Opinion: Close the City Centre Airport

I’m one of the many who will be watching Edmonton City Council. They’ve got one vote coming, before they break for the summer, that will impact the city for years to come. No matter which way it goes, there will be fallout. Who knew having two airports could be so contentious?

I didn’t live here when Edmontonians voted to shift all passenger air traffic to the International, in a plebiscite back in 1995. Even when I moved here in 2005, I didn’t even think there was much ado about the Edmonton City Centre Airport (ECCA), also known as the “Muni.” Maybe that’s because I, like most people in the city, have never flown on a private or charter flight from the ECCA, taken flight lessons there, or (thankfully) had to be brought in on STARS or a medical flight.

I didn’t even pay much attention when city council asked the administration to give them some ideas of what to do with the airport land, or when the public was first asked for input. I think I first took interest when the mayor gave his State of the City address.  He questioned the future of the airport, and challenged Muni users to provide a vision for it in Edmonton’s plans.

That’s where the debate got interesting.

On one side, you had an administration offering up ideas for developing a new neighbourhood; members of the public speaking about the community of Edmonton’s future – walkable, transit-oriented, with an homage to the air history; and even NAIT students were interested in expanding their campus. This was the image of the Municipal Airport I could get behind.

On the other side, you had proponents of the airport claiming that people would die if medevac flights had to head to the Edmonton International Airport (EIA) in Leduc.

But that’s inaccurate and could almost be described as fear-mongering.  STARS takes on most of the most emergent cases and can land (when the provincial government allows) at any airport in the city. If the transition to the EIA was planned carefully, ambulance lanes, rights of way, traffic signal control, etc… can all be incorporated to save lives. Plus, medical care isn’t up to the City. That’s provincial jurisdiction.

The other arguments from City Centre frequent flyers lands in the status quo department. We’ve heard about how much of an advantage the little airport is for big and small business and connections to northern Alberta. We’re told that business will all head elsewhere, and we’ll be filling unemployment lines with Kingsway employees.

I doubt it.

Northern Alberta businesses, government employees and lobbying municipal politicians MUST come here.  Theycan’t find the Legislature in Calgary, Red Deer or Saskatchewan. They’ll just have to pay $40 for a cab ride (like me). Or use the shuttle service.

Some businesses at the ECCA might have to close. Some will have to move to smaller airports in the region that will pick up flight training. Others will have to head to the EIA, which will likely pick up some of the private and charter flights.

Now, I don’t want Edmonton’s councillors to close the airport without some real planning and visioning for the next few years, with an eye to 10-50 years ahead. That means things like:

• Connecting LRT to the Edmonton International Airport
• Accomodating (with provincial authorities) medical flights and STARS issues
• Closing the airport in a few years to give employees and owners of nearby City Centre businesses time to evolve, close or find new jobs (before getting on my case about telling people to find new jobs, let’s all remember people used to carry around chunks of ice before we all had refridgerators with iceboxes.)

I think this decision is about more than a use for the land today. People don’t want to lose what’s theirs. I get that. But those same people won’t be using it in 50 years. We have to try and build for that Edmonton.

Councillors voting for closure will need to think about those key planning issues though. The air traffic, business transition, LRT to the International and provincial medical flights all have to be considered. They also have to think about how to build that new neighbourhood. You can’t just close the airport and hope something cool pops up.

I want to see those airport lands in the middle of the city become a neighbourhood people want to visit, shop in, live in. It should be walkable, with medium to high-denisty housing. There should be storefront businesses and strips of shopping like we see on Whyte Avenue and 124th Street.

The airport should get its historical due with the museum staying open. I’d love to see that tied into a small business and conference centre. That would accomodate offices for people in the neighbourhood to work at and help maintain the hotel business already in the area. NAIT should be expanded (with residences, if they want).

Connecting to the rest of the city is important. That’s what makes the Whyte/University area so convenient. LRT should have the stops at Kingsway Garden Mall/Royal Alexandra Hospital and NAIT. Both are transit hubs unto themselves and should continue to be so. There could be some great work done to get LRT to the International and bring business travellers to a conference centre right there in the middle of a thriving, connected neighbourhood. Buses will play a role, but I’d also love to see low-floor LRT or a streetcar loop around the whole thing.

I think we’re starting to see better planning from the city with some new ideas for transit and LRT, and plans to build up the downtown.

This neighbourhood could rise from the runways and become an example of urban design for the rest of the world to follow.

More information on keeping the airport open here and closing it here.

If you want your own “Not My Airport” photo, check out my flickr page.