Old Strathcona CP Rail Yard

[Daveography]

Old Strathcona CP rail yard development goes quiet 2 years after major announcement
Residents and businesses in the Old Strathcona area are eager to see the Canadian Pacific Rail Yard developed, but since 2015, they haven’t had any updates.

“It’s limiting the area for use. I feel like it’s kind of the key to the whole neighbourhood,” said Sterling Derk, owner of Derks.

Three years ago, CP removed the tracks crossing Whyte Avenue and now trains rarely travel north past 78 Avenue. In 2015, the company announced the 32-hectare rail yard was slated for development.

However, the city confirmed to Global News it’s still waiting for an application from CP to develop.

“I think there’s a huge eagerness to get on with it and there’s a huge eagerness to do it, but the ball is not in our court. It’s up to CP and Dream, the partner they were working with,” Coun. Ben Henderson said.

“Obviously, whatever happens there will have to be carefully thought out and planned. It’s a big piece of land. It’s created a block to east-west connections,” Henderson said.

http://globalnews.ca/news/3672963/o...-goes-quiet-2-years-after-major-announcement/

 

[archited]

Don't hold your breath!

 

[Edward Skira]

A lot of land there. Is the land basically not be used currently?

 

[archited]

@Edward Skira the land has been underused for nearly 5 decades and now that the CP marshaling yards have been relocated south of the City, the lands are rarely used. It would be nice to see 76th Avenue punch through and become the main east-west route for the LRT in south Edmonton with the CPR lands north of that devoted to a mixed use Old Strathcona meme and the lands south of that dedicated to a mixed use entertainment/high-tech/residential/hospitality flourish. An east-west LRT line would line up neatly with Sherwood Park's Wye Road and to the west with River Valley access to both Fort Edmonton Park and the Valley Zoo. Beyond that, heading further west the line would neatly line up with Meadowlark and West Edmonton Mall (sometimes LRT routes just make too much sense to even be considered). As I have noted before the Edmonton Radial Railway System could be extended south over Whyte Avenue to connect to the LRT at 76th Avenue on CPR lands and a new line -- most beneficial to Old Strathcona -- could course along Whyte Avenue (a centre-boarding platform at every block would catch streetcars in both directions, slow automobile traffic along Whyte, increase the pedestrian presence of the street and more neatly fit into the turn-of-the-last-century character that has come to define Old Strathcona. I am half tempted to develop a full-blown presentation to submit to the City.

 

[Daveography]

@Edward Skira I think they occasionally use it for engines to switch between sidings, but that's about it. Many of those sidings have been removed in the last few years, now.

 

[Edward Skira]

Could always turn it into a golf range . That's what they did in Toronto before the lands became the Concord Adex developed CityPlace.

 

[archited]

I have this idea to combine grave yards and golf courses to create a new game called "bumper golf" (you know, like bumper pool). You would use luminescent golf balls and be clad in luminescent clothing and play at night.

 

[Daveography]

@archited Instead of luminescent clothing, wear all black, and you could have goth golf.

Golfth.

 

[archited]

I like your idea @Daveography... or maybe Goulfth Entertainment for postmortem years (captive audience).

 

[Edward Skira]

Golfth.

Hilarious. I recall a Bauhaus b-side based on the rail lands of Edmonton.

 

[Kaizen]

I noticed this "demo" this past Wednesday, wondering if CN is just tidying up a bit? Did they take down one of their storage buildings? It's hard to get a good look.
I just wish that there could be some preliminary planning initiated to put these Strathcona rail lands to better use and to try to speed up the transfer of the lands or parts thereof. What are the options?
This all really bothers me.

 

[itom987]

They better not demolish the roundhouse.

 

[chrisvazquez7]

They better not demolish the roundhouse.

CP still actively use the roundhouse for servicing locomotives. That could change at any time but I doubt it will soon, as we have no alternative facility in the Edmonton terminal.

And I don’t see CP selling this land anytime soon. We are always operating at capacity at our other yards, so I wouldn’t be surprised if they reestablish operations at South Edmonton.

 

[northlands]

@chrisvazquez7 Is being on the fence about whether to sell/develop the land for the last few decades the reason why they've kept this yard in such poor shape? The exterior condition of the roundhouse looks like it's operated by a near bankrupt shortline railroad rather than a corporation that brought in over $3 billion in profit last year.

 

[chrisvazquez7]

@chrisvazquez7 Is being on the fence about whether to sell/develop the land for the last few decades the reason why they've kept this yard in such poor shape? The exterior condition of the roundhouse looks like it's operated by a near bankrupt shortline railroad rather than a corporation that brought in over $3 billion in profit last year.

I don’t want to comment on my employer’s motives on a social media site, as it may not bode well for my career lol!

However, I will say that some companies are more frugal than others. And the reason they have such high profit margins can be because they skimp on maintenance, etc.