Every time I drive up and down St. Albert Trail, I glance at the abandoned construction site for the St. A Square Niche Development and think to myself, I wish The Blind Pig was still there. Not that I was a regular patron. I only visited The Blind Pig a handful of times over the years, but I did enjoy its quirky atmosphere while stepping back to my childhood when it was the Dairy Queen.
Some current and former councillors and mayor called The Blind Pig Pub an eye sore. It wasn't aesthetically pleasing, nor did it meet the tony suburban aspirational grandeur that has failed to materialize. But was it? The St. A square looks great online, but the way it looks today is years away from that becoming a reality, if ever, not to mention the inherent danger of expensive cranes and lifts raised into the air — an accident literally waiting to happen.
In a recent Gazette article about DARP (St. Albert's Downtown Area Redevelopment Plan), a councillor talks about "striking while the iron is hot," but I wish the city ensured a project's financial viability before signing on the dotted line. The last thing St. Albert needs is another frozen dinosaur like 214 St. Albert Trail, which has sat empty since it was completed in 2009.
Wayne Tomash, St. Albert
