Alberta - Tier II City Thread

[SunCoaster]

The following link provides the 2006 census figures for all of Alberta cities, towns and villages ... there are a number of surprises (well at least as far as I'm concerned ...) - for example ... Airdrie is over 29,000 and for years it used to grow @ about the same pace as Leduc yet Leduc is now about 1/2 of Airdrie's population ... another example there are about several towns (eg. Cochrane, Strathmore, Stony Plain etc.) which have populations in the same range as some of Alberta's smaller cities (eg. Wetaskiwin, Brooks) ... and then there's unincorporated hamlet of Sherwood Park which is pushing 56,000 ... and so on ...

http://www.municipalaffairs.gov.ab.c...es/2006pop.pdf

[mersar]

The +10,000 population towns not going for city status is a fairly wide trend now, theres now the following that could go for it:

• Canmore ( 12,039)
• Cochrane (13,760)
• Lacombe ( 10,742)
• Okotoks (17,145)
• Stony Plain ( 12,363 )
• Strathmore ( 10,225)

Those above are the federal census numbers from 2006, the numbers in that PDF from the province are just estimates (some off a lot, for instance it lists Okotoks at 11,000, not the 17,000 the census found)

And the census count for Sherwood park was 82,511 in 2006.

[CanadianCentaur]

Originally Posted by mersar

And the census count for Sherwood park was 82,511 in 2006.

That's for all of Strathcona County, not just SP. SP alone is about 56-58,000.

[mersar]

Ah, so it is. Didn't pay attention to the link the search on statscan gave me.

[lubicon]

From the Alberta Infrastructure website....



Grande Prairie bypass unclogs city arteries

Industry invited to bid on first project for the new bypass

Grande Prairie... Start of construction on the Grande Prairie bypass is one step closer, as the Alberta government invites industry to competitively bid on the first project, a new overpass. The new two-lane overpass bridge will accommodate eastbound traffic from the future Highway 43 bypass over Highway 2. Westbound traffic will use the existing two-lane overpass bridge.

"The new overpass bridge marks the start of the Grande Prairie bypass," said Luke Ouellette, Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation. "This is a tremendous move forward and the initial work of the overpass and first few kilometers of the bypass will provide an immediate reduction in the volume of industrial traffic through the City of Grande Prairie. When completed, the 14-kilometre bypass will mean reduced congestion and increased safety for Grande Prairie motorists."

The cost of the overpass construction will be determined following the completion of the tender process, set to close July 12. Construction could begin as early as fall 2007, pending the results of the bidding process, with work on the overpass structure completed by fall 2008.

"The bypass is a critical infrastructure investment that will go a long way to improving traffic congestion in and around Grande Prairie,"said Mel Knight, Minister of Energy and MLA for Grande Prairie-Smoky.

The overpass would open to traffic following the completion of three kilometres of roadway connecting 116 Street (Range Road 63) with the new overpass structure and the existing eastbound Highway 43 lanes. Land negotiations for the Highway 43 bypass right-of-way are currently underway and construction timelines on the roadwork will be set after the negotiations are finalized.

"Moving the large transport vehicles around the outskirts of the city will help relieve some of the pressures on our local roads and help make driving safer for all motorists," said Gordon Graydon, MLA for Grande Prairie-Wapiti.

As part of the initial bypass work, the Government of Alberta is also finalizing an agreement with CN Railway to construct a new bridge over the railway track east of the Highway 43 and Highway 2 interchange.

New highway construction is one of the actions under Premier Ed Stelmach's plan to manage growth pressures. Other priorities for the government are to govern with integrity and transparency, improve Albertans' quality of life, build a stronger Alberta, and provide safe and secure communities.

[lubicon]

and sme more

Work starts on the twinning of Highway 63

Fort McMurray... Construction has begun on twinning the first section of Highway 63 south of Fort McMurray from Highway 69 to south of Highway 881. This is the first section of the 240-kilometre twinning project to begin between Fort McMurray and the junction of Highway 55 near Grassland.

"This is the first leg of an immense 240-kilometre twinning project that will increase safety for motorists and improve access to the oilsands," said Luke Ouellette, Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation. "This section of road has traffic volumes almost double the rest of the highway and is our top priority for twinning."

Minister Ouellette was joined by Guy Boutilier, Minister of International, Intergovernmental and Aboriginal Relations and MLA for Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo to officially mark the start of construction by climbing onto construction equipment on the future northbound lanes of Highway 63. Twinning of the first section of highway will cost $53 million and is scheduled to be completed and open to traffic by fall 2008.

"Residents of Fort McMurray have waited for this day with great anticipation," said Boutilier. "As a long-time supporter of twinning Highway 63, I'm pleased construction is underway. The twinned highway will improve safety for motorists and support the industrial development in the oilsands."

Construction will begin on the remaining 224 kilometres of twinning south of Highway 881 as designs are completed and federal environmental permits are obtained. The total cost of twinning the 240-kilometres of highway is estimated to be more than $940 million. The province will contribute more than $790 million toward the twinning project and up to $150 million will come from the federal government under the Canada Strategic Infrastructure Fund.

This project is one of several underway this year to improve safety and expand the capacity of the provincial highway network in the Wood Buffalo region.

Road repair and construction is one of the actions under Premier Ed Stelmach's plan to manage growth pressures. Other priorities for the government are to govern with integrity and transparency, improve Albertans' quality of life, build a stronger Alberta, and provide safe and secure communities.

[djcollege]

The population of Lethbridge is now 81,692, up 3.78% per cent since 2006 The City of Lethbridge has just released the latest Census data and have posted detailed information on the city's website at < http://www.lethbridge.ca/home/City+H...Council/Census >. Although this is not the same base census information as the official StatsCan data used for comparison to other census divisions, nonetheless the data is interesting for what it reveals about Lethbridge and it's growth patterns from year to year.

[Boris2k7]

Red Deer makes peace with county
Dan Singleton, For the Calgary Herald
Published: Saturday, July 07, 2007

A long-running dispute between the City of Red Deer and Red Deer County over land use issues was brought to an official end Friday.

"We have adopted a plan that will give citizens, the business community and service institutions the assurance they need to make investments in central Alberta," said Red Deer Mayor Morris Flewwelling.

Under the plan, the county agrees to support the city's existing annexation and land purchases, as well as an upcoming residential annexation. In turn, the city has agreed to remove land use disputes and appeals pending against the county.

Also under the plan, the industrial Gasoline Alley area, directly south of Red Deer, and the hamlet of Springbrook will remain county growth areas.

Growth areas for Red Deer set out in the plan will allow the city to accommodate more than 300,000 people, compared with the current 85,000.

"It represents significant co-operation between the two councils and municipalities to forge a strong relationship with a strong commitment to the future of the respective municipalities as well as central Alberta," said Red Deer County Reeve Earl Kinsella of the plan.

[softee]

Red Deer is becoming the Barrie of Alberta.

[CanadianCentaur]

A 12-storey tower proposal for GP!

Now, if there was a rendering around....

On the up and up

KEVIN CRUSH
Herald-Tribune staff
Monday July 09, 2007
The landscape of downtown is looking up again.

City development officers have confirmed a 12-storey residential/commercial tower is being planned for the current site of the existing Northern Bottling building.

“It is going to be a mixed-use building, with the first two storeys offices and maybe a restaurant in it. The rest of it will be two-bedroom apartments type of scenario,” said Polash Miah, a development officer for the city.

Along with its roof, Miah said the proposed development will likely be similar in size to 214 Place, which will be just south from the new tower. Land Architects is developing the building, however architect Greg Kloberdanz could not be reached before press time.

It’s good to see that Grande Prairie’s city centre is attracting these types of developments, said DownTown Association chairman Harold Friesen.

“We know that things are moving in a positive forward direction, but it’s nice to see that other people know the same thing, that they can also see that the downtown has become a vibrant, very viable place to be.”

In particular, Friesen likes the idea it is being proposed as mainly a residential building, which will keep more people in the downtown area.

“We’ve been encouraging more residential development downtown because both help each other, let’s put it that way. Retail helps residential and residential helps retail. It also helps that there are people living downtown 24 hours a day.”

Having seen the plans for the tower, Friesen said the association is excited by what they see.

“We think it’s great. It’s a beautiful development.”

Still in the development permit stage, Miah said existing plans show the tower would likely have a mix of offices and commercial space on the first two floors as well as one restaurant. The remainder will all be residential units.

Parking for the new structure would be underground.

In the city centre, while new commercial buildings are limited to a height of six storeys, residential towers are allowed to be built up to 12 storeys. The height of the building shouldn’t be too much of a concern, said Miah. The site itself is adjacent to 214 Place and will put the high-rises next to each other.

Geologically, even though it is close to the Bear Creek bank, the tower should also not be a worry, said Miah. The city has asked for a geotechnical report to be done on the proposed tower, but Miah doesn’t believe the development will be affected much.

While it is close to the bank, the tower is quite distant from the creek itself with Muskoseepi Park and parking lots in between.

However, based on any recommendations that might come from the report, the tower’s size could be limited, or the foundation may have to be built deeper to allow the full 12 storeys. But Miah noted he didn’t believe there would be much of an issue.

[Xelebes]

Sweet news!

[Calgarian]

I think my firm did that Red Deer building, I'll see if I can find a bigger rendering.

[YYCguys]

Originally Posted by frinkprof

I have absolutely no idea. I just did a google search for "University of Lethbridge Master Plan"

I was mainly interested because I grew up in Lethbridge close to the university, my sister went there, and my brother currently goes there.

I paid a visit there less than a month ago and they had recently completed a new gymnasium and fitness centre, it looked pretty good. They are also working on an expansion to another building although I can't remember which. I can certainly see expansion being ramped up there since their enrollment is growing quite a bit, partially due to Calgary-area kids that can't get into U of C due to enrollment space issues.

Expansion is to Turcotte Hall, attached to the wellness centre and student's union centre.

Other active or soon to be active building projects on campus include a new management building, a new water sciences building, and a fieldhouse. I also heard there is to be more residences, but can't confirm this.

[slapshot™]

Originally Posted by SunCoaster

The following link provides the 2006 census figures for all of Alberta cities, towns and villages ... there are a number of surprises.....

http://www.municipalaffairs.gov.ab.c...es/2006pop.pdf

The census for Lloydminster on that pdf was taken in April 2005.

2005:
Alta side - 15,487
Sask side - 8,156
Total - 23,643

2007:
Alta side - 16,786 (+8.39%)
Sask side - 8,737 (+7.12%)
Total - 25,523 (+7.95%)

Somehow Lloyd tends to get missed when discussing smaller communities in Alberta.

[frinkprof]

Originally Posted by YYCguys

Expansion is to Turcotte Hall, attached to the wellness centre and student's union centre.

Other active or soon to be active building projects on campus include a new management building, a new water sciences building, and a fieldhouse. I also heard there is to be more residences, but can't confirm this.

Cool, I was actually thinking that new residences would be good to see.

I had heard about the management building, but not the others. Other buildings that have been recently completed are the Library and the Neuroscience building.

Any which way, it will be good to see that campus grow.

In the basement of U Hall by the art gallery, there is actually an old scale model of the campus and it's expansion plans as they existed several years or even decades ago.

[djcollege]

Originally Posted by freeweed

I don't see why it's offensive, it's just a statement of fact...

... Hell, looking at the country as a whole you'd certainly rank Calgary and Edmonton as "Tier II" cities - and I don't see a single thing wrong with that.

In the spirit of your post, though, we could go this route: Calgary and Edmonton are now labelled "Tier I" cities, and the Red Deers, Lethbridges, etc are labelled "Class A".

Here! Here! I move to re-label Alberta's mid-sized cities as "Class A". Only a few ex patriots of one of these urban locations, and those that couldn't desert them when the living was not so good would understand a tag like the one you suggest - freeweed.

[CanadianCentaur]

GP's now past the 50K mark. Looks like the growth's not even slowing down!

Grande Prairie Eclipses 50,000 Population Mark
Monday, August 20, 2007 4:02:00 PM

It's official! Grande Prairie has more than 50,000 residents.

Results of the Municipal Census undertaken in late spring show the City’s new population is 50,227, a 6.69 percent increase over the 2006 Statistics Canada figure of 47,076. The City’s population has climbed by 12.53 percent since the 2005 City enumeration, which recorded Grande Prairie with 44,631 residents.

Anticipating high growth had occurred, a census was held to help establish the City’s population. Grant dollars increase with a higher number of residents. As well, the City budget and business planning assumption requires accurate population information.

“We’re delighted to reach this important threshold,” says Mayor Wayne Ayling. “This information will help us address the service needs of our bourgeoning population. These increases confirming Grande Prairie’s status as a growing, vibrant Canadian city are also important to the business community and investors. Fifty is a significant number as we celebrate our half-century mark as a City in 2008.”

Last year’s federal census established Grande Prairie as the second fastest growing city in Alberta, behind Airdrie. That head count indicated the City is the third fastest growing mid-sized urban centre in the nation.

A report providing detailed analysis of the census will be prepared in late September, highlighting more in-depth information such as gender, age and other demographic data on a neighbourhood basis. The 2007 Population Analysis Report will be available for purchase. Residents will be able to access a summary on the City’s website.

[Boris2k7]

*whistles*

That is pretty impressive growth for a city of that size. GP's going to pass Medicine Hat pretty soon then. Or is the Hat experiencing a boom as well?

[CanadianCentaur]

Medicine Hat's apparently doing pretty well in terms of population growth partly because it has large natural gas reserves around it, but it's not exactly booming like GP or Red Deer.

The Hat's population is currently 56,997 according to its 2007 census. GP could reach this many people in as little as just a couple of years, and may probably surpass Medicine Hat in population sometimes before 2015 or even 2012.

I know that Medicine Hat and Red Deer were both about the same size (about 30,000) way back around 1975. GP was only around 17,000 at that time. But as the oil boom in Alberta picked up throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, Red Deer's growth began to accelerate and pulled further away from Medicine Hat in population.

Red Deer now has 85,706 people as of its 2007 census, so the gap has now widened to 28,709.

Medicine Hat historical population growth:
http://www.medicinehat.ca/City%20Gov...y%20Census.pdf

Red Deer historical population growth:
http://www.reddeer.ca/Connecting+wit...on/History.htm

Grande Prairie historical population growth and projections:
http://www.cityofgp.com/citygov/edev...ion_growth.htm

[neilson]

Originally Posted by CanadianCentaur

^I don't know what they'll do with the old library when the new one opens. But I can remember when it used to be an ALCB liquor store!

As for when the new library/rec centre starts construction - I don't know. It depends on the funding they're getting, which isn't much yet. Not only that, the labour shortage is so bad in GP that I'm told they can't even find a contractor to build the Fusion Plaza, which is the 12-storey three tower condo project. Hell, my sister in law's dad is a home builder and he tells me that they have a lot of trouble even keeping builders for long.

Here's an honest solution for Alberta to fix their labor shortage. Come down to the USA and get these Illegal Aliens from Mexico to start coming to your province. They'll get paid better and it'll have a huge dent in the labor crunch from Lethbridge on up to Fort Mac. After all, we're all 1 big NAFTA family. Might as well use Mexico as the #1 spot for labor in addition to Newfies.