Edmontonians remain mixed in their support for a proposed gondola project that comes at no cost to taxpayers and links downtown to Whyte Avenue..Though the $155-million five-stop project pitched by Prairie Sky Gondola is privately-funded, concerns arose regarding its financial feasibility..Ward 3 Coun. Jon Dziadyk states: “While I think it’s less risky for taxpayers, I am worried about a situation where it goes bankrupt. .“The City of Edmonton should require financial securities to ensure that private money can ultimately be used for its decommissioning if required,” he said..Ward 11 Coun. Mike Nickel emphatically denounced the project over concerns about who would be on the hook if the private enterprise were to fail..Regardless, Edmonton business and engineering groups overwhelmingly support the project, with the city administration pushing its city council to approve the initial framework..“It’s an opportunity to establish a pilot of what creative partnerships between the city and the private sector could look like without any cost to the city taxpayers,” said Janet Riopel, president and CEO of the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, .She also encouraged city council to approve the initial framework..However, conservationists remain thoroughly opposed to the project, citing further disruption of the River Valley area..Recently blocked by Prairie Sky Gondola on social media, Nickel ascertained that it could assuage taxpayer concerns if its plan for the project were made public..“Members of your team keep stating the gondola must “integrate” with Edmonton transit,” said Nickel..“Does this mean [require] transfer payments – public money – from ETS in order to be able to operate?”.In a recent brief to council, public transit ridership in 2020 was 45 per cent of 2019 levels because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Its recommendations to increase taxes and repurpose traffic lanes, among others, would increase dependency on public transit and personal activity..The brief recommends accommodating two-million residents by reducing carbon emissions and considering suburban expansions’ expensiveness over the next decade..If city council approves the initial framework of the gondola project. In that case, Prairie Sky needs to fulfill a series of regulatory requirements, including a transportation impact assessment, an environmental impact assessment, geotechnical assessments and rezoning applications..City council must then approve a site location study for considered sites to fulfil the River Valley Area Redevelopment Plan requirement..Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson responded positively towards the proposed urban gondola thus far as it resolved access issues around Rossdale..“People are so excited about what the power plant could mean,” said Iveson. .However, he cautioned that if people cannot smoothly get in and out of it, then they would question the project’s economic viability..Dhaliwal is the Western Standard’s Edmonton reporter.
Edmontonians remain mixed in their support for a proposed gondola project that comes at no cost to taxpayers and links downtown to Whyte Avenue..Though the $155-million five-stop project pitched by Prairie Sky Gondola is privately-funded, concerns arose regarding its financial feasibility..Ward 3 Coun. Jon Dziadyk states: “While I think it’s less risky for taxpayers, I am worried about a situation where it goes bankrupt. .“The City of Edmonton should require financial securities to ensure that private money can ultimately be used for its decommissioning if required,” he said..Ward 11 Coun. Mike Nickel emphatically denounced the project over concerns about who would be on the hook if the private enterprise were to fail..Regardless, Edmonton business and engineering groups overwhelmingly support the project, with the city administration pushing its city council to approve the initial framework..“It’s an opportunity to establish a pilot of what creative partnerships between the city and the private sector could look like without any cost to the city taxpayers,” said Janet Riopel, president and CEO of the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, .She also encouraged city council to approve the initial framework..However, conservationists remain thoroughly opposed to the project, citing further disruption of the River Valley area..Recently blocked by Prairie Sky Gondola on social media, Nickel ascertained that it could assuage taxpayer concerns if its plan for the project were made public..“Members of your team keep stating the gondola must “integrate” with Edmonton transit,” said Nickel..“Does this mean [require] transfer payments – public money – from ETS in order to be able to operate?”.In a recent brief to council, public transit ridership in 2020 was 45 per cent of 2019 levels because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Its recommendations to increase taxes and repurpose traffic lanes, among others, would increase dependency on public transit and personal activity..The brief recommends accommodating two-million residents by reducing carbon emissions and considering suburban expansions’ expensiveness over the next decade..If city council approves the initial framework of the gondola project. In that case, Prairie Sky needs to fulfill a series of regulatory requirements, including a transportation impact assessment, an environmental impact assessment, geotechnical assessments and rezoning applications..City council must then approve a site location study for considered sites to fulfil the River Valley Area Redevelopment Plan requirement..Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson responded positively towards the proposed urban gondola thus far as it resolved access issues around Rossdale..“People are so excited about what the power plant could mean,” said Iveson. .However, he cautioned that if people cannot smoothly get in and out of it, then they would question the project’s economic viability..Dhaliwal is the Western Standard’s Edmonton reporter.
