Alberta Avenue, north of Edmonton's downtown, is getting a new look with help from an American marketing expert.
The city has spent $30 million to improve streets, sidewalks and lighting on a 20-block stretch of the community's main thoroughfare, 118th Avenue.
Now Seattle marketing expert Roger Brooks hopes to capitalize on the dozens of restaurants along the strip, which represent cuisines from around the world. The combination of dining with the arts will be easy to market, he said.
"Maybe we have this five, six, seven, ten blocks that's really concentrated with artisans and those kinds of businesses and coffee shops," he said.
"And then another district could be more of a dining district, so you can break it into pieces."
In the past, Alberta Avenue was seen as the home of Edmonton's sex and drug trade. But residents say the city's improvement money has helped transform the community.
"The road and everything is fantastic," said long-time resident Darlene Richardson. "You don't see as many hookers."
The area's new vibe helped attract artists, businesses and entrepreneurs such as Bedouin Beats belly dance studio owner Denise Leclair.
"I Iooked at a lot of other places in the city, but nobody had the arts scene that was growing here," she said.
Brooks is working with three other Edmonton business associations to develop brands for their neighbourhoods including Stony Plain Road and Kingsway Avenue.
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