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Katz Group can keep its parking lots north of Rogers Place for five more years, city council decided this week, but Edmonton will crack down on property owners who have more than 100 illegal surface lots around Downtown.

City council unanimously voted without debate on Wednesday on a plan to regulate more than 100 illegal surface parking lots in and around Downtown and increase enforcement with the hope landowners will either redevelop their properties or make them safer and more attractive. Of 113 surface lots owned by 96 property owners in the city’s core, just 16 have permits, said a report by staff.

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Council has indicated keeping those lands as parking lots isn’t necessary and there are hopes enforcement will spur property owners to build something better.

Katz Group has been planning to build a large urban village on its property between 105 Avenue and 106 Avenue and between 101 Street and 103 Street. The plan is ultimately to build a mixed-use development with up to 2,500 residential units, including commercial and recreational elements as well as student housing on the lots.

But the space has been vacant or used as parking lots for years. Council first granted permission for the parking lots in 2016, which was controversial, and approved a first extension in 2022.

Tim Shipton, on behalf of the Oilers Entertainment Group, speaking to council Wednesday, said he knows parking lots are not the best use of this land, but the company has been following all the city’s rules to date. They have improved the lots to make them more appealing at the city’s request while they wait for market conditions to improve to begin construction, he said.

“This vision has been contemplated since the beginning of our development of Ice District,” he said. “Our timelines for development have been drastically impacted by the knock-on effect of the pandemic we’re seeing here in Edmonton and markets across North America, as well other headwinds such as public safety concerns and a slow-to-recover real estate market.”

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He said the parking lots also fill a need for parking in the core and the lot is used often by families. He claimed the Ice District has brought in $4 billion in additional investment Downtown, bringing 1.8 million visitors with 280 events in 2023 and 2024.

A separate parking study has indicated there is sufficient parking without the surface lots.

Before approving the five-year extension, council first debated allowing an extension for three years but it was defeated in a 6-6 tie.

Warren Champion, with the Central McDougall Community League, who advocated for the three-year extension, said the community has been asking for Katz Group to give back to the community for allowing the lot to stay.

“You’re putting a humungous amount of cars in our community and they’re doing absolutely nothing for the community, and we can’t seem to extract two-and-a-half per cent as a shared revenue source, so we find that really surprising,” he told council.

Coun. Karen Principe said before that vote setting a new deadline won’t necessarily mean development will move faster.

Coun. Aaron Paquette said while a parking lot is “almost the lowest common denominator of land use,” denying the application could also just mean an empty lot sits there.

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“Empty lots, parking lots, these are not ideal to a thriving downtown. Unfortunately, I don’t think this motion actually accelerates that and in fact we may just end up with another application to extend another three years.”

But Coun. Jo-Anne Wright said she hasn’t heard any valid arguments from the developer about why they keep needing to delay it.

“All I keep hearing is market conditions aren’t right. I just don’t know when market conditions can be right,” she said. “I just don’t know what it’s going to take for this development to occur, and I don’t see extending another five years is going to make it move any faster.”

Coun. Andrew Knack said he would have preferred the three years but Katz Group is one of the only surface lot owners who has been following the city’s rules.

“As frustrating as it is to have five years now, I want to make sure I do acknowledge and appreciate the work that has already happened to date.”

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For the illegal lots, the city’s new program will gradually increase enforcement against scofflaw parking lot operators, starting with education, after the city updates its zoning rules.

Getting a violation notice in the mail is the first step. Downtown parking lot owners can apply for temporary development permits and business licences in exchange for upgrading their sites.

Those who don’t follow the new rules face fines of $500 to $10,000 for violating business licence or zoning bylaws. If the city is forced to intervene and improve the lots itself, the cost of necessary upgrades will be billed to the property owners directly through their tax accounts.

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@laurby

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