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88 | FEBRUA RY 2016 Edgewater Village on Jasper PHOTOGRAPHY BY IAN GRANT/COURTESY REGENCY DEVELOPMENTS Edgewater Village on Jasper by ROBIN BRUNET E dmonton's eastern downtown core along Jasper Avenue is precisely the type of urban zone that citizen groups and civic planners express keen interest in seeing redeveloped – but then may disagree on what form the redevelopment should take. Fortunately for Regency Developments and Raj Dhunna, the Edmonton-based development company's COO, the company has earned a reputation for creating stylish multi-family residences in key infill locations around the city. So when the Regency team narrowed their focus on a site containing a long-abandoned Levi's factory, with the intention of turning it into an urban village that would ultimately house 1,500 new residents, this created considerable excitement. Dhunna says of his low- and high- rise Edgewater Village complex, whose two towers have already helped redefine Edmonton's skyline to the east: "I won't say getting the necessary approvals for the project was easy, because although stakeholders and planners wanted densification in this area, it's always a leap of faith to buy into someone's specific idea of what densification should be." Dhunna adds, "However, we've become known for raising the bar in residential design as well as making relationships our key priority in all our business dealings. While our vision to help revitalize east of the downtown core was ambitious in scale and design, we are proud of the successful partnerships with all stakeholders that allowed Edgewater to become a reality. When fully complete in spring of 2016, Edgewater Village will consist of two low-rise (four-storey) walk-up complexes as well as the 26- and 30-storey towers. Perched on the edge of the River Valley, the 700- plus unit (276 units in the low-rise portion) development is already being touted as a revolutionary community within a community, partly due to its design and partly because of its proximity to the downtown's lifestyle and access to transit. Brad Kennedy, principal of the architectural firm KENNEDY, reflects on the challenge: "City planners of the time were pressing to break up the site and introduce more vehicular roads," he says. "We pressed hard to maintain the richness of a contiguous four-acre site while combining internal and transverse pedestrian connectivity. The result was a uniquely connected series of internal courtyards combining lower scale four-storey unit mix with a strong high-rise presence." When asked what inspired Regency to reinvent this particular site in such a spectacular fashion, Dhunna replies, LOCATION 8532 Jasper Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta OWNER/DEVELOPER Regency Developments ARCHITECT KENNEDY GENERAL CONTRACTOR Pagnotta Industries, Inc. STRUCTURAL CONSULTANT Protostatix Engineering Consultants Inc. MECHANICAL CONSULTANT Allen Wasnea Engineering Ltd. ELECTRICAL CONSULTANT Implicit Engineering Ltd. LANDSCAPE CONSULTANT ISL Engineering and Land Services Ltd. GEOTECHNICAL CONSULTANT Shelby Engineering Ltd. TOTAL SIZE 750,000 square feet TOTAL COST $70+ million "Like any other Edmontonian, I had spent years overhearing comments such as 'I don't cross the river into downtown unless I need to,' and in particular disparaging remarks about the eastern downtown core. We not only wanted to enhance the skyline, we wanted to help shape Edmonton's new identity as a vibrant capital of the province." Regency and KENNEDY decided to build wood-frame low-rises "because they would be relatively efficient to construct," according to Dhunna. Early in the planning stages, considerable time and energy was spent by the two parties and structural specialist Protostatix Engineering Consultants Inc. to orient the two towers in a way that their exposure to the infamous winds would be minimized. "We had dealt with this challenge when we designed Quest in 2009," says Dhunna, referring to Regency's first big downtown condo project located across from MacEwan University's main campus. KENNEDY also designed the walk-ups to be slightly reminiscent of classic European architecture, in order to enhance their urban appeal and the sense of being part of a distinct community. As intense as it was for the developers to jump through the usual bureaucratic hoops, it took less than a year for the City to fully approve Edgewater. "Past projects took us up to two years to get rezoned," says Dhunna. "By the time the actual construction process began, city council had caught Regency's vision and supported what we were trying to achieve." Craig Schoettle, project manager for Pagnotta Industries, credits Regency and KENNEDY for "being open and consistent with their communications. This, along with a meticulously thought out design, allowed us to go full- tilt without mishap in construction, which began in March of 2013 and included about 250 people at peak." Schoettle adds, "A large hurdle, with regards to weather, was the high winds we encountered from the River Valley; this created a lot of challenges throughout the project; we actually had to wrap both towers in a protective mesh." Another challenge was the lack of site space. "We were obliged to use a lane between the low rises and the towers for the concrete trucks, and on many days it seemed that all we were doing was pouring concrete and moving the flyer decks up and down as the towers took shape," says Schoettle. "It required meticulous co-ordination to pull everything off in such a confined area." As of early January, Edgewater's 26-storey tower to the south had achieved occupancy, and the 30-storey tower to the north was scheduled for occupancy in March. As with his past projects, Dhunna hopes that Edgewater Village will inspire additional development that will cumulatively enliven the east side. "Regency is a visionary city builder," says Kennedy, who has worked with the developer on many other projects. "This was not a site for a modest, conservative development gesture. Regency understood the impact and influence this eastern downtown bookend would have in bridging the development gap to the east. They embraced our challenge to make the experience of this development so unexpected, so exceptional it becomes a moment of impact – a game changer. Future generations will fully appreciate the influence this bold development vision has had on expanding the downtown to the east and strengthening the fabric of our city." Dhunna adds, "Edmonton's core has grown by leaps and bounds since 2008 alone and the new identity that is taking shape is extremely exciting, Regency is proud of the positive impact that all of our infill developments are having on our capital city." A

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