This article in the Edmonton Journal this morning about luring families to live in the city core got me to thinking about my own early childhood. http://bit.ly/un6ZGE
I spent part of my elementary years in Toronto living in an apartment building designated for married student housing. My father was completing his PhD at the University of Toronto and our young family of 4 was happily accommodated in a 2 bedroom apartment. I have very fond memories of playing in the on-site playground – my mother used to make an adventure of lowering our packed lunch down to the playground from our 2nd floor apartment window on a pulley to our delight and friend’s jealousy. The sounds and sights of the annual Caribbean festival would reverberate off the tower walls that surround the building. Trips to the grocery store were either to the subterranean chain store in the adjacent Manulife Place or the independent corner store, rolling our folding grocery cart behind us. [Those are back in style these days, as we return to advocating walkable communities and local shopping.]
The building itself is a rather nondescript 1970′s brick tower that still functions today in the same role.
- 35 Charles Street West
- South East Corner
- View West along Charles Street
My mother tells me the playground used to be on the Charles Street side. It’s since been replaced with retail, which may be to the detriment of Charles Street, but the daycare is still an integral part of the site and now the playground is on the south side – perhaps even a better location for sun advantage. No matter, I think this example highlights some important elements to a successful family building. The daycare, child play spaces, nearby retail and groceries all allowed us to have a rich family life [despite a serious lack of disposable income] in the heart of the city. My mother found it easy to connect with other families through the playground and building babysitting co-op. My brother and I were never in want for friends to play with. And despite the demographic restrictions of the building, its location within the city core meant we were surrounded by diversity and experienced it every day.
The perpetuation of the idea that there is no market for ”families in older central communities, given the plentiful supply of cheaper housing in the suburbs” is worrisome. Certainly, a poorly designed development in a central community is not going to attract any buyer. But a carefully crafted mixed use development with amenities and open space will appeal to those that value the richness and diversity that characterize older communities. There will always be families who prefer to live in the suburbs. What Edmonton now needs is more choice so that those who want to live close to work, have their children walk to school or have ready access to independent retail may do so.
An alternative to the single family home can only enrich our neighborhoods. Walk-ups, apartments, condos and mixed-use developments all offer different housing types and diversity that can contribute positively to a neighborhood. The cyclical nature of the demographics of a predominately single family housing neighborhood may be offset by a diverse mix of housing benefiting local schools and businesses. Families who do not want a dedicated yard with its associated work, need more affordable housing or are looking to reduce their ecological footprint may find a solution in these housing types. I hope that we soon see more developers willing to offer a different, sustainable housing development in a mature neighborhood – exhibiting design excellence, of course!
