Mayfair Hotel site targeted for rejuvenation
Commercial, rental possibilities for corner
Bill Mah, The Edmonton Journal
Published: 3:33 am
EDMONTON - George Schluessel is working on an idea for the old Mayfair Hotel building that, if it goes ahead, would rejuvenate a dowdy stretch of Jasper Avenue and boost a scant supply of "attainable" housing for working-class renters.
But the CEO of Procura speaks reluctantly about the proposal to build a 458-unit, 15-floor apartment and commercial building on the site of the boarded-up landmark and adjacent parking lot at Jasper Avenue between 108th and 109th Streets. Arndt Tkalcic Architecture, acting for Procura, has applied for a City of Edmonton major development permit for the site.
"We're still trying to work through the feasibility of it," Schluessel said Friday.
Procura, he stressed, is developing a plan for the property it owns so it can move fast if a window of opportunity opens. The design is no guarantee it will go ahead.
"All developers would like to build all kinds of projects but we're in a real downturn market right now, and at the same time we have very high construction costs that have not changed."
Still, he acknowledges the Mayfair site is a prime piece of downtown real estate waiting for the right project at the right time.
It's a high-exposure corner above an underground LRT station across Jasper from another Procura property, the Professional Building, an office and retail development, which is expected to open next August after a $70-million renovation.
The former Mayfair Hotel building is a five-storey structure built in 1944 and expanded in 1955, according to the Procura website. It was built in red brick but now painted grey.
For several years after 1978, it operated as the Hotel Vega, whose decor included plastic palm trees. In 1989, Edmonton hotelier Howard Pechet opened a dinner theatre in the remodelled building and considered adding a casino to the west.
In 1996, an attempt was made to convert the building to condominiums targeted at Filipino-Canadian seniors.
Last fall, Procura evicted tenants such as Rigoletto's Cafe, Go Backpackers Hostel, Corona Coffee Station, Boun Thai Restaurant, Funky Pickle Pizza, Vinyl night club, Advance Cut Hair and Artistic Grocery so asbestos could be removed.
With the contaminant cleared, Schluessel said Calgary-based Procura is now considering demolishing the building to create rental housing for an under-served population.
"I think there's no market for the middle-tier tenants -- i.e., students graduating, people in clerical positions who have an income but don't have a down payment.
An undersupply of lower-rent housing means working-class renters compete with the poorest tenants for available apartments. "It pushes the very lowest tier out on the street.
"We're trying to do the feasibility of the second or middle tier where people can move into new, quality accommodations and that doesn't take away from the lower level."
It's the first project Procura is considering for the site, but it might not be the last. "It's the first. We'll keep going down that road, but if a major office tenant comes along, we'd switch horses."
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http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/story.html?id=b2ad5b9d-ffbb-4785-8527-89ac8886213c
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