In the last photo of the above sequence you can see the columnar outline of the second 25 storey tower. Without second-guessing the sequence it looks as though Qualico is going to move right into construction of that building without pause. The columns show no sign of being "capped" and a construction crane is already in place to service that facility. The connecting portion to Phase Two development to the east is also progressing well. The outdoor pedestrian mall between new construction and the existing office buildings promises to be an exciting addition to downtown and with the pedway network connecting RAM, City Hall, AGA, Milner Library, Winspear and Citadel Theatre, the thrivelihood* (coin) of Edmonton's core is going to get a significant boost. My hope is that a great deal of effort is put into reviving this underground maze into something worthy of visitationing* (coin) in its own right (lessons from NYC's experimental "Lowline" project --
http://thelowline.org/) -- perhaps with an underground extension of AGA (monitored and secure, of course) and of RAM -- the potential is exemplaristicalexceptional* (coin). It could well complement Sir Winston Churchill Square finding surfacing portals to that important park that could be expanded by closing several surrounding streets (allowing for emergency vehicular access).
What streets could be closed, you ask?
First and foremost: 99th Street between 102nd Avenue and 103a Avenue. This is the intersecting street between City Hall and the Art Gallery of Alberta. Imagine if this street were turned into a pedestrian mall that was festooned with permanent outdoor sculptures curated by the AGA impresarios and added to on an annual art festival day. It would "gladden" the approach to Edmonton City Hall, the Royal Alberta Museum and the Winspear Centre. It would put a smile on the courthouse building.
The second vehicle thoroughfare that I would close would be 102nd Avenue in front of the Library (almost closed to all but transit already). This is Edmonton's premier transit hub and it deserves full recognition as such. The Library also deserves some post-update remedial action as well and that ties into the third street that I would close -- 99th street between 102nd Avenue and Judy Padua Way/Shoctor Alley to the south. This stretch I would feature as an urban "Trees-for-Life" park with all manner of specimens native to Alberta (including recent more modern cultivars), focused around an Indigenous Sculptural Art assemblage (totems, statuary, iconography, and cultural symbols) and that bleeds onto the eastern half of the Library roof where plant pods enhance the visage of that structure in a very positive way, covered in vines, evergreen shrubs, and small-form trees.
