The Pulse
Jan. 11, 2024

Coun. Anne Stevenson uses the analogy of a plane hurtling down a runway to build lift and fly when considering the city's Blatchford development. "It takes time to pick up the speed and then to take off, and I truly feel that we are at that inflection point," Stevenson told Taproot.

Both Blatchford's critics and proponents say the question of how much runway Blatchford should get to achieve flight could be conclusively answered in 2024. This year marks a decade since city council approved the business case to fund the redevelopment of the 536-acre former downtown airport, with hopes of housing up to 30,000 people. It's been nearly 15 years since it put the first development plan in place. Since then, council has directed the city to invest more than $100 million in the project.

Blatchford's original 2014 business case expected roughly 500 housing units to be built yearly from 2018 onward, generating roughly $500 million in revenues from land sales. As of late 2023, fewer than 200 units have been built at Blatchford, or less than 10% of what was originally predicted by this time. Only 57 of those units are occupied, and revenues are also not where the decade-old business case expected them to be.

This pace has led to concern. There were almost 50,000 housing units added to Edmonton in the same time frame, said Kalen Anderson, CEO of the Urban Development Institute — Edmonton Metro. "Only 149 of them were in Blatchford," Anderson said. "And of that 50,000, 14,000 of those were infill. So it's not even like we can say that there's no infill — there's 14,000 houses that were added as infill units."

Some on city council share the concern. Last fall, at the prompting of Coun. Tim Cartmell, council asked for and received an independent market review of the project. That report suggested more than 80% of land the city has placed on offer to builders at Blatchford has sold, and that the pace of development is slow but "reasonable" and market acceptance is "improving."

Stevenson said that report and events beyond the city's control — such as the three-year pandemic — allow her to remain optimistic about Blatchford. "We went from planes landing to people living in homes in seven years," she said. She added this was in line with industry standards for new suburbs.

As 2024 opens, then, Stevenson said she's certain Blatchford is succeeding. "I think a lot of the concerns right now are premature and not borne out by what's being shown in the evidence," she said. "The amount of land that the city's going to be putting on offer next year for sale is going be twice what it was (in 2023)," Further, mainstream developers are coming in for 2024. "The phases are growing and that will lead to faster completion," Stevenson said.

Who those developers are also contributes to Stevenson's optimism. In November, Western Canadian mega-developer Qualico announced it will build townhomes at Blatchford using the StreetSide brand. "What's really exciting there, too, is that Qualico is taking a product from the new (suburban) neighbourhoods, adapting it to meet the (Blatchford) green energy requirements, which means that they can … be offering that in other neighbourhoods now," Stevenson said. "So, that to me is part of the (Blatchford) magic."

Still, Stevenson acknowledged 2024 is a big year for Blatchford. "Don't get me wrong," she said. "I think that if, a year from now, we haven't really seen an acceleration in sales and construction, then yeah I would have concerns then."

• Edmonton police and city workers dismantled the eighth and final encampment considered "high-risk," located near 95 Street and Rowland Road. Police were again met with resistance from residents, and Bear Claw Beaver Hills House organized a protest of about 30 people outside Edmonton Police Service headquarters. Crews planned to clear the eighth encampment earlier in the week but halted their plans. Three people were arrested for obstructing police on Jan. 10 and may face charges. One person was also arrested Jan. 9 and is facing charges. The Coalition for Justice and Human Rights returned to court on Jan. 10 to continue its legal action against the city, and the interim injunction requiring the city to meet certain conditions before clearing encampments was extended until Jan. 16.
• Pimatsiwin, an Indigenous-led emergency shelter at the former Sands Hotel located off Fort Road, has made 53 permanent supportive housing suites available inside an oil field camp structure and four pallet homes on the property's parking lot. Pimatsiwin is run by NiGiNan Housing Ventures, which opened the shelter two years ago after securing funding to covert the hotel. The hotel itself contains 54 permanent supportive suites, and the former bar has 34 emergency spaces. NiGiNan CEO Keri Cardinal Schulte said Pimatsiwin is a first-of-its-kind initiative in Canada and an "opportunity to redefine what a shelter space looks like for Indigenous people, by Indigenous people." Last month, some nearby residents began organizing opposition to Pimatsiwin.
• The Tyee obtained a whistleblower complaint concerning Daniel O'Connell, a head and neck surgeon who has served as interim head of the ear, nose, and throat (ENT) section of Alberta Health Services for two years and was recently appointed to a senior administrative position. The whistleblower complaint, which is dated November 2022 and signed by five surgeons, contains allegations that O'Connell engaged in a pattern of conflict of interest by promoting the delivery of private health care, including at the Canadian Cancer Care clinic, of which he is part owner. O'Connell is also alleged to have blocked a young surgeon from attaining AHS operating privileges. AHS said internal investigations are ongoing but didn't explain why it promoted O'Connell to a permanent position while he is under investigation. The Alberta NDP is calling for an independent public investigation.
• Edmonton's Food Bank said it reached its food and fundraising goals for the holiday season, having raised 300,000 kilograms of food and $4 million over eight weeks. "Donations during this time allow Edmonton's Food Bank to enter the new year ready to help people experiencing food insecurity and feed those who need it most," executive director Marjorie Bencz told Postmedia.
• A fire in a newly built home on Jan. 8 in Edmonton's Secord neighbourhood is believed to be linked to a wider extortion scheme targeting the South Asian business community. A Jan. 7 fire in a new home in the Allard neighbourhood remains under investigation. Both fires damaged neighbouring properties, but no one was injured. Earlier this month, police said they are looking into at least 18 incidents potentially linked to the scheme that have taken place since October in Edmonton and surrounding areas.
• Edmonton Fire Rescue Services confirmed that a Jan. 5 fire at a downtown highrise, located at 10020 103 Avenue, was deliberately set. The fire forced hundreds of people to flee at 4:20am, and 14 fire crews were involved in battling the blaze. Residents told CTV News that fire alarms go off in the building regularly, and people generally feel unsafe living or working there. The building is managed by Mainstreet Equity. An arson investigation is ongoing.
• Edmonton's film, TV, and video game sectors have a lot to look forward to in 2024, according to arts writer Fish Griwkowsky, who put together an overview of local talent and productions to pay attention to this year. While The Last of Us is being filmed in Vancouver this year, several other projects from Edmonton creators and actors are coming to the screen this year.
• Edmonton experienced its first low under -20°C this winter on Jan. 9, which saw temperatures fall to -20.5°C. On average, Edmonton has about 12 days with lows under -20°C by this time of the season.
• The 60th edition of Quikcard Edmonton Minor Hockey Week, organized by Hockey Edmonton, is running from Jan. 12-21. The event includes about 12,000 players from 696 teams, which represent age ranges Under-9 to Under-18. A total of 930 games will take place at 50 sheets of ice across 32 arenas in the city. Last year, the event set a Guinness World Record for largest ice hockey tournament.

Here are opportunities to get involved in civic projects, including the chance to join an advisory body or provide input to shape the city's washroom strategy.

• Apply to join a civic board — The city is running its annual recruitment campaign for committees, boards, and agencies. It is seeking 38 people to help make decisions related to accessibility and community services, transit and library services, affordable housing, climate resilience, and more. Interested residents must apply by Jan. 14.
• Public Washroom Strategy Survey — The city is developing a strategy to improve the accessibility, management, and user experience of public washrooms. Residents can complete a survey to help inform priorities for temporary and permanent public washrooms until Jan. 27.
• Winterscapes photo contest — Nominations remain open for the city's annual winter-themed photo contest. Residents can submit their own or someone else's winterscape to be considered for an award until Feb. 19.

Here are some events happening today in the Edmonton area.

• Agri-Food — Education Session starting at 10am online
• Salary Vs Dividends — How to Pay Yourself as a Business Owner starting at 10:30am online
• Chat RFP: How to maximize success with your RFPs starting at 6pm at Edmonton Unlimited

And here are some upcoming events to keep in mind:

• Jan. 16: You Otto Be Joking starting at 7:30pm at Otto Food & Drink
• Jan. 17: Carbon Talks starting at 12pm online
• Jan. 18: Success Acceleration: with Plug and Play starting at 4pm at Enterprise Square
• Jan. 18-20: Chiseled — Edmonton's International Ice Carving Competition starting at 9am daily at the ICE District Plaza
• Jan. 20-21: Deep Freeze: A Byzantine Winter Festival at the Alberta Avenue Community Centre

Visit the beta version of the Taproot Edmonton Calendar for many more events in the Edmonton region.