Edmonton Construction 9 (2008-08)

[240glt]

^ Yeah, I remember getting instructions to my rented dwelling when I first moved here.... "You go through a dozen or so traffic lights, make a hard right at the T intersection, make a 180 degree left, follow the road down there hill to the intersection, turn right, cross the bridge, turn right again, go up to the top of the hill, turn right again.. etc etc"

Having been in cities with major thoroughfares landing right downtown I can't say I like what that does to a city. But I do think the obvious choice was to go underground at about 79 st, pop out the side of the valley and land right about where the north bridge approach is now. Another question would be, are they going to use the berms that are in place for this very purpose already on the north side of the river ?

I still can't figure out what the OSBA argument was. To much traffic ? Not enough traffic ? What ?

[rapid_business]

/\ Well, as Puff Daddy said, "It's all about the benjamins"... (or roberts' in our case... bordens..., yeah doesn't really work)

Anyways, they still could always return to a tunnel solution in the future that will link to a new bridge. In the meantime, this works for now.

EDIT: and OSBA was concerned about the physical separation that the trough from the tunnel might leave. Think of the way a freeway does in major US cities..or even the Gardenier in Toronto.

[feepa]

Originally Posted by 240glt

Damn, According to that map I can't build the 800' tall black & yellow cinderblock tower that I planned to start next week on the vacant lot across from my house. Down with the Muni!!

Sounds like you wanted to double the size of these beauties...

http://www.emporis.com/ge/il/im/?id=195447

[ue]

About the Walterdale:

I agree that it should be replaced soon as it is aging and if we just sit on our tooshies for 20 years about it the Walterdale will be quite dangerous. A great design would be preferred, and I hope it will be a good design. Although the underground tunnel in a sense makes sense... I don't entirely get how it would work. How would one get from Gateway Boulevard to say Whyte Avenue? Wouldn't you be underground? Or would you have the choice to go past the underground on the spot of the current Gateway, just it won't turn into a bridge? Also if we want it both ways, how is it going to connect to 104 street exactly? make it underground? I'm just not sure.

[Urban_Genius]

Originally Posted by deedub35

This guy doesn't get it. It's not all about time savings. There would be improvements in safety to vehicles and pedestrians if the hairpin was removed and if Gateway Boulevard was grade separated from Saskatchewan Drive. Not to mention the perception of our city to visitors and making it easier for them to access downtown.

Agreed. Before moving here, I'd chuckle at how bush league access to downtown from Gateway is. Like this is a major thoroughfare, which quickly becomes a tiny alley. Pretty pathetic if you ask me. Makes no sense to me.

It's like the street leading to government centre, you'd hardly know you're steps away from the legislature of the richest province in the country by the looks of it.

[kcantor]

Originally Posted by Urban_Genius

Originally Posted by deedub35
This guy doesn't get it. It's not all about time savings. There would be improvements in safety to vehicles and pedestrians if the hairpin was removed and if Gateway Boulevard was grade separated from Saskatchewan Drive. Not to mention the perception of our city to visitors and making it easier for them to access downtown.

Agreed. Before moving here, I'd chuckle at how bush league access to downtown from Gateway is. Like this is a major thoroughfare, which quickly becomes a tiny alley. Pretty pathetic if you ask me. Makes no sense to me.

It's like the street leading to government centre, you'd hardly know you're steps away from the legislature of the richest province in the country by the looks of it.

then again, if those visitors would only come in on their private planes they could just get a cheap cab from ecca to downtown unlike the rest of us still trying to use a car or transit to get around... maybe we should just post some signs where qe2 enters the city that say "riff raff go home" instead of trying to make our downtown easy to get to whether you live here or not.

[Xelebes]

Originally Posted by feepa

Sounds like you wanted to double the size of these beauties...

http://www.emporis.com/ge/il/im/?id=195447

Das Link ist in Deutsch, wofur?

[newfangled]

I actually saw two pairs of beat cops walking around downtown this morning. Good to see.

Also, demo of the Rabbi's residence on Jasper between Earl's and Beth Shalom started yesterday. (It's the one that had had a whole bunch of missing siding for the last few years). I hope it doesn't become a gravel lot.

[240glt]

^ I seem to recall a 12 story rental building slated for that area. I wonder if that is going ahead.

[deedub35]

Originally Posted by Urban_Genius

Agreed. Before moving here, I'd chuckle at how bush league access to downtown from Gateway is. Like this is a major thoroughfare, which quickly becomes a tiny alley. Pretty pathetic if you ask me. Makes no sense to me.

Quite simply the city dropped the ball from day 1.

They should have drawn up some actual preliminary drawings showing the grade separation and alignment of the new road. Show the existing three lanes veering slightly east somewhere north of 82 Avenue. Show the grade of the road begining to lower near Tommy Banks Way. Show the bridge for Saskatchewan Drive over the new depressed Gateway Boulevard. Instead what was released was a sketch that amounted to a line drawn by a black felt marker on a satellite photograph.

They should have had some actual literature on the proposal. Instead, the vague description was then interpreted as a freeway in a trench.

So we will have a shiny new bridge with 4 or more lanes which is great. No traffic light at the bottom with both roads merging smoothly. That will help quite a bit.

But we still have a retarded hairpin turn. Boooooo! Has anyone ever used GPS navigation at this hairpin? What does she say? Turn left 180 degrees now!

[feepa]

From c2e

Originally Posted by etownboarder

Wow... and a response so soon...

Good morning [Etownboarder],

Thank you for writing in on this issue. Councillor Sohi has discussed your concern with me and asked me to respond on his behalf.

The Transportation and Public Works Committee did consider whether to alter the alignment of Gateway Blvd at Saskatchewan Drive to allow traffic from Gateway Blvd to travel straight through. However, Councillors decided not to pursue this option for several reasons:

1. Cost. The bridge reconstruction itself will cost about $60 million in today's dollars. Adding the underpass option would increase the cost by about $120 million. Given our current economic and fiscal challenges, Councillors couldn't justify this large an expenditure on this item.

2. Traffic. While the current hairpin turn at the top of Saskatchewan Drive is perhaps inconvenient, City traffic monitoring indicates that this is not a significant point of traffic congestion. The majority of congestion occurs either at the right turn at the bottom of the hill (which will be eliminated when the bridge is replaced) or at Gateway and Whyte Avenue. Spending $120 million on an intersection that isn't a major point of congestion was difficult to justify.

3. Future options. The new bridge will be designed in a manner that allows for the future straight-through connection of Gateway Boulevard if a future Council decides to move in that direction. In other words, while Council has decided not to pursue that option today, the option will remain open in the future.

I hope this information is helpful. Please let me know if I can provide anything further.


Logan Bayne
Executive Assistant to Councillor Amarjeet Sohi
City of Edmonton, Ward 6

----------------------

That bolded section gives me some hope that the option is still open for consideration in the future.

[0773|=\]

That's something I can live with. As long as the design is with a little foresight. Kind of like the earth-moving done along Anthony Henday. I'm sure the general public will see the need for it once more details begin to emerge. Perhaps the city will start saving their pennies for a tunnel beginning south of Whyte (with a SPUI interchange giving street-level access without disrupting that area).

[Xelebes]

Originally Posted by 240glt

^ I seem to recall a 12 story rental building slated for that area. I wonder if that is going ahead.

Hm, nice.

[Kevin_foster]

Hey Cold, just finished up a nice java in your starbucks. Now off to take some photos!

[kcantor]

the first main floor slab pour - approx. 500 cubic metres of concrete - was today. these are just from the cell phone camera but they're pretty cool anyway - at least i think so - and i'll try and get some higher res photos up in the next little while.



85' down and 85' back up in 11 months (the foreground is the lrt tunnel "lid" with formwork only on the right and the rebar mat in place on the left for tomorrow's pour):



there were approx. 120 men on site today - can you find the other 117?



tower edge between the lobby and 101 st. plaza at the north entry vestibule:



main floor lobby south of the core:



core rebar at one corner:



just "some" of the hidden conduit and sleeves:



main floor lobby north of the core looking west:



and a couple of cranes just because i like cranes:

[Kevin_foster]

^ awesome, thanks!!!

[S_B_Russell]

Plans underway for condo tower

Downtown project hinges on pre-sales

BY BILL MAH, THE EDMONTON JOURNALAPRIL 9, 2009 5:56 AM

A cool-down in Edmonton's condominium market hasn't stopped planning on new projects to go up once demand heats up again.

One of the most high-profile developments now in the planning stages is the Panorama, a 26-storey residential highrise that will overlook the legislature and river valley from a site at 97th Avenue and 104th Street, currently home to two small walk-up buildings.

City council approved rezoning the site on March 23 to allow for the 173-unit tower.

The project features a tall and slim 23-storey "Vancouver-style" tower topping a four-storey podium containing townhouses and retail space. The finish is glass, metal and brick. Like a wedding cake, the highrise narrows in articulated sections as it rises. It's targeted for a BuiltGreen gold standard for sustainability.

"We've got a lot of compliments for the architectural treatment," said Armin Preiksaitis, planner for the project being developed by Abbey Lane Homes and designed by ATB Architecture.

Plans call for five per cent affordable housing and $150,000 worth of public art.

The Edmonton region's condominium market has slowed considerably since the peak years of 2006 and 2007. One recent report by commercial real estate firm Avison Young predicted about 3,000 of 8,000 multi-family units now under construction could be delayed. So far in 2009, multiple starts have reached 360 homes in the region compared with 1,658 in the same three months last year, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.

"There's a little uncertainty with the market," Preiksaitis said. "But as we indicated to council, the idea would be to start on the design drawings, and the banks are pretty sticky right now, so you would have to have a certain amount of retail."

Pre-sales could start in 2010.

"I think this is a distinctive building. There's quite an inventory of a lot of condominiums that have been approved, but I think a lot of the other ones are in sort of mediocre locations, so this would appeal to a lot of people."

The location, on the 104th Street corridor connected by a pedestrian staircase up a hill to a growing retail and residential presence to the north, is a selling point.

Preiksaitis said other highrise projects his firm is working on are in various stages of planning, including the Urbia development, featuring 40-storey and 50-storey towers, proposed for 104th Street and 102nd Avenue; and the 26-storey Raintree proposed for 97th Avenue and 106th Street.

Two other highrise projects his firm isn't involved with, Opus and Founder's Ridge, were approved by council last year for a location one block north of the Panorama site.

[email protected]

© Copyright (c) The Edmonton Journal
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/Business/Plans+underway+condo+tower/1480601/story.html

[S_B_Russell]

Secondary suite plan to be overhauled


BY ALEXANDRA ZABJEK, THE EDMONTON JOURNALAPRIL 9, 2009 2:03 AM

A program to increase the number of secondary suites in the city could be overhauled so that only homeowners who live in their houses are eligible for grants.

The change could come at a time when the $11.4-million, year-old program has approved just 29 applicants, causing some to wonder if it's the right time to tighten the rules.

The Cornerstones program offers up to $24,000 to homeowners who want to create or update basement suites in their homes and who commit to rent them at below market rates. At this point, they don't have to live in the house in order to qualify for the money.

That doesn't sit well with Coun. Don Iveson. He said professional landlords have already received incentives to create secondary suites, with a recent bylaw that allows the suites in most city neighbourhoods and changes to building and safety codes.

"My issue with the grants going to business people is that I don't think they need it. I think the homeowners and prospective home owners need it more," he said, following an executive committee meeting Wednesday.

The issue sparked debate at the meeting about renters and absentee landlords, with questions raised about whether having an owner live in part of a rental house is the best option for communities.

"There's no demonstrable indication that owner-occupancy would make for a better circumstance for incorporating secondary suites into a neighbourhood," said Terry Loat, the city's housing manager.

With just 29 successful applicants to the program, Loat fears an owner-occupancy requirement could translate into fewer basement suites. The city has received less than a hundred applications, and the overwhelming majority have come from owner-occupants.

Loat blamed slow uptake on the program to previously strict rules on where basement suites could be built, and the economic downturn, which has left some people hesitant to buy or build new homes.

The issue will go before city council for a final decision.

The Cornerstones grant program has enough money to create more than 500 secondary suites in Edmonton and is part of a broad affordable housing initiative.

[email protected]

© Copyright (c) The Edmonton Journal
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/news/Secondary+suite+plan+overhauled/1480593/story.html

[Kevin_foster]

Now is the time to build. Don't expect line ups though. ROI upfront may be low; but I think in the long run it will do just fine. Don't wait until another boom to build!

Plus right now you can be the REAL boss of your contractors.

[Kevin_foster]

Oh and FYI Abbey Lane is who did One River Park AND The Venetian.