Old meets new: Tower in historic warehouse on Edmonton's 104th Street gets nod from city council
CBC
A piece of Edmonton's history will be preserved as developers get ready to build a 40 to 45-storey tower in the middle of the 111-year-old brick warehouse building, city council heard during a public hearing Wednesday.
Stantec and Limak Investments Inc. plan to build the tower on the site at 103rd Avenue and 104th Street, where the Horne & Pitfield warehouse sits.
The developers pledge to preserve the south and west-facing brick facades and designate them a municipal historic resource, meaning that they're responsible for maintaining the historic nature of the facades into the future.
City council unanimously approved the application Wednesday to rezone the site, allowing the mixed-use tower to be built on the lot.
David Johnston, principal heritage planner with the City of Edmonton, said the city supports the proposal as a balanced approach to development and preservation.
"The risk of losing the building was very high," Johnston said. "I think in this case, we've landed on a decent compromise to retain the two key facades of the building that have the most prominence and profile to the surrounding streets."
Johnston said there is high demand to develop the area and pressure on the city to approve new developments.
The city aims to balance redevelopment, density, affordable housing and economic development while preserving heritage value, he said.
"Meeting these objectives of a growing city, you know, sometimes we have to make these types of flexible arrangements," Johnston said.
Damir Blazeka with Stantec told council that they worked with city planners to make sure the materials and design match neighbouring architecture.
"Above the podium, there's a slim tower with exterior finishes that would complement and blend in with the surrounding environment of the Ice District and other new developments in the area," Blazeka said.
The mixed-use tower will have commercial space on the bottom level, a hotel above that and apartments higher up.
Coun. Jo-Anne Wright approves of the city's approach.
"I do think it's a really nice blend of the old and the new. I like the way that they've put it together," Wright told CBC News Wednesday.
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