Walkability emphasized in long-term plan for Old Strathcona area

Edmonton metropolis assembly is debating the aboriginal of Old Strathcona, wherever the southbound Edmonton area’s aboriginal could spot much pedestrian-friendly spaces — but the tradeoff is less places to park.

The Old Strathcona Business Association is good with that, arsenic it says funds for infrastructure renewal successful the country are desperately needed.

“We spot millions of dollars being invested successful rehabilitating different areas of the metropolis and we person not had our just share, and it’s long, agelong overdue,” said Cherie Klassen, the enforcement manager of the Old Strathcona Business Association.

She said the Whyte Avenue country attracts implicit a cardinal visits each year. About fractional of that unsocial is during the Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival each August.

“We person mode much ft postulation than conscionable astir immoderate different country of the city, truthful it is agelong overdue to put successful our assemblage due to the fact that we besides person a immense taxation base,” Klassen said.

On Tuesday, metropolis councillors connected the municipality readying committee heard from Edmontonians astir the Old Strathcona Public Realm Strategy.

The strategy’s recommendations see 7 cardinal actions:

1. Create a District Park
2. Create a Gateway Greenway
3. Create an Urban Plaza
4. Improve End of Steel Park and enactment mixed-market improvement of the parking lot
5. Support improvement adjacent to Connaught Armoury
6. Pedestrianize 83 Avenue
7. Prioritize pedestrians connected Whyte Avenue and the summation of wide transit

The program talks astir improvements to the area, including turning the city-owned parking batch leased to the Old Strathcona Farmers Market on Gateway Blvd. into a park.

All this would hap implicit a fewer decades.

“I can’t ideate a script that 20 years from now, we inactive person a aboveground batch beside 1 of our busiest main streets successful the city,” said Ward Nakota Isga councillor Andrew Knack.

The strategy besides suggests closing parts of 83rd Avenue to vehicles. The nonaccomplishment of parking is concerning for immoderate section businesses.

The Varscona Theatre and farmers marketplace accidental a batch of their customers aren’t needfully section — immoderate travel to the marketplace from the city’s suburb neighbourhoods, but determination are besides radical who thrust successful from surrounding communities.

“We would beryllium blessed to spot immoderate of the parking enactment and spot immoderate of it go. I deliberation what we’re looking present is to find a mediate crushed and determination has to beryllium one,” said Varscona Theatre enforcement manager Kendra Connor.

The theatre connected 83rd Avenue, crossed the roadworthy from the farmers market, would specifically similar to spot the aboveground batch for the play marketplace remain.

“We truly privation to marque definite that patrons, adjacent arsenic acold arsenic 10 years successful the future, person the quality to parkland successful our neighbourhood.”

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However, the Old Strathcona Business Association believes little postulation is key. Klassen said the country would thrive with much pedestrians and greenish spaces.

“This is astir a multi-million-dollar concern that we person not seen since the 1980s, truthful squandering that accidental would beryllium a implicit waste,” she said.

The metropolis counted publicly-available parking spaces and their usage from 109th Street to 99th Street and 85rd Avenue to 79th Avenue (a 5 to 7 infinitesimal locomotion connected ft to/from Whyte Avenue) implicit 3 days ( from a Thursday to a Saturday).

A metropolis survey recovered determination are 3,500 nationalist parking spaces made up of on-street and publically disposable off-street parking successful Old Strathcona. Of those, 1,965 were on-street curbside parking spaces.

The metropolis said utilization (for on-street curbside) was mostly beneath 65 per cent with a highest of 72 per cent: On average, determination were betwixt 250 to 500 parking spaces astatine immoderate fixed clip disposable wrong 1 artifact from Whyte Avenue.

City information shows currently, two-thirds of radical who travel to Whyte Avenue bash not sojourn by car. Ward papastew councillor Michael Janz said the metropolis needs to program for erstwhile that fig grows.

“Parking you spot contiguous volition beryllium present tomorrow, volition astir apt beryllium present 5 years from now,” Janz said.

“But what’s going to alteration successful aboriginal is we’re going to person much autobus work coming to Whyte, that we’re going to person much progressive proscription connectivity.”

On Tuesday, metropolis councillors asked medication to survey the parking contented much and travel backmost with reports successful 2025.