LDA23-0057 Griesbach Battalion Square

This development is poorly placed. The area should be placed with a community hall or family fun space. The developer just cares about money not people at all. The living environment in Griesbach is getting worse because so crowd, dirty, polluted and lots of construction around now. We pay very high taxes in this neighbourhood because the lovely environment, the development was never proposed to be in this location and now all of us that have purchased homes around it will suffer. This will bring excessive traffic, noise and people. We are totally disagree for the development. We hope the planner can listen to our voice and don’t continue to ruin our beautiful community!

It is very bad bad idea and will be too much traffics. This is a resident area now looks like business area. And please do not build 6-story building.

Disagree with the plan as the area is overpopulated

Too many condo apartments already.

I just learned about this proposal today, on the last day to provide feedback. I think that says a lot about the poor communications around this proposal. I am very concerned that yet another proposal is being made to create a 6 story building, when the Master Plan clearly stated no buildings higher than 4 stories. I am very concerned over the increased traffic and parking demands it will bring onto roads that are not likely to be sufficient to hold them. As well as the increased noise it will create. Adding more and more commercial spaces when we can’t even fill existing ones seems like a poor decision. Please develop this with a “person first” mentality, not a “profits first” mentality. In Griesbach, we envision a neighborhood that’s for people, prioritizing things like walkability, and safe, family-centre neighborhoods with beautiful things like accessible community gardens and thoughtful and innovative park designs. Not a place with towering high rises of cold, soulless, modern, concrete and glass buildings that cast deep shadows onto existing families’ homes. That’s not the vision for Griesbach, and this certainly isn’t the location for this type of proposal, as others here have more eloquently stated. And like others, I know that it is very likely our concerns will be ignored and that the time I’ve given here is pointless and fruitless…

will be too much traffic in this area

Peaceful, safe, silent, family friendly, and convivial, this dreamy area of Griesbach attracted couples and families who finally found a place to be happy. What a joy it is to say yes to a 6-year old asking to go ride their bike! How soothing to go for a walk, breathing clean air away from any traffic. You get the gist; this is how house builders promoted this area, starting in 2019 (phases 19-20-27).
Four years after, this rezoning notice strikes us all. Instead of the expected single-family houses, around 100 apartments will appear. A quick at the lot map reveals that 20 houses could be built. If all had a party on the same day, 20 cars would be parked in the surrounding streets.
With the planned building, would there be 200 car stalls underground? Big enough for the 25% of pick-ups? Not a chance. Where do visitors could park? Our beloved streets will be adorned with an endless line of cars parked bumper to bumper and the marvellous feeling we currently have living in this area of Griesbach will vanish.
Noise, pollution, crowdedness, insecurity, and feeling of confinement would become the reality of many who were convinced they found a safe haven here. It really is a heartbreaker.
Too few people knew about this notice. I was walking yesterday (July 30) on Hampton Gray Avenue and met people from 3 distinct addresses. I reminded them to share their feelings about it before the closing date. None of them knew about the project, so they cannot even respond here…
What a betrayal to us, residents!

There seems to be a common theme where a majority of residents have paid their hard earned money to live in this community for what it was envisioned versus what is proposed. The 6 stories building is too high, especially for the center of this community. 4 stories okay. I also think that this type of building should be located somewhere else. We moved into this neighborhood thinking it would be focused for young families and so far these new developments have shown otherwise.
The extra traffic will rip through the neighborhood, and we already have problems nearby on Pegasus with speeders.

I do not believe we will get any new commercial stores that we do not already have around us.

I know the city will not listen or consider these comments even though say they will...

Griesbach is a jewel in the Northside and I'm worried its character will be lost for profit.

This development is being suggested for the wrong location. Public transit is a good thing, as is high density housing, if put in the right place. This development is placed in the centre of the Griesbach residential area of narrow, slow roads. It invites traffic to travel through the entire neighbourhood. Something of this scale could be placed along many other places around the perimeter of Griesbach. Especially when there are endless options all around the zone. This is poorly planned. A six storey building is ridiculous in that small space and the local streets cannot handle the traffic for the new residents and the commercial properties as well. The Training Centre should be turned into a community resource. Why has the City not allowed and helped provide a community league hall?

This development is poorly placed. The area is too small for this scale of development. Additionally, there are several commercial centres within walking distance. The buildings that are proposed are far too big, will detract from the character of the neighbourhood, and will block all sunlight from the surrounding properties. This type and size of development was never proposed to be in this location and now all of us that have purchased homes around it will suffer. This will bring excessive traffic, noise and pollution to this part of Griesbach. Placing this zone in the middle of the neighbourhood will force people to drive through the neighbourhood and cause parking issues as well as safety issues. There is plenty of other free land that is not surrounded by houses within minutes of this development. There should be serious consideration before moving forwards with this. The plans show an outrageously sized building on a tiny piece of land with no possible way to handle traffic issues that this will bring.

6 stories seems a little high - should be capped at 4.
Can it require underground parking at least 1 stall per residence being sold, otherwise the on-street parking will be horrendous in the area.

I do not provide support to this project as I am concerned about the amount of car traffic this will create in Griesbach especially on Sir Arthur Currie Way and the potential risk to people / children crossing the street to the lake. I find people are speeding on that street and on Pegasus. If this project was to unfortunately pass I would like to see speed bump being added.

I live about a block over and I am so excited about this project!! Please don't listen to the nay sayers. It supports density and more commercial for a 15 minute community!!

It changes the whole vibe of the area too much. We need more trees and outdoor areas and should not have buildings higher than 4 stories.

I am writing today in opposition to the rezoning application LDA 23-0057 Griesbach Battalion Square as proposed. Since I purchased my residence their has been continual amendments to the zoning of the area and it has reached the point that I am questioning if it is a community that I want to stay a member of. When deciding on a community to reside within Edmonton I chose Griesbach based upon the land use bylaws. The addition of additional high density buildings as proposed will bring additional congestion to the area compared to what property owners originally invested in. In my mind the drawbacks outweigh the benefits such as additional vehicle traffic in a high foot traffic area / insufficient parking in high density buildings resulting in vehicles being left randomly in adjacent streets / Long term maintainability of buildings that size have historically had challenges / Increased volume of late night noise and activity do the natural volume of people / Loss of sight lines / walking in shadows when walking within the community / Commercial areas are currently available in the area and are not required in the proposed area.

I feel that there are too many high density housing already being built in the Griesbach area. There are already huge developments to the west of this location and more to the south east in the area of 137 Ave and 97 St. It appears this area of Griesbach is being overdeveloped with medium to high density buildings and I object to this proposal.

Looks like a fantastic addition to the community and Beljan has a strong track record of smart integration within neighbourhoods. I moved here due to the high walkability vision, and this development is consistent with that plan. I support this project.

While I agree with the importance of paying homage to the William Griesbach building, the revitalization of the building must be completed WITHOUT a 6-storey complex addition. It does not make sense for the community to have a towering building within the core of the neighbourhood; buildings of that kind is better suited to be constructed around the perimeter with arterial roads. Our community had already been brimming with multi-family construction and up until now, it's been developed appropriately close to major road accesses along 97th, Castledowns Rd, and 137th ave. Therefore, allowing the construction of a 6-storey building in our renowned community is going to set a bad precedence for future development within Griesbach.

Secondly, the community of Griesbach does NOT need more commercial spaces. With the new commercial developments at the Gem of Griesbach (137th ave & Castledowns rd) and existing empty retail spaces along Griesbach Village (97th & 137th ave), the community has more than enough existing inventory of commercial spaces. Evidently, the only likely tenants of the future commercial spaces will be a blend of less desirable tenants such as liquor and cannabis stores and not the glamourized coffee shops / bakeries you see in the rendering. Within the North Gate business centre there’s already and plethora of coffee shops and bakeries that it’s extremely unlikely such business would sustain within the core of a neighbourhood with little traffic and visibility.

North Edmonton has been on the unfortunate end of stigmatization for my entire life and within that time, Griesbach has been the one community that's withstood prejudice, even revered as the best community in the North. If this development is allowed to proceed then we’re going to witness the decline of the best community that North Edmonton had to offer.

The Village at Griesbach was designed to pay tribute to our veterans and fallen soldiers, and for the most part, it succeeded, by attracting out-of-community visitors to parks, trails, water features, and unique architecture. Now, instead of continuing the build on what’s worked, the developer rather focused on their real interest, money.

Lastly, It’s clear that the vast majority of the public opinion shared on this forum is against the development and it would be a poor reflection on the City for stating they care about public opinion, having platforms to discuss, and proceeding without actually listening to the community. What’s the point of all this anyway if nothing changes?

Please do not approve this application. We already have multiple 6 story units going up in the neighborhood even though we were promised a 4 story maximum when we invested in our property. The area is already increasing in density and adding more will only bring more congestion, traffic and parking issues.
Area residents that believe the commercial use will be great may be a little bit unrealistic as a grocery store would be highly unlikely. The existing commercial areas in Griesbach are having difficulty leasing their spaces, and they are in high visibility areas. We will more likely get less desirable lessees, quick turn around lessees or empty spots in the commercial area. The existing building would be wonderful for a community building, but I'm not convinced that a commercial area is the ideal solution.
Finally, the size of the land seems very constricted for the placement of such a large unit. Keeping it as townhouses as first planned would be our preferred solution. Thanks.

I oppose this proposal. As usual, once a parcel of land comes up for development in Griesbach, a proposal to change it to a higher density arises. When we investigated moving into Griesbach, we were told there would be no apartments above 4 stories and that most of the higher density areas would be 2-3 story townhouses. Fast forward to a few years later and the area has been rezoned multiple times, allowing for multiple 6 story apartments and additional commercial areas when the existing commercial areas haven't been fully leased for years.
Repurposing the existing training facility for community use is an excellent idea (communtiy gathering, gym rental, etc), but putting a commercial area in the middle of the community makes no sense. Businesses love the exposure that comes from main arteries (multiple vehicles, lots of exposure daily), being nestled in the middle of the community won't be a draw, especially when there are multiple spaces for lease in the area (and throughout the city) with much better exposure.
Additionally, many residents invested in their properties after being told that it would be townhouses that would being built in that area. Think of those around the area that will now have 21+ meter tall building backing onto their property or directly across from them. Increasing traffic, obstructing their view, blocking sunlight, restricting their privacy while sitting in their back yard.
We honestly feel like noting our opposition makes no difference and that the city will go forward with the plans regardless of the community's position, but please consider those of us who are directly affected by this proposal.