Affordable housing development plan near Edmonton school prompts traffic safety concerns
Some residents of a south Edmonton neighbourhood are concerned about a proposal to build an affordable housing development next door to an elementary school.
Dozens of people attended an open house Thursday at Keheewin School, a K-6 school at 1910 105th St. City staff provided an update on a plan to construct up to 182 housing units on an adjacent site that was once intended for a junior high school. The site was declared surplus in 2009.
Joshua Bernard, chair of a neighbourhood committee liaising with the city on the project, said the primary worry relates to traffic and student safety.
"Ultimately, I support people being able to afford a house that they can live in," Bernard said. "The location of it, next to a school, is not ideal."
The city announced two years ago that it would repurpose a number of surplus school sites throughout Edmonton as affordable housing.
While some projects are geared toward low-income buyers or seniors, the demographic breakdown of Keheewin has not yet been determined.
Maurice Rachwalski, the city's director of housing and homelessness, said repurposing surplus school sites is an opportunity to offer some relief to the 25,000 families in the city who are putting more than a third of their less-than-$54,000 income toward shelter.
As per city policy, between 50 and 75 per cent of the units proposed in Keheewin will be affordable. The rest will be market price.
Paula Melnyk said her main concern is that the street in front of the school could end up lined by vehicles without parking spots.
"If moms can't park on 105th Street, kids are going to be crossing," Melnyk said. "That's not as safe as if they could just get into the car from the sidewalk."
Melnyk acknowledged that affordable housing has been stigmatized, but said she isn't worried about that.
"Talking to people here at the meeting, [they] are still griping about why it's being done," Melnyk said. "We have to move on.
"We will still have some chance to have some input into what will actually be built."
