CTV National News: Poll shows Canadians divided on Trump's Golden Dome missile defence proposal
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Exclusive CTV polling shows Canadians divided on Trump's missile defence plan, as doubts grow over its future without Canada's involvement. CTV's Colton Praill reports.
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Globe and Mail
23 minutes ago
- Globe and Mail
Edmonton's heritage Garneau district confronts upzoning
Increasing density to meet a growing demand for housing in well-served, well-connected central areas, often precedes the preservation of complementary attributes that make dense urban environments a desirable place to live, including a sense of place, or the emotional connection between people and place. Preserving mature trees and heritage buildings, for instance, stands at odds with the demands of a real estate market on steroids. This situation is currently at play in Edmonton. To bolster the number of Edmontonians living in 15-minute neighbourhoods, city hall recently approved the rezoning of five priority growth areas to allow for higher densities in the city's major activity nodes. 'Priority growth areas are about enhancing these areas, and giving more people opportunities to access existing amenities,' says Lisa Drury, a senior planner at the City of Edmonton, noting that increasing housing choice is 'a key part of the rezoning process.' Calgary home sales drop in April as economic uncertainty continues, real estate board says One of these priority growth areas is Garneau, one of Edmonton's oldest neighbourhoods, whose central location, ample access to transportation options and proximity to the University of Alberta, make it an ideal candidate for densification. But Garneau is not lacking in density, nor in housing diversity, and some residents worry that the zoning changes introduced by city hall could disrupt the balance supporting the neighbourhood's livability, as well as its long-term desirability. In a public hearing last month, Elizabeth Finn, a Garneau resident, shared her concerns with city council. 'I'm not adverse to increasing density, what I am concerned about is that, in the name of increasing density and decreasing bureaucracy, Garneau is going to lose its uniqueness and charm, what makes everyone want to live there.' Heritage on the outside, party on the inside Ms. Finn first moved to Garneau in 2018, when she was a student at the University of Alberta. The area's walkability, lush tree-lined streets and a wide variety of services and amenities, including the iconic Whyte Avenue, popular for shopping, dining, and nightlife, quickly captured Ms. Finn's heart. After renting an apartment in a high-rise tower on Whyte Avenue (also known as 82nd Avenue), four years ago, Ms. Finn and her husband found their dream home just one block away: a 2½-storey foursquare built in 1915. The couple purchased the 2,000-square-foot property for less than $430,000, a bargain by today's standards. This year's tax assessment pegs the value of the century-old dwelling at $600,500. Ms. Finn's home isn't an outlier. Edmonton's record population growth has caused house prices and rental rates to climb. In the past four years, the median resale price for detached homes has increased by more than 20 per cent, the Realtors Association of Edmonton reports. Over the same period, low vacancy rates drove rents up by roughly 20 per cent, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation data shows. To relieve some of the pressure on the city's housing market, the new zoning implemented in Garneau allows for mixed-use towers as tall as 21-storeys along two arterial roads, 82nd Avenue and 109th Street, and accommodates mid-rise buildings between six and eight storeys on adjacent areas, accounting for the impact of taller structures on low-rise properties. What it takes to own and restore a Canadian heritage home Recognizing the significance of heritage buildings in Garneau, city planners incorporated transition zones of lower heights on neighbouring sites. For example, the parcels next to the William Buster residence on 81st Avenue, are zoned to allow for a maximum height of three storeys on one side, and six storeys on the other. City administrators encourage homeowners to list their property in the city's heritage inventory, a first step to historical designation, and to lifetime protection from demolition. If a new building is designated, however, the zoning already adjudicated to adjacent properties would remain unchanged. This puts Ms. Finn in a difficult position. Although she wishes to list her home in the heritage inventory, Ms. Finn is hesitant to pursue municipal designation because the north side of her street, 81st Avenue, is now zoned to accommodate six-storey buildings. 'We would be enveloped by apartment buildings,' Ms. Finn says, pointing at the existing towers rising behind her backyard, on Whyte Avenue. 'Our ability to resell the house would be very limited.' After council's decision, Garneau's resident association retained a consultant to amend the upgraded zoning and protect older properties. But the attractiveness of Garneau doesn't rely solely on heritage buildings. They downsized to save money and simplify their lives. Here's what they wished they'd known Garneau embodies the kind of dense neighbourhood urbanists yearn for. Within a 15-minute walk, an array of uses, building heights and architectural styles converge to create a vibrant milieu that captivates residents and visitors alike. 'We love neighbourhoods that connect us to a story about place, that make us feel like we're part of something bigger,' says Neal LaMontagne, a city planning lecturer at the University of Alberta. Because Garneau was established in the pre-war period, before car-dependent subdivisions filled with cookie-cutter homes came to dominate Canadian cities, it displays features that can be difficult to replicate. 'The fact that it's an older neighbourhood lends itself to a more human scale, to human-centred urbanism,' Mr. LaMontagne says. 'It also means it's adapted over time, so it has a complexity that is rare in newer neighbourhoods.' Despite its historic character, Garneau isn't frozen in time. One reason this neighbourhood continues to thrive is its eclectic mix of old and new buildings. Almost half of existing dwellings were built after 1980, and in the last 15 years, more than 600 apartments have been completed. For Mr. LaMontagne, the city's focus on meeting a minimum density of 250 residents or jobs per hectare in major nodes, as established by Edmonton's City Plan, diverts from the importance of maintaining some of the physical qualities that sustain Garneau's desirability. 'Our oldest neighbourhoods are our most central neighbourhoods, so planners have to make sure that they're not exclusive,' he says. 'But how do we do that in a way that you're including people in something that's really desirable? How do you keep those qualities? Our planning tools in Alberta aren't nuanced enough to fit that complexity.'
CBC
30 minutes ago
- CBC
Sir John A. Macdonald statue at Queen's Park visible to public for 1st time in 5 years
Social Sharing The public can once again see the statue of John A. Macdonald outside Queens Park. The statue had been surrounded by wooden hoarding for the past five years. It was first covered up in 2020 after demonstrators threw pink paint on it amid wave of protests across the country that took aim at Macdonald as Canadians grappled with the history of residential schools. Workers took down the hoarding Wednesday after a legislative committee voted to remove the covering last month. "As Speaker, I recognize the sensitivities surrounding the history of Canada's first Prime Minister and I welcome all Ontarians to express their views — peacefully," Speaker Donna Skelly said in a statement about the removal of the hoarding. "Violence and acts of vandalism will not be tolerated, and the Legislative Protective Service will actively monitor the statue and grounds." Children's shoes that were placed at the base of the statue after the discovery of possible unmarked graves on the grounds of former residential schools were "carefully and respectfully" removed and stored prior to the removal of the hoarding, the statement says. The question of what to do with the monument of Canada's first Prime Minister has been controversial. Macdonald is considered an architect of the country's residential school system that took Indigenous children from their families in an effort to assimilate them. WATCH | The complicated legacy of Canada's first PM: The controversy around John A. MacDonald's complicated legacy 7 years ago Duration 10:09 Canada's first prime minister, Sir John A. MacDonald, has a controversial and complicated legacy. He's called the father of Confederation, but some say his policies that hurt Indigenous people mean he shouldn't be honoured with statues and tributes across the country. The National talks to people on both sides of the debate. The NDP's Sol Mamakwa is a residential school survivor, and the only First Nation member at Queen's Park. He has said the statue is a source of pain. "It's not just a statue," he said last month after the decision to uncover the statue was made. "It's a statue of oppression. It is a statue of colonialism. It is a statue of Indian residential schools." Skelly says she hopes a committee will approve a monument recognizing those who attended residential schools and said Mamakwa would be welcome to join that committee.
CBC
39 minutes ago
- CBC
N.L. optimistic about future of workforce despite barriers, high unemployment
Newfoundland and Labrador had the highest unemployment rate in Canada in April 2025 — 9.8 per cent — but the provincial government is not discouraged with megaprojects like Bay du Nord and the Churchill Falls MOU on the horizon. Premier John Hogan spoke with workforce leaders at a jobs forum in St. John's on Wednesday. He said Newfoundland and Labrador is leading the country on projects deemed "nation building" by Prime Minister Mark Carney. "To be honest with you, we already are the envy of the world," Hogan said. According to the federal government, nation-building projects would "make a significant contribution to Canada's prosperity" and "advance national security, economic security, defence security and national autonomy through the increased production of energy and goods, and the improved movement of goods, services and people throughout Canada." Examples include highways, railways, ports, airports, pipelines, critical minerals, mines, nuclear facilities and electrical transmission projects. Hogan said Newfoundland and Labrador is currently ahead of other provinces, after hearing their pitches during a first ministers' meeting in Saskatchewan last week. "When the media asked the premiers and the prime minister questions after we were done our meeting, they said 'Well who's going to build the pipeline?' And Premier Smith of Alberta said 'Well we don't know that yet,'" Hogan said. "'Who's going to build the transmission lines in Nova Scotia that you're talking about,' and they said 'Well, we don't know that yet either.'" In contrast, Hogan said, Newfoundland and Labrador's plans are no longer concepts, but industry professionals are more concerned about workforce capacity and infrastructure. For example, Mining Industry N.L. executive director Amanda McCallum told reporters they will need 1,000 workers to help with construction or mine operations on the Baie Verte Peninsula. She's not sure where all the workers will stay. "The Baie Verte Peninsula, in the very near term, is certainly a pressure point," McCallum said. "When you're talking about having to increase a workforce, there's housing requirements, there's social supports, there's services." McCallum said Mining Industry N.L. went into the jobs forum with the intent to be heard. "It's not just jobs, it's ensuring that people have a nice, safe community to work in, that work-life balance," she said. The Association for New Canadians also voiced its concerns as newcomers often face additional barriers when trying to enter the workforce. "The main challenge would be language. [The] language barrier is a common challenge for newcomers who come to the province," said Khalid Al-Hariri, the ANC's acting director of employment services. Jobs, Immigration and Growth Minister Gerry Byrne hosted the forum on Wednesday. He said improving the province's workforce is a priority. "There's a commonality with attracting a workforce, developing skills within the workforce, and creating that highly, highly dignified workplace. That's a goal for us all," Byrne said.
