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I'll be a bit contrarian here. I know that ideally these higher density developments should be connected to transit but at the same time we always bemoan how these new communities are typically low density sprawl. I too would love more towers in central areas but I think they serve different markets entirely.

The new communities being developed are actually quite high density lately (lots of duplexes and townhome style units) and I think that should be celebrated. Many of these higher density suburban developments are adjacent to rec centers/parks (Lewis Farms) or commercial nodes (Edgemont) which inherently will lessen car dependency too. Transit service can always be brought to these areas once the population and ridership is there to support it.
 
husky said:
I'll be a bit contrarian here. I know that ideally these higher density developments should be connected to transit but at the same time we always bemoan how these new communities are typically low density sprawl. I too would love more towers in central areas but I think they serve different markets entirely.

The new communities being developed are actually quite high density lately (lots of duplexes and townhome style units) and I think that should be celebrated. Many of these higher density suburban developments are adjacent to rec centers/parks (Lewis Farms) or commercial nodes (Edgemont) which inherently will lessen car dependency too. Transit service can always be brought to these areas once the population and ridership is there to support it.
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The challenge is that there’s only so much demand for price points and types of housing. So when we continue to build high density in suburbs with no walkability or transit, far from job centres and main streets, it works against all our goals.

While some people are very particular about where they live in the city, I think a lot of people outside the henday would actually live near whyte, in blatchford, etc if we prioritized apartments there instead of off henday ramps. If all the housing in new suburbs is 400k+ and non apartments, those wanting apartments will look centrally. Maybe not right downtown, but Century park, meadowlark, Bonnie doon, etc.

We NEED tens of thousands of medium to high density units around train lines to get anywhere close to the 50% non car goal the city has. Meanwhile 75% of new apartments are outside the henday with poor transit.
 
thommyjo said:
Does the city not realize that every time they approve hundreds of apartment units in a suburb with literally no transit beyond “on demand” that it’s going to drop our proportion of non car travel (a key goal in the city plan)?

Do they think that one day people will suddenly start bussing from these areas?

I think all new high density projects should have to be within 800m of a train stop or a major bus centre.
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This should apply to all development, not just residential. What’s the point of having transit access at home if it won’t get you efficiently and reliably to and from work.
 
kcantor said:
This should apply to all development, not just residential. What’s the point of having transit access at home if it won’t get you efficiently and reliably to and from work.
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Agreed. Our rec centres not having LRT on their doorstep is the most incompetent thing I can imagine. Pisses me off so much that a simple coordination like that can’t be done between departments (no wonder we can’t seem to work with other levels of government or private sector…)
 
thommyjo said:
Agreed. Our rec centres not having LRT on their doorstep is the most incompetent thing I can imagine. Pisses me off so much that a simple coordination like that can’t be done between departments (no wonder we can’t seem to work with other levels of government or private sector…)
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I mean, most of them DO have ETS close. But yeah, LRT would be more ideal.
 
bodsbods9090 said:
I mean, most of them DO have ETS close. But yeah, LRT would be more ideal.
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Meadows and Lewis Farms? I only see bus stops with 2-3 routes nearby?

And 20-30 minute bus connections from the nearby LRTs that are only 5-10min drives away.

I.E. we literally make transit unusable vs driving.

I’m a 14min drive to the new Lewis farms rec centre. If the LRT was a direct connection it’d be 20mins on the train from my house. With the bus transfer required due to poor planning, it becomes 35mins (not accounting for waiting for a transfer to a bus that might be 10-15mins away…).

No one will take the LRT to the rec centre unless they don’t have a car. So frustrating we can’t get the simplest thing right.
 
'No one will take the LRT to the rec centre unless they don’t have a car. So frustrating we can’t get the simplest thing right'


Which is absurd given the intent to create low-carbon, highly accessible transit and public amenities.
 
IanO said:
'No one will take the LRT to the rec centre unless they don’t have a car. So frustrating we can’t get the simplest thing right'


Which is absurd given the intent to create low-carbon, highly accessible transit and public amenities.
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As I have suggested before the SE leg should extend to the Meadows rec centre down 23 ave.
 
Glenco said:
As I have suggested before the SE leg should extend to the Meadows rec centre down 23 ave.
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100%. And the west has to go to the rec centre and secord. Just wild they couldn’t get those included in massive build outs.
 
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The Capital Tower rehab project has new signage up, as it’ll be known as ‘The SunRise’.
 
I don’t remember anymore for sure, but I think I heard Avenue Living bought this. Hopefully they do a good job not just on the Reno, but attracting decent tenants and maintaining the building. Would be nice to have positive foot traffic in the area.

On paper, this should be a very popular location for students and workers. In between royal alex, downtown, and macewan
 
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