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It’s nearly the same size as downtown Edmonton.
Opportunities like Blatchford don’t come along every day. Cities can’t just remake 536 acres right in their city core, just minutes from downtown.
In 2014, Edmonton City Council approved a business case to transform its former airport into a people-first infill community where up to 30,000 Edmontonians will live. The blueprint includes LRT, renewable energy, and a network of green corridors and park spaces.
Blatchford is an urban community in the heart of Edmonton, designed to be a great neighbourhood for families, a catalyst for transformational land development, and a path towards a more resilient future.
City building is about long-term decisions. Once you’ve developed land, you can’t start over again. Decisions last for generations.
Blatchford combines the best of mature neighbourhoods — central living, connected streets, vibrant public spaces — with sustainable features that will make the community resilient, including renewable energy and low-impact design, paths and public transit, high building standards and a diversity of housing.
While the neighbourhood continues to evolve, the project continues to build from a vision statement approved by Edmonton City Council in 2010:
“Blatchford will be home to up to 30,000 Edmontonians living, working and learning in a sustainable community that uses 100% renewable energy, is carbon neutral, significantly reduces its ecological footprint, and empowers residents to pursue a range of sustainable lifestyle choices.”
A few years ago, Edmonton had two airports.
The first was a site of pioneering aviation. After Blatchford Field opened in 1927, it became a “Gateway to the North” for bush pilots and northern communities and served as a vital link in Allied war efforts.
As commercial aviation grew, so did infrastructure demands. In 1960, the city opened the much larger Edmonton International Airport.
Neither airport was as commercially competitive as possible. A back-and-forth public debate began. Plebiscites in the 1990s saw a narrow mandate to keep both open, then favoured closure three years later.
Advocates favoured an airport minutes from downtown. But tradeoffs were unavoidable. Flight paths impeded new buildings. The city wasn’t generating tax revenues. Services continued to shrink.
In 2009, City Council voted to completely close the city centre airport. In its place, they imagined a sustainable new community built around people and public spaces.
By creating an energy efficient, high-density neighbourhood right in the city core, Blatchford will play a key role as Edmonton plans for another million residents in the next few decades.
As developer, the Blatchford Redevelopment Office is uniquely positioned to keep the long-term vision in mind, recognizing that it takes time to do things differently. The City of Edmonton has owned the land for nearly a century, and because land sales generate revenues, Blatchford can grow without affecting property taxes. It’s a similar model to Edmonton’s Griesbach neighbourhood, a former military base being developed by a self-financing federal Crown corporation.
Blatchford is aimed at Edmonton’s “missing middle,” flexible multi-unit housing available in urban centres around the world, yet missing in most Canadian cities. Mixed-use spaces will also help Blatchford become a 15-minute neighbourhood, where all daily needs can be met without ever having to turn on a motor.
The city’s role also includes planning and design of streets and parks, creation of building guidelines, oversight of the installation of necessary infrastructure like sewers and utilities. All this can be accomplished with a small team and the right partners. Contractors are hired to put shovels in the ground. Parcels of land are independently assessed and sold to private builders, who work within customized architectural and green building codes. Residents buy their homes from builders, like anywhere else in the city.
Blatchford is nearly the same size as downtown Edmonton; it won’t be finished overnight. Neighbourhoods can take more than a decade to move from initial planning to moving trucks. In Blatchford, residents arrived less than seven years after the final plane lifted off the runway.
The City is responsible for developing the land and selling it to home builders – who then build and sell the homes. Land development work includes:
When fully developed, Blatchford will have over 80 acres of parks and green spaces, a connected bike network, a vibrant market district, local retail, multiple public plaza spaces and much more. Depending on long-term housing markets, Blatchford’s full development is expected to take roughly 25 years, at a pace typical of other neighbourhoods in Edmonton.
This progress map shows where the project is today.
Blatchford is building a more resilient future with renewables and energy efficiency, low-impact development, and an emphasis on community infrastructure.
Cities account for nearly half of Canada’s carbon emissions.
Whether it’s roads or public transit, homes or neighbourhoods, infrastructure lasts for decades. Poor choices end up costing more and reducing flexibility.
Climate change is a city problem. By building in flexibility and efficiency, Blatchford fits into the City of Edmonton’s plans for a climate resilient city. Laneway and multi-family housing increases density. High efficiency standards conserve energy. Boulevard trees create shade, while community orchards and gardens provide food. Spaces for walking and separate bike lanes expand options for getting around, while narrower streets are safer and less costly.
With its emphasis on renewable energy, Blatchford is also implementing City Council’s vision for a carbon neutral community that empowers sustainable choices.
The ground is a giant battery that absorbs and stores solar heat.
Summer or winter, no matter the weather, the ground temperature a few metres down is roughly 8 degrees Celsius. Buildings in Blatchford use that ambient heat to address the largest sources of domestic energy use: heating, cooling and hot water.
Blatchford’s district energy sharing system pumps cool water and glycol into boreholes 150 metres beneath the community stormwater pond. Lines connect to a high-efficiency heat pump in Energy Centre One, where thermal energy is distributed through a network of pipes beneath neighbourhood roads.
Every unit of electricity returns 10 times the energy in heating or cooling. Blatchford’s central heat pump is like a 1,000% efficient furnace, which also doubles as an air conditioner.
Every building in Blatchford taps into that energy with its own heat pump. That means no furnace. No hot water heater. No air conditioner. No chimney. And because of tight building envelopes and high efficiency standards, homes remain comfortable year round.
The system balances different energy needs. Commercial buildings need cooling even in winter, while residential homes needs heat. Waste heat from cooling one building can be used, meeting up to 20% of cooling and heating needs just by balancing buildings.
Blatchford’s sustainable features are designed to enhance quality of life. Water flow is just one example. A portion of rainwater that falls on homes in Blatchford will be diverted to large cisterns used to irrigate community gardens. Other water flows through bioswales and rain gardens into the community’s picturesque stormwater pond.
It’s also a smart design. Because development interrupts natural water flow, it can create major problems. Rain or snow that hits paved areas collect pollutants, which feed into river systems. Poor water diversion can also be a major hazard during storms, overwhelming drainage systems and causing catastrophic damage to homes and infrastructure.
Blatchford uses low-impact development to mitigate against risks associated with more severe weather. Instead of hurrying stormwater through drainage pipes, Blatchford’s design mimics natural flow where possible by absorbing, filtering and slowing water down. The result is visually pleasing while providing protection from the threats of a changing climate.
Blatchford is designed around public spaces and mobility, making it a great place to live.
Good things are built into every stage of Blatchford.
Blatchford’s role as a landmark project developed by the City of Edmonton means transformative design features will be easier to implement elsewhere.
It’s good for Edmonton. The project has already served as proof of concept for new ideas adopted throughout the city, including narrower streets, reduced parking requirements and the acceptance of secondary and garage suites in townhouses.
Blatchford is being designed for context, which means looking to its aviation past while keeping an eye to a carbon-constrained future. When fully developed, Blatchford will have more than 80 acres of parks and green spaces, public and Catholic schools, an expanded NAIT campus, a vibrant market district and multiple public plazas.
Great cities are known for public spaces.
They foster social interaction, improve community and physical activity, while adding beauty to the ordinary moments of the day. When designed well, streets and alleys themselves become destinations.
Because Blatchford is built at a higher density, it supports a wider variety of parks and public plazas. Even if you don’t live there, it will be worth visiting. And if you do live there, you’re never more than a block or two away from public space.
Spaces are designed for different experiences and purposes. There are naturalized spaces like the path network encircling the stormwater pond. Hardscaped gathering places are a perfect place to meet, like 12/30 plaza. Some spots are highly specific, like the warming hut for bonfires or open fields perfect for a game of frisbee. Narrower spaces open up into wider, grander areas perfect for large groups.
While Blatchford has many destinations, spaces are connected by corridors and pathways. Public spaces are continuous and accessible, making walking a natural way of getting around.
There are a lot of ways to get to a great destination.
If you only build roads, you’ll only get cars. If a neighbourhood is built to make walking and cycling safe and natural, people will instinctively spend more time outside. Blatchford is designed with different users and different seasons in mind.
A lot goes into ensuring a whole trip is taken into account. A bike path isn’t just a surface, it’s a trail, a commuter route or a family playground. Thought needs to go into things like bike storage or a place to fill a water bottle.
Blatchford is designed to be a complete community, so all needs can be met in a small footprint without need for driving. With 2 LRT stops, it will be a quick ride to 3 major post-secondary institutions, 2 major hospitals and downtown Edmonton.
Blatchford is part of Edmonton’s plans for growth, with smarter land use, better transportation and climate resilient infrastructure.
Edmonton is home to a million people, and it’s getting ready to welcome the next million.
Imagining how Edmonton will grow to 2 million people is important for thinking about priorities and strategies. As new neighbours move here from across the province, the country and the globe, Blatchford will be ready to be part of that future.
In 2018, the City of Edmonton began to develop a vision to prepare for the coming decades. It involved more than 10,000 Edmontonians through open houses, stakeholder consultation, and technical and policy studies.
The City Plan outlines strategic direction for transportation, land use, environmental and social planning and economic development. It charts the course of Edmonton’s growth and touches on most aspects of life in this city.
Like many cities in North America, the City of Edmonton is adopting a Nodes and Corridors Network to focus population, business and employment growth.
The strategy identifies two key location types in the city: strategic hubs (“nodes”) and streets (“corridors”). These evolving spaces are important destinations in Edmonton, where people already interact and move in an accessible, safe and comfortable built environment. While each node and corridor has a unique character, they all support a strong sense of place and serve as natural areas to focus on in coming years.
In The City Plan, Blatchford-NAIT-Kingsway has been identified as one of Edmonton’s six major nodes. That means it’s a vibrant urban centre connected by transit, close to concentrated housing and employment. Because of its status as an important urban hub, Blatchford will remain a priority for future investment to support community equity, opportunity and connectedness. Blatchford is also next to Kingsway, one of nine primary corridors.
Across the world, many major cities are proposing “15-minute city” ideas. The idea is about ensuring residents can easily meet their daily needs close to home, whether it’s through active movement or a short hop on public transit.
There are many benefits to connected neighbourhoods. Groceries and work are a short walk or bicycle ride away. Physical activity becomes second nature. Less time in transit means more free time and fewer wasted resources. By increasing density and walkability, and encouraging a diversity of uses, a city can also provide better services.
The City Plan includes an Edmonton variation on the idea. Edmonton is divided into fifteen 15-minute districts, each of which includes a collection of neighbourhoods, amenities and at least one node or corridor.
Blatchford’s development already exemplifies many of the important characteristics of the 15-minute ideal. Pedestrian-centered design and bike lane networks encourage active transportation, and LRT stops will encourage even more density. Having more residents in a smaller space means more park space and public amenities, along with essential businesses popping up in mixed-use areas.
Higher density and connectedness are more than planning principles, they’re an important component of a resilient city.
Nearly half of all emissions in Canada come from cities, and climate change poses serious risks to critical infrastructure that make our cities work. A 2019 report from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and Insurance Bureau of Canada estimated the benefits of investing in climate change resilience outweighed costs by a factor of six to one.
Blatchford already has a head start on resilience. Renewable heating and cooling already eliminates most residential carbon consumption. Solar panels, green building standards and high efficiency appliances and fixtures means homes will last without the expense of retrofits.
The City Plan also includes other climate-friendly ideas. There’s the goal of planting 2 million new urban trees; Blatchford already has boulevard trees on every street. There’s a plan of adding 50% of new housing units through infill: Blatchford will be Edmonton’s biggest infill site. And as the city works towards ensuring 50% of trips made by transit and active transportation, Blatchford has the built environment that supports multiple ways of getting around.