Plans take the High Level Line to a new level of sophistication
Local designers pitch a 4-km linear park linking the south side to the downtown
A group of young Edmonton professionals is pitching a new vision for the High Level Bridge that would stretch the park experience from Whyte Avenue right to MacEwan University.
“The bridge is only a quarter of the length of this opportunity,” said landscape architect Kevin Dieterman, who spent a year designing a new urban park for the area with a half-dozen other individuals.
The group wants the streetcar — a much slower form of public transit — to run through a four-kilometre park and cycling space, creating a mixed-use and pedestrian park similar to what’s found in Europe.
“It’s really about connecting the downtown and south side, the two cultural hearts of our city. It’s really, really rich,” Dieterman said Wednesday after the group released an initial plan at highlevelline.com this week.
It’s building on an idea many have pitched in the past. They’re hoping the ideas resonate with Edmonton residents and build support for more pedestrian-friendly transportation system in the area.
The plan could be a long shot, partly because Edmonton’s LRT planners are also eyeing the High Level Bridge to run the proposed central circulator LRT from 76 Avenue or Whyte Avenue through downtown.
But Dieterman defends this as a more people-friendly alternative, giving residents living in higher density areas a vibrant, parklike setting to relax in and move through. Residents already have a higher-speed commuting option with the existing Capital LRT line through the University of Alberta.
On their website, group members don’t apologize for dreaming big, quoting architect Daniel Burnham: “Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir (people)’s blood and probably themselves will not be realized.”