While new neighbourhoods in St. Albert are already being planned and built with considerations about sustainability, the city’s mature neighbourhoods shouldn’t be strictly off limits when it comes to more efficient ways to utilize space and decrease reliance on cars.
This is evident in St. Albert’s own Municipal Development Plan (MDP), which details plans for supporting growth within established areas in St. Albert to achieve a “complete city,” meaning a municipality that includes a variety of housing, amenities, and mobility choices.
However, finding the line between bolstering the sustainability of mature neighbourhoods such as Akinsdale and Forest Lawn, and preserving the character that drew residents there in the first place, will be a difficult undertaking.
St. Albert city council brushed up against that challenge during a June 20 council meeting where council members ultimately voted against rezoning a residential site in Braeside to accommodate a health clinic.
Though council had previously rezoned a residential site in Akinsdale to accommodate a birthing centre in June 2021, council members cited their desire not to jump the gun before a more comprehensive infill strategy — funded through budget deliberations last fall — is completed, in addition to a land-use bylaw (LUB) update projected to come before council at the end of 2022.
However, the tenor of the conversation at council raises questions about the future potency of these two guiding documents, and their ability to enact the policies within the city’s MDP.
For example, Coun. Wes Brodhead began criticizing the proposed change before the public hearing had concluded, only to be reminded by the city’s chief legislator not to enter debate before hearing out all the registered speakers.
An inability to keep an open mind about proposed changes that look to add services to older neighbourhoods might mean that when the right project comes along, the rules council establishes may be too rigid to accommodate it.
What could be lost in the process is an opportunity to incorporate measured long-term planning decisions and foster the 15-minute communities current council members advocated for during election time.
Indeed, much of the conversation surrounding the health clinic centred on projected parking issues, despite the proposed site being around 200-300 metres from a future LRT/transit station. Planning walkable cities based predominantly on the needs of cars might just lead us back to where we began — in a city where driving is by far the most viable means of getting around.
Failing to challenge existing paradigms might also have the effect of forcing innovative business owners to leave for communities more supportive of their vision, or preventing them from coming to St. Albert in the first place.
It is vital for the public to follow what is being proposed both for the land-use bylaw update and the upcoming infill policy, just as the city must ensure residents are engaged in meaningful dialogue along the way.
After all, what’s at stake is a vision for the future of St. Albert that increases both environmental and economic sustainability. Drawing the line prematurely could very well end up obscuring the path forward.
Editorials are the consensus view of the St. Albert Gazette’s editorial board.
