidelines, put towers across the back alley from single-family homes and the developer failed to adequately include residents in the design process.

Iveson said the vague details in the plan make it hard for city council to determine whether the negative impacts to the neighbourhood are worth the benefits of increased density.

“Here we see blocks of large buildings without a sense of what the final detail and finishes will look like,” he said, suggesting a review by the city’s Edmonton Design Committee would add definition.
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http://edmontonjournal.com/news/loc...view-for-developments-near-major-lrt-stations

Edmonton development continues to create debate during public hearing
 
@archited I also appreciated Councillor Knack's pointed questions about how - if this is TOD - why it's being designed marketed and built with the assumption at at least 60% of trips from the complex will be by car. That was a recommendation by city administration, no less, not just the proponent. We still have a long way to go to fixing the culture in this city.
 
Daveography said:
@archited I also appreciated Councillor Knack's pointed questions about how - if this is TOD - why it's being designed marketed and built with the assumption at at least 60% of trips from the complex will be by car. That was a recommendation by city administration, no less, not just the proponent. We still have a long way to go to fixing the culture in this city.
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No kidding and it starts with looking at planning as a whole. A big reason why TOD works in Vancouver isn't only because the train is right next to developments, but that many of the developments are self contained or large enough to anchor a grocery store on the development. That could be done with this development depending on the size, but many of the big developments in Richmond, Burnaby, and Coquitlam are built next to shopping centres or contain those amenities in close proximity.

While I'm not a huge fan of the 'walk score' rating system, it does support TOD planning as not just being close to transit, but also within walking distance or a very close trip to things you would need. Toss in a Shoppers Drug Mart or something like that in the complex. They can hop on the train to the Safeway at Bonnie Doon for larger shopping trips if need be. Of course, zoning would need to be addressed for commercial purposes too.

Livability has to be a bigger part of the conversation here from an administration planning perspective, instead of developers simply plopping down whatever development they please. It shouldn't need to get to a Councillor level - as you said, it was a recommendation by city administration, which means the entire culture of our city planning staff is backwards. Unfortunately, Calgary is doing better than we are too. While it is good we are seeing development in Edmonton, are we seeing the right development?

These critical questions need to be asked more as we go forward and more people need to put critical hats on and name the elephants in the room that most people aren't willing to talk about. Rather, what is often the case in Edmonton is everyone simply sees new and gets around and cheers it on, instead of asking the hard questions. I mean, that tower in Oliver that got denied earlier this year was the first major development to be denied in how long? Yikes.
 
In my lengthening years of experience with all civic jurisdictions no matter where (Edmonton or Los Angeles are two prime examples), I find very few administration employees dedicated to the job -- most spend their time spouting rules and regulations and waiting for their paycheck (there are a few good exceptions). It is also rare to find politicos with vision -- I find Andrew Knack to be one of those... as was the former Mayor Mandel (mostly they are either not enquiring minds or they don't have the background knowledge to make good decisions -- I suspect you are finding that out -- becomes a constant education process).
 
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