Great problem also a great opportunity
Architect is aware of challenges with arena site
Scott Ralston, lead architect of the downtown Edmonton arena, must face up to the massive problems that could stop the arena and surrounding district from succeeding.
In that regard, it’s heartening that Ralston, 51, recognizes just how difficult it’s going to be for the arena district to elegantly bridge the historic chasm that separates our downtown from its northern edge.
The chasm along 104th Avenue has severed our downtown and squelched its growth for generations. This is why you’ll mostly find parking lots and rundown buildings across the avenue.
The problem was created by the Canadian National Railway line, which cut off north and south linkages in the downtown as effectively as a castle wall. The railway was then reinforced by the major arterial road, 104th Avenue.
Now, according to the Katz Group and the city’s audacious plan, the arena is to be plopped down on the north edge of 104th Ave., a lonely outpost in that barren area.
“We had kind of a love-hate relationship with the site selected for us with the arena,” Ralston says. “We had this wall at the north, but it was great that you’re at an edge. Whether you know it or not, it’s a great opportunity.
“If you want to build a catalyst, your project should be at the edge of your core area, not in the heart. There is greater opportunity for future development when you’re at the edge. The key to that is to break down the edge, break down that wall.
“We think in the long term there’s going to be wonderful development on the north side, and it will feel like the arena isn’t at the edge of the arena district, but that the arena and the plaza are at the heart of the arena district, and it’s equally developed all around.”
Ralston and his 360 Architecture team, which designed the successful Columbus, Ohio, arena and district, started work about two years ago in Edmonton. They first tweaked the master plan to provide greater connections around the arena.
More emphasis was put on turning 103rd and 102nd streets into major downtown arteries, with 102nd running across 104th Ave., along the east side of the arena, opening up the arena property in a key place where it had previously
“There is greater opportunity for future development when you’re at the edge.”
ARCHITECT SCOTT RALSTON
been closed off.
“These are not so subtle moves, but pretty bold moves, major changes to the master plan and very purposeful,” Ralston says.
What about fears the Wintergarden pedway over 104th Avenue will create a dark wind tunnel and take life off the street?
“We all share those concerns,” Ralston says. “You don’t want to build something that is a net negative to your downtown environment, and it’s a real challenging problem.”
The Wintergarden is the right solution, though, because it provides a safe way to get across busy 104th Avenue without impeding traffic, Ralston says. It will also combine with the outdoor plaza at its base on the south side to be a gathering place for the entire district in summer or winter.
“This is the lobby not just to the arena, but to everything about the arena district.”
The arena will have two other main doors, on the southeast and northwest corners (near a new LRT station), both entrances leading either into the arena or to a public pedway, built within but separate from the arena, that takes you to the Wintergarden.
The cool and curvy snowdrift or oil drop shape of the arena’s outer shell was designed by 360’s Ryan Gedney, one of the lead design architects of Kansas City’s spectacular Sprint Center, and George Heinlein, the lead on classic Nationwide Arena in Columbus.
“I think there was a real desire for something that would reflect movement and energy and modernity,” Ralston says of the Edmonton design. “There’s a major aspiration to create a sense of a building that is in motion, a building that is alive.”
The 775,000-square-foot arena will have far greater creature comforts than Rexall Place, including bigger seats, more leg room, wider concourses, more washrooms, more restaurants and better Wi-Fi, sound and video.
I’ll leave the last word to Ralston, who doesn’t come across as an artiste or star-chitect, but as a community builder.
The arena’s success, he says, hinges on pleasing the public.
“To us, the most important thing is to have a great fan experience. That is what will bring people back.
“We hope to deliver something that the community is proud of. If we’ve done that, then we’ve done our job.”