The City of Edmonton is now proposing its new Downtown Action Plan as part of the city’s latest initiative to revitalize the downtown core.
The hope is that it would achieve the city’s goals of increasing property values, growing the number of people living downtown, reducing commercial vacancy and attracting more workers, students, and visitors to downtown.
“Our downtown is a place where commerce, diversity, and creativity flourish. It’s a place for everyone to gather to celebrate, share ideas, learn, trade and innovate,” Mayor Amarjeet Sohi said in a statement.
“The Action Plan is our road map to unlocking downtown’s full potential. It was built with input from our passionate community partners and, together, we will make meaningful progress in our downtown.”
According to the city, this five-year plan builds on existing work, including the Downtown Vibrancy strategy.
Eight actions were outlined in this plan and includes suggestions such as upgrading infrastructure (roads, sidewalks, lighting, street furniture, landscaping), exploring housing projects, increasing public amenities and programming, increasing safer public and private spaces, and expanding entertainment districts.
The Downtown Action Plan comes with a price tag of approximately $553 million.
According to a statement, roughly $511 million is leveraged through the Downtown Community Revitalization Levy, with roughly $440 million contingent on the proposed extension which hasn’t officially been approved.
Puneeta McBryan, executive director of the downtown business association, says she received overwhelming positive feedback from the introduction of last summer’s entertainment district along Rice Howard Way.
“To see just the very European-style experience on the street that the entertainment district brings. You can go and grab a beer or a glass of wine from a restaurant and stroll outside and have some gelato with your wine on the street. It felt very different and it’s the kind of experience people are looking for,” McBryan told Global News.
Currently, an entertainment district lies between 101 and 100 streets on Rice Howard Way.
The proposed expansion would include businesses along 100A Street between 102 Avenue and Jasper Avenue, as well as a few shops facing 100 Street.
There are also plans to create another entertainment district along 104 Street between 104 Avenue and Jasper Avenue.
For events that already take place on 104 Street such as the Downtown Farmers’ Market and Winterval, McBryan says it allows them to include the businesses along the path.
“Most events when we do street closures, if you want to sell alcohol, you have to set up your own beer garden and that takes business away from restaurants already there,” she explained.
There are some community groups, such as the Alberta Avenue Business Association, that question why the focus is solely on downtown.
“The last 10-year plan gave us a result of losing our tax base in downtown. Why should we keep bidding on a horse that is dead?” executive director Erick Estrada said.
“I think there is a lot more than downtown that we have to offer in Edmonton, and they’re not the only ones who could benefit from a more holistic approach. I think there are a few other areas that each district can identify as their economic priority, and we aren’t looking at that,” he added.
The plan was unanimously approved in Tuesday’s Urban Planning Committee at council, and will be discussed in a future city council meeting.