St. Albert residents aren't against low-income people or affordable housing.
That's the message coming from St. Albert city councillors and residents in the wake of a controversial letter that's sparked outrage in online forums and even generated national attention.
In a letter printed in the Gazette Saturday, Kingswood resident Chris Perry sparked an outcry by suggesting that an affordable housing project proposed for Akinsdale would attract crime and unruly families. Perry wrote that he moved to St. Albert to give his children "a better upbringing" in a city whose higher standard of living is attributable to the high or above average incomes of its residents.
"What we want is for St. Albert to remain as it is with very few low-income households," he wrote.
Various online forums have attracted vitriolic criticism of Perry but also the suggestion that he's articulating a belief that's widely held but not voiced by others. No one is saying that publicly.
"I just do not believe that's what people think and are not willing to say," said St. Albert Coun. Lorie Garritty. "My experience with people in St. Albert is they do say what they feel."
Keri McEachern, a low income single mother from Akinsdale, agreed.
"I've always found St. Albert to be a compassionate community," McEachern said. "I hope people will see that letter as the drivel that it is."
The CEO of Habitat For Humanity — Edmonton, which is behind the proposed development, said he hasn't detected an anti-affordable housing vibe.
"The citizens of St. Albert are very kind, helpful, generous people," said Alfred Nikolai. "We built four homes there this summer and we had over 1,000 people from St. Albert give eight hours of work."
Coun. Gareth Jones thinks the most important part of the letter uproar is the online rallying cry taken up by St. Albert residents.
"They're just as aghast as I am that someone would write something like that," he said.
Akinsdale resident Gerry Kress, who has been an outspoken critic of the project proposed by Habitat, doesn't think the letter represents the majority view of St. Albert or Akinsdale.
"I hope that it doesn't paint Akinsdale people as having that attitude, because we don't," Kress said.
Some truth to message
In an interview Monday, Perry said the wording of his letter did a poor job of conveying what he was really trying to say.
"There's so many things in that letter, that in my head I was thinking one thing and I wrote something that only showed pieces of what I felt," he said. "I apologize to anybody that I offended. I didn't mean to say what people are taking it as at all."
Perry explained that the 58-unit development proposed for the Akinsdale site is too dense for the space. City council also has to consider whether the city has the right mix of amenities that low-income people need, given that its transit system isn't as efficient as Edmonton's and the cost of living is higher, Perry said.
As an example, he said that organized sports cost more than in Edmonton because many St. Albert parents are willing to pay extra costs for tournaments and travel rather than fundraise.
"It's going to affect everybody, including the people that are moving in. That's what I was trying to get across," he said.
McEachern agreed that St. Albert is a costly place to live and has people who judge, which was another point Perry raised in his letter.
"He is right. My children are in ringette and the team fees are astronomical compared to Edmonton," McEachern said.
"Kids are judged by the car their parents drive and where they live, Akinsdale versus Erin Ridge, but I think it's really up to the parents to be the teachers," she said.
McEachern hopes the Akinsdale development can proceed and blend into the community so its residents aren't "singled out as the poor group."
On the whole, she feels that low-income people can flourish in St. Albert.
"My children are fully accepted in the community. I'm fully accepted in the community," she said. "I'm treated better as a single parent in St. Albert than I was when I lived in north Edmonton."
Garritty felt Perry was missing the point by suggesting that the affordable housing complex would bring in low-income people from outside the city.
"These people live here now. They're not coming in from someplace to move into affordable housing in St. Albert," Garritty said.
Process proceeding
The city is in the process of hiring a third-party facilitator to oversee a series of roundtable sessions aimed at finding an acceptable compromise for 70 Arlington Dr., said Mayor Nolan Crouse. Habitat wanted to build a 58-unit townhouse complex but neighbourhood resistance prompted council to seek more consultation. The roundtables are due to make recommendations to council by May 15.
Crouse refused to comment on the letter itself, saying he was treating it the same as the 500 others received during a public hearing that is still open.
He did say the letter won't have any effect on the city's pursuit of a solution for 70 Arlington Dr.
"It's one letter," Crouse said. "It's inflamed peoples' opinions but I don't feel any additional pressure because of it."
