St. Albert is quickly expanding in the north, west and south parts of the city.
St. Albert is quickly expanding in the north, west and south parts of the city. Some notable developments include the continued development of Project 9, the new residential areas in Lakeside, Ville Giroux and Riverside and the new giant Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission building currently being developed in the south.
Last month the city’s Economic Development department hosted a bus tour of some of the major developments in the city to highlight the growth and potential in St. Albert.
To keep readers informed of the developments taking place within our borders, the Gazette took a look into these major developments and compiled a list of the projects currently underway.
North St. Albert
1. Cameron Developments – Cameron Developments Corp. has confirmed that the Erin Ridge Shopping Centre will be adding Lowe’s retail store to their roster as part of the second phase in their development. The area has been dubbed as a popular attraction for retailers looking for a new place to set up shop, thanks to the 24,000 cars that pass by daily on St. Albert Trail. The centre is 500,000 square feet and currently has 80,000 square feet left of buildings yet to be developed. Phase three will start in 2018, adding a grocery store to its complex.
2. The Urban District – Owned by Landrex, the urban-village will house St. Albert’s first residential area located right off St. Albert Trail. The 10-hectare space will have 400,000 square feet of commercial space available, which will be developed starting in 2018. Once built, the area will house ground-level commercial retailers with residential living in the second and third floors of the building. Plans are underway to relocate the former King of Kings Lutheran Church onsite, with the 10,500 square-foot building being relocated in Morinville.
3. Erin Ridge North Phase Two – The 55-hectare area is being developed by Landrex and is located north of Costco. When developed, the area will serve as a commercial corridor with medium- to high-density residential housing. Notable features of the space include multi-storey storage and a rental facility.
4. Erin Ridge North Phase One – The first phase of Erin Ridge North is almost complete. The area is home to multi-family, medium density housing. The area has a few row house-style homes for sale, along with some seniors housing. The 96-hectare area is located in the northwest quadrant of St. Albert and is bounded by the Erin Ridge neighbourhood to the south, Neil Ross Road to the north and St. Albert Trail to the west.
5. Jensen Lakes – The Jensen Lakes community will house about 5,000 residents once completed. The site is 150 hectares and is located north and west of Walmart and is bound by Villeneuve Road to the south and Sturgeon County to the north. Around 70.5 hectares of land is designated for residential, with another 10.9 hectares designated for commercial development. Residents will have lakeside access, with the lake currently being developed. 10 estate zones are being developed on an island on the lake, complete with private access to the island.
While the area is going to be offering more upscale housing, Jensen Lakes will have duplexes and row houses available. The area will be home to a new school, a church, spray park, public parks and a trail system.
6. Jensen Lakes Crossing – Both Jensen Lakes and Jensen Lakes Crossing are being developed by Melcor Developments Ltd. Jensen Lakes Crossings is located off of St. Albert Trail and Villeneuve Road. Landmark Cinemas is currently being developed and is expected to open its doors in summer 2018. Jensen Lakes Crossing will have a few restaurants in the area, with The Canadian Brewhouse being developed across from the theatre.
West St. Albert
7. Villeneuve Road – Villeneuve Road will undergo changes with plans to eventually stop intersecting with Ray Gibbon Drive. The road will curve to meet a new arterial road called Fowler Way. According to the city’s transportation master plan, which was approved in 2016, Fowler Way will reduce traffic and congestion on Villeneuve Road and
St. Albert Trail.
8. Elysian Fields – Elysian Fields has 100 hectares of land planned for low-density residential, commercial and industrial services and a golf academy. The area has an area structure plan but no developer on the site. There’s currently 21.27 hectares open for residential development, 13.87 hectares for commercial and 10.58 hectares available for industrial development.
9. Lakeview Business District – Formerly known as the Employment Lands, Lakeview Business District has 249 hectares of land and is located in the southwest quadrant of the city. The district is bounded by Ray Gibbon Drive to the east, Old McKenney Avenue and a portion of CN Sangudo subdivision to the north, the city boundary to the west and Meadowview Drive to the south. The area doesn’t have an area structure plan yet and is currently seeking a developer to begin servicing the site. The district has been designated for non-residential use and is divided into two parcels of land. Future use of the land could include retail, industrial or entertainment uses.
10. Ville Giroux – Ville Giroux contains 30 hectares of land and is located off of Giroux Road and Ray Gibbon Drive. The area will house medium-density housing mostly for multi-family units. The area currently has one apartment complex with 116 rental units, which is 90 per cent full. A second complex with the same amount of units is currently being developed, which will be available for purchase. So far a liquor store, convenience store and gas bar and day care have been confirmed at Shoppes at Giroux. A Sobeys/Safeway grocer is also expected to start developing in the area.
11. Riverside – Genstar is developing 213 hectares of land consisting of low- to medium-density residential housing. When completed Riverside will house around 8,000 residents. The area is located in the northwest quadrant of the city and is bound by Canadian National (CN) Sangudo subdivision to the north and northeast, Big Lake to the south, Sturgeon River to the southeast and Ray Gibbon Drive to the west. The development is currently in its first phase and has 900 residents living in the area so far. The second phase of Riverside will consist of a regional commercial zone, which will service the surrounding areas.
St. Albert Trail
12. St. Albert Centre – The centre is currently working on its second entrance, which is slated to be complete by the end of the year. The centre has been expanding into space left vacant when Target shut its doors in 2015. The 117,000 square-foot space will house more than 20 new retailer
s and is expected to be fully open in 2018. Payless Shoes, Stokes, Bell, Vitality Health and The Briefing Room are the stores expected to open in the new space prior to Christmas.
13. Botanica – Once the old Hole’s Greenhouse site, the new Botanica complex on Boudreau Road at Bellerose Drive features a European-style condo complex with a 4,000 square-foot rooftop terrace.
It's the first of two steel-and-concrete condo complexes and has 126 units, which have all sold. Boudreau Developments Ltd. is now starting to develop the second condo complex.
14. Italian Bakery’s Mercato – The large bakery, deli and coffee bar has been slowly developing and has plans to open by the end of the year. The 10,000 square-foot space will feature fresh Italian food and is located off of Boudreau Road and Bellerose Drive, next to Botanica.
South Riel
15. Project 9 – The giant sanitary sewer line, estimated to cost $40 million, will service new developments in west and southwest St. Albert. The city project, which is well underway, is expected to be complete by the end of the summer of 2018.
The line runs from St. Vital Avenue to the Alberta Capital Region Wastewater Commission's pump station on Sturgeon Road. Going forward drivers will see partial closures of Sturgeon Road, with traffic reduced to one lane in each direction, as the work moves to the east.
16. Midtown by Averton – Located in the southwest quadrant of the city, Midtown will feature medium density housing options in a walkable mixed-use setting. Developments on the 19.93-hectare space will begin to move forward next year, with 800 total homes once the entire subdivision is complete. The neighbourhood is expected to include a wide-range of product, from townhouses to apartments.
17. Bellevue Village – The 5.49-hectare space will hold up to 400 residents, all in rental units. CAPE Construction is currently working on a rental complex that will consist of 150 residential units. Phase two of the area is expected to take place in 2018 and the third phase is expected to take place in 2020. Once completed Bellevue Village will feature 150,000 square feet of retail space, office space, medical offices and 300 rental apartments.
18. Anthony Henday Business Park – Managed by Quadreal Property Group, the Anthony Henday Business Park is ready to start developing. A new pump house is on site and the property group is currently brokering a deal with a large tenant, to be announced. The area is 52 hectares and is an extension of the Riel Business Park, and is adjacent to Averton and CAPE’s Bellevue Village. The area is in its first phase of construction, which is focused on industrial development. Once developed, the area will be similar to Campbell Business Park.
19. Twinning of Ray Gibbon Drive – Ray Gibbon Drive has about 20,000 vehicles pass through every day. Once twinned, Ray Gibbon will have four lanes, above-grade interchanges and will serve as a Highway 2 bypass for St. Albert. The project is expected to reach completion in the next 10 to 15 years, although a date has not been solidified. The provincial government has moved the project to its unfunded list on the capital plan for the next funding cycle. The Capital Region Board has plans to help fund the project and has put Ray Gibbon Drive third on its priority list. The cost of twinning the entire 8-km route from Villeneuve Road to Anthony Henday Drive is estimated to cost $330 million.
Downtown
20. Amacon – Located on Sir Winston Churchill Ave. and Grandin Road, Amacon is developing 3.93 hectares of commercial and residential units, called Grandin Park Plaza and Grandin Parc Village. The first of two complexes, called Grandin Parc Residences has been completed – 91 units with about 30 filled. It is located in the southwest corner of the site backing onto Grendadier Park. Once the area is developed, there will be eight buildings making up Amacon’s downtown urban village.
North Campbell
21. New AGLC building – The new Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission building located on Boudreau Road and Veness Road in Campbell Business Park is still under construction. The 546,000 square foot space will be a liquor distribution centre with some office space. A total of 473,000 square feet of the building will be used as a warehouse, housing fast-moving product that is in high demand in Alberta. The $91.5 million project is around 66 per cent complete and will be finished by 2018.
