Progress on Blatchford development lacks clarity and targets, City of Edmonton audit report shows

City managers overseeing the development at Edmonton's Blatchford need to clearly define targets and report progress so Edmontonians better understand what's happening on the 500-acre piece of land, a new city audit says. 

"Overall we found that the Blatchford Redevelopment Office does not have an effective system to track whether it is achieving all of its goals," the report says. 

In 2014, council approved a set of goals for the Blatchford business case around energy, water use, transportation, affordable housing, green construction, density and profitability. 

The city aims to have 30,000 residents live on the former City Centre Airport grounds by 2042, and be 100 per cent carbon neutral. 

It's a long way from that goal. 

Tom Lumsden, development manager for Blatchford, said 84 homes are currently occupied on the piece of land in central Edmonton, up from 20 when the first unit was built four years ago. 

In discussing the findings at an audit committee meeting on Monday, Mayor Amarjeet Sohi asked for the latest numbers.  

"So it's not a huge success," Sohi said.

Many more lots are being sold, Lumsden said, with one developer in particular looking to build on 60 lots. 

"We have made progress on that," he said. "We also have a deal with a builder to build multiple lots, or to buy multiple lots in our next stage, part of that 190-unit townhouse development."

Including units under construction brings the total number up to 156 homes, Lumsden said in a follow-up email Monday. 

Another 163 units are expected to be constructed on lots already sold, he said, and the city recently adjusted the zoning in the area to allow for more narrow lots to build more units.

Some city councillors and the mayor expressed disappointment with the pace of development and the lack of reporting.  

Coun. Tim Cartmell said there's not a lot of consistent data.