[whattheheck]

Can you define what an outlying "leech" community is to you...

The St. Alberts and Sherwood Parks, Stony Plains.
It's not just an Edmonton thing. It's a North American thing. Satellite communities adjacent to a big city always flex how much better they are. But the reality is, those municipalties only thrive because of their proximity to the city they look down upon. No big city = no prosperous satellite communities.

 

[David A]

The St. Alberts and Sherwood Parks, Stony Plains.
It's not just an Edmonton thing. It's a North American thing. Satellite communities adjacent to a big city always flex how much better they are. But the reality is, those municipalties only thrive because of their proximity to the city they look down upon. No big city = no prosperous satellite communities.

Yes not just an Edmonton thing, but calling them derogatory names probably does not help in any way at all. No doubt some in New York probably regarded Brooklyn or Queens that way too at one time, maybe some still do.

Some people in Vancouver have suspicions or strong opinions about Surrey or Burnaby, in Toronto about Scarborough or Mississauga. None of these places are going away.

Also, in some cases the satellite communities actually thrive more because of problems or perceived problems in the nearby big city. The suburbs around Detroit and Chicago seem to do ok.

 

[AJo]

Yes not just an Edmonton thing, but calling them derogatory names probably does not help in any way at all. No doubt some in New York probably regarded Brooklyn or Queens that way too at one time, maybe some still do.

Some people in Vancouver have suspicions or strong opinions about Surrey or Burnaby, in Toronto about Scarborough or Mississauga. None of these places are going away.

Also, in some cases the satellite communities actually thrive more because of problems or perceived problems in the nearby big city. The suburbs around Detroit and Chicago seem to do ok.

Civic level Capital Flight.
It creates the problem, worsens the problem and then benefits from the problem that it created.

 

[kcantor]

The St. Alberts and Sherwood Parks, Stony Plains.
It's not just an Edmonton thing. It's a North American thing. Satellite communities adjacent to a big city always flex how much better they are. But the reality is, those municipalties only thrive because of their proximity to the city they look down upon. No big city = no prosperous satellite communities.

It’s interesting what happens when you see only through a 2026 lens and the erroneous assumptions that get made as a result. While Edmonton was the earliest fort in the region, it was not the first non-fortified settlement in the region. Through that lens, it could be argued that Edmonton (and the other cities and towns she has annexed and/or amalgamated with) is the real leech in the region.

Or things could simply be more accurately described as being a region with a number of different municipalities offering a number of different things with different priorities for their current and prospective residents.

 

[Gronk!]

The metro Edmonton region should be hunting as a pack instead of operating in silos. That's why we have Edmonton Global.

Sorry, but aren't we supposed to be talking about Parking, Parking, Parking?