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EDITORIAL: Balancing act

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When it comes to growth, urban planners say higher density is the way of the future.

But dense developments often raise the ire of residents when first proposed. That age-old battle between residents and developers was on view again last week during a public hearing for a high-density seniors complex in South Riel.

Averton Homes won the battle for the last part of its 45-acre Midtown development, a seniors complex of up to 12 stories opposed by some residents in nearby Heritage Lakes. Those residents worry about living literally in the building’s shadow and reduced privacy with tower residents overlooking their backyards.

Their argument is a sympathetic one for any person who has bought a house of their own, but the need for urban densification cannot be overstated. The city is pressed to limit urban sprawl and subdivisions encroaching on valuable farmland. Building up, not out, is becoming the new normal.

While some residents acknowledged they knew the Midtown area would be developed when they bought their homes, they say they weren't expecting buildings of this height. But efforts to promote dense developments in St. Albert are nothing new. In 2018, councillors updated the city’s land use bylaw to allow denser developments – partly an effort to address density targets set by the Edmonton Metropolitan Region Board. One benefit of higher density developments is that they generally provide cheaper housing options, which St. Albert desperately needs. The city also needs more affordable housing options for seniors, which this section of the Midtown development will offer.

The Averton development is density done right: with the twinning of Ray Gibbon Drive and nearby commercial development, South Riel is a good location for a development like this one. Although the spectre of having a 12-storey building blocking residents’ views and overshadowing their homes isn’t a pleasant one, in the big picture, developments like Midtown address the so-called "missing middle" of St. Albert's real estate market: lower cost, affordable homes.

Of course, decisions to densify must be made carefully and prudently. Public transportation, green space, traffic volumes, noise levels, environmental impacts, and a host of other criteria must be carefully considered including the impact on neighbourhoods. Densification is not a concept that should be applied broadly.

Developments like this one will be coming before council with increasing regularity. Each needs to be considered on its own merit, and the concerns residents have – even if those concerns become wearisome to hear – must be respected.

In this case, council has struck the right balance between addressing residents' concerns and continuing to build St. Albert in a positive manner.

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