Council committee approves sale of land for affordable housing development in the Quarters
Neighbours say project gives them hopes for vibrancy in too-quiet part of downtown
Long seen as an untapped area of Edmonton's downtown, the Quarters district is set to be the home of Edmonton's latest affordable housing site.
On Wednesday, city council's executive committee approved a recommendation to sell eight city-owned lots at a below-market price to e4c, a non-profit charitable organization that helps Edmonton's vulnerable inner city population.
The sale agreement lists the land price as $1,000, with a $15,000 security deposit.
The market value of the parcel — between 102A Avenue and 103rd Avenue, east of 96th Street — is estimated at $3 million.
E4c plans to construct a building that would provide 19 single-occupancy transitional housing units, about 50 shelter beds, office and services spaces, and a Women's Emergency Accommodation Centre.
The plans also call for the building to have a potential future commercial space, similar to The Hallway Café in City Hall.
The proposal is a good use of land that has long sat vacant, said Michael Lee, chair of the Chinese Benevolent Association.
"I'm in favour of having something built on that site that will serve some people who are really neglected by society overall," Lee said.
The association runs some of the Chinese seniors' facilities nearby. It was consulted on the project alongside the Chinatown Transformation Collaborative.
Both groups are in favour of the project, saying that e4c has proven to be thoughtful neighbours and good facility managers.
"We were just elated … because it will be the first new-build in the south part of Chinatown," said Sandy Pon, chair and co-founder of the transformation collaborative.
Following the committee's approval, e4c CEO Barbara Spencer said the decision will allow the organization to start next steps, such as securing funding for the building.
If the project gets built, e4c would move from its current locations at Alex Taylor School and the Gibson Block.
"The financial viability of a new building is starting to look really strong and looks even stronger now," Spencer said.
She said 100 staff would move into the new building.
Part of the reasoning for choosing the location was looking to bring development and activity to the area, she said.
"Our organization was created by organizations in the inner city. And our real focus was about downtown."
Slower growth than expected
The parcel of land has been listed for sale on the city's website for 36 months.
Coun. Anne Stevenson said the sale is a great opportunity for the city to use its land to bring activity and housing into the area.
"The rate of growth in the Quarters hasn't hasn't quite been as high as was maybe anticipated — but there has been great successes," Stevenson said.
In the last five years, the area has seen a hotel and a high-rise apartment building go up — and the city has done streetscape beautification alongside the Valley Line LRT.
But community members say the area is still too quiet.
"My father lives in one of the buildings and he always says it is so quiet in the neighbourhood," said Pon.
"It would be nice to see some more lively activities that are in the area."
According to the city's Quarters development plan, the area is currently home to about 2,400 people.
The goal is to boost the area's population to 20,000 residents. And there's a sense among the community that for the last few years, progress has stalled.
"I think there's further work and analysis that needs to be done. But the team, the city staff team that's working on the part of testing to identify some of those failures," Stevenson said.
One thing the city has tried is reassessing zoning that creates requirements for ground-floor commercial space, she said.
"I'm already hearing that there is new interest from housing developers who had looked at the area before, but they just couldn't make a mixed-market product work."
One of the challenges of the site is the Joseph Reed Residence, a historic home built in 1912, occupies one of the eight lots.
While the city has recommended preserving and repurposing the structure, e4c plans to demolish it to keep the project financially feasible.
Larissa Poseluzny, an administrator for nearby arts venue CO*LAB, said she hopes as neighbourhood development moves ahead, vulnerable populations in the area are consulted and considered — something she hasn't always seen.
"They may not have a physical address, but they are a vital part of the community and they deserve to have their voices heard as well."
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