Latest news with #CommunityRevitalizationLevy
Edmonton Journal
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Edmonton Journal
Friday's letters: How does the CRL help most Edmontonians?
Article content Keith Gerein's criticism of Coun. Andrew Knack' opposition to the Community Revitalization Levy seems unnecessarily harsh. Yes, probably he should have checked whether re-negotiation of this flawed deal was possible before he suggested it, but clearly he and the three other councillors who voted against it were doing what they considered to be right, rather than voting with a view to personal political gain. Article content Article content Article content Article content How does the expected, touted 'vibrancy' address the pressing social issues associated particularly with the downtown? Has anyone ever checked whether people, especially families, want to live in the downtown, anyway? In this packed concrete jungle, there are no green spaces in which to wander with a stroller, few places for joggers to run, no shady arbours in which to relax after a day at the office. What are the statistics on the number of people who work in the downtown and so can avoid commuting and traffic congestion? Article content Article content Can Gerein elucidate how the vast majority of us who live outside downtown can expect to gain from the CRL, as opposed to the investors, developers and a portion of the business community? Better services and reduced taxes? These seem far off, as the city continues to grow. Article content P.J. Cotterill, Edmonton Article content Survey format manipulative Article content I had a chance to look at the Alberta Next surveys on the weekend and it made me wonder what country and province I lived in. I do not think it is right for any Albertan to have to watch a five-minute politically motivated video telling me why I should support the UCP government's Alberta Next predetermined results survey. Article content I wondered why they made me watch that video (I can do my own investigation) and why I was not allowed to respond to any of the questions with a no when I did not agree with the questions Danielle Smith was asking and especially not allowing me an opportunity until the comment section to say I did not support the Smith initiatives and survey.
Edmonton Journal
26-06-2025
- Business
- Edmonton Journal
Opinion: Extending downtown CRL comes at too high a cost for Edmonton
Article content In their June 23 op-ed in support of the City of Edmonton extending its Community Revitalization Levy (CRL) for another decade, Annette Trimbee (MacEwan University) and Carolyn Campbell (NorQuest College) extoll what they see as the benefits of the proposed CRL extension for students at their respective campuses. What they fail to mention, however, is that at the core of the proposal is a backroom deal being foisted upon the city by Premier Danielle Smith. The deal would hand Darryl Katz and the Oilers Entertainment Group (OEG) $102.8 million from the extended CRL to expand their for-profit real estate and entertainment empire downtown.
Yahoo
26-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Future of downtown development to be debated over 2 days at Edmonton public hearing
Dozens of Edmontonians will be sharing their opinions on the future of downtown development as a two-day public hearing kicks off Thursday morning at city hall. According to the Office of the City Clerk, as of 4 p.m. Wednesday, 72 people had registered to speak at the special public hearing on whether city council should extend the downtown Community Revitalization Levy (CRL) by 10 years. CRLs, which allow cities to borrow money against future property tax revenues, are a way to finance development in places where revitalization might not otherwise happen. When property values within a CRL area increase, a municipality can use the additional taxes to pay down the cost of borrowing for special projects there. Edmonton has three CRLs, and the downtown one — established in 2015 — is set to expire in 2034. City officials say extending it by a decade would allow the city to fund more projects and implement a downtown action plan. The terms of the extension, and who stands to benefit from public and private investments in the core, have become contentious — and there are millions of dollars at stake. The extension's supporters are calling it a "generational opportunity" to improve the city without raising taxes while critics are questioning why a privately-run event park should be included in the deal. What's new in the plan? The extension would add some new projects to a list that includes already completed ones like the downtown arena, community rink and Alex Decoteau Park. Infrastructure for new housing in Ice District, expanding the Winspear Centre, improving LRT entrances, brownfield remediation and the event park are among the additions. The province, the City of Edmonton and OEG Sports and Entertainment announced earlier this year that they were closing in on a deal that included a new all-season event park. The province would pay $97 million and OEG would pay $84 million with the remainder — $69 million — coming from the City of Edmonton through the CRL extension. The current CRL also has a number of projects that are in progress, like Warehouse Park, north of Jasper Avenue, between 106 and 108 Streets, and a pedway on 103A Avenue. Has the CRL worked? A recent city report says the CRL has attracted new investment and spurred development downtown to the tune of $4.7 billion. "I think that the CRL makes sense to a lot of proponents because it's worked with the arena project before, and so it's seen as a continuation of that," said Dan Mason, a sport management professor at the University of Alberta who consulted on the arena deal but has no involvement in the extension. The city report said the CRL brought three new office towers and thousands of new residential units downtown. Edmonton Mayor Amarjeet Sohi said he's keeping his mind open but the CRL has helped transform downtown — and there is still more work to do. "We may not be where other downtowns are in North America, but we are on the path to do so and things are getting better and we just cannot lose momentum," he said at a news conference Tuesday. Though downtown generates less property tax revenue than it used to for the city, Sohi said reversing that trend would benefit all Edmontonians. Sohi also said investors consider the state of a city's downtown as a factor when deciding where to bring their business. Who benefits? Some downtown business groups and organizations — like the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, the Edmonton Downtown Business Association and the Downtown Revitalization Coalition — are urging city councillors to support the extension. They say the CRL isn't just about improving downtown but strengthening the entire city's economy and infrastructure. "From housing to transit to public safety, the CRL enables a more livable and investable city without raising taxes," the groups said in a June 20 news release. Some of the CRL extension's critics are zeroing in on the event park as a reason not to support it. The event park would be a city-owned facility east of Rogers Place, with space for more than 6,000 people outside and more than 2,500 inside. While the city would own the facility, it would be privately run, with one-third of booking time or space available for community groups and non-profits at below-market rates. A report submitted to the city from OEG said the new venue would help fill a gap in the market and bring customers to downtown businesses. Councillors asked administration to have the company's economic benefit estimates independently assessed. The city's analysis concluded the company's assumptions around economic impact were fair and reasonable. Mason, the U of A professor, said it all boils down to whether investing in the event park and the other proposed developments is the best way to achieve downtown revitalization. "The argument is over whether or not this type of development and these types of subsidies warrant that kind of investment or whether that money could be spent on something else that could also lead to this kind of conclusion," he said. Chelsea Tessier, co-owner and head brewer at Polyrhythm Brewing, north of downtown, said she likes the CRL as a model but she and her partner don't support the structure of the proposed extension. "We'd like to see more diversity and these funds being spread out around downtown," she said. She said other small business owners feel the same and would like to see other parts of the city revitalized. Other business owners and organizations have shared arguments for and against the extension with CBC News this week. Sylvester Borowka, who owns the restaurant Continental Treat, said he supports it because it could lead to increased foot traffic downtown and strengthen community. Several city councillors have criticized parts of the deal. Ward Nakota Isga Coun. and mayoral candidate Andrew Knack says he wants to remove "financially irresponsible aspects" from the extension. He'll be sharing his plan to do that at news conference before the hearing on Thursday morning.
CBC
26-06-2025
- Business
- CBC
Future of downtown development to be debated over 2 days at Edmonton public hearing
Social Sharing Dozens of Edmontonians will be sharing their opinions on the future of downtown development as a two-day public hearing kicks off Thursday morning at city hall. According to the Office of the City Clerk, as of 4 p.m. Wednesday, 72 people had registered to speak at the special public hearing on whether city council should extend the downtown Community Revitalization Levy (CRL) by 10 years. CRLs, which allow cities to borrow money against future property tax revenues, are a way to finance development in places where revitalization might not otherwise happen. When property values within a CRL area increase, a municipality can use the additional taxes to pay down the cost of borrowing for special projects there. Edmonton has three CRLs, and the downtown one — established in 2015 — is set to expire in 2034. City officials say extending it by a decade would allow the city to fund more projects and implement a downtown action plan. The terms of the extension, and who stands to benefit from public and private investments in the core, have become contentious — and there are millions of dollars at stake. The extension's supporters are calling it a "generational opportunity" to improve the city without raising taxes while critics are questioning why a privately-run event park should be included in the deal. What's new in the plan? The extension would add some new projects to a list that includes already completed ones like the downtown arena, community rink and Alex Decoteau Park. Infrastructure for new housing in Ice District, expanding the Winspear Centre, improving LRT entrances, brownfield remediation and the event park are among the additions. The province, the City of Edmonton and OEG Sports and Entertainment announced earlier this year that they were closing in on a deal that included a new all-season event park. The province would pay $97 million and OEG would pay $84 million with the remainder — $69 million — coming from the City of Edmonton through the CRL extension. The current CRL also has a number of projects that are in progress, like Warehouse Park, north of Jasper Avenue, between 106 and 108 Streets, and a pedway on 103A Avenue. Has the CRL worked? A recent city report says the CRL has attracted new investment and spurred development downtown to the tune of $4.7 billion. "I think that the CRL makes sense to a lot of proponents because it's worked with the arena project before, and so it's seen as a continuation of that," said Dan Mason, a sport management professor at the University of Alberta who consulted on the arena deal but has no involvement in the extension. The city report said the CRL brought three new office towers and thousands of new residential units downtown. Edmonton Mayor Amarjeet Sohi said he's keeping his mind open but the CRL has helped transform downtown — and there is still more work to do. "We may not be where other downtowns are in North America, but we are on the path to do so and things are getting better and we just cannot lose momentum," he said at a news conference Tuesday. Though downtown generates less property tax revenue than it used to for the city, Sohi said reversing that trend would benefit all Edmontonians. Sohi also said investors consider the state of a city's downtown as a factor when deciding where to bring their business. Who benefits? Some downtown business groups and organizations — like the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, the Edmonton Downtown Business Association and the Downtown Revitalization Coalition — are urging city councillors to support the extension. They say the CRL isn't just about improving downtown but strengthening the entire city's economy and infrastructure. "From housing to transit to public safety, the CRL enables a more livable and investable city without raising taxes," the groups said in a June 20 news release. Some of the CRL extension's critics are zeroing in on the event park as a reason not to support it. The event park would be a city-owned facility east of Rogers Place, with space for more than 6,000 people outside and more than 2,500 inside. While the city would own the facility, it would be privately run, with one-third of booking time or space available for community groups and non-profits at below-market rates. A report submitted to the city from OEG said the new venue would help fill a gap in the market and bring customers to downtown businesses. Councillors asked administration to have the company's economic benefit estimates independently assessed. The city's analysis concluded the company's assumptions around economic impact were fair and reasonable. Mason, the U of A professor, said it all boils down to whether investing in the event park and the other proposed developments is the best way to achieve downtown revitalization. "The argument is over whether or not this type of development and these types of subsidies warrant that kind of investment or whether that money could be spent on something else that could also lead to this kind of conclusion," he said. Chelsea Tessier, co-owner and head brewer at Polyrhythm Brewing, north of downtown, said she likes the CRL as a model but she and her partner don't support the structure of the proposed extension. "We'd like to see more diversity and these funds being spread out around downtown," she said. She said other small business owners feel the same and would like to see other parts of the city revitalized. Other business owners and organizations have shared arguments for and against the extension with CBC News this week. Sylvester Borowka, who owns the restaurant Continental Treat, said he supports it because it could lead to increased foot traffic downtown and strengthen community. Several city councillors have criticized parts of the deal.
Edmonton Journal
26-06-2025
- Business
- Edmonton Journal
Thursday's letters: Let downtown developers pay their way
Article content Edmonton city council will be hearing opinions on extending the Community Revitalization Levy to fund ongoing spending — they will say generational investment — on the downtown. While it is true that a strong downtown is better than a weak one, there comes a point where it's time for business to invest in the projects that they will be profiting from. Developers such as Darryl Katz continue to claim that they need incentives to invest in projects — most of which primarily benefit their own bottom lines. It used to be that the profits generated by their investments were incentive enough. But now they want more and Katz and his developer colleagues see an easy mark in our current council, endlessly chanting about partnerships with the city and shared opportunities to encourage our city administration and council to handicap our future finances for developer profits today.
