Edmonton city councillors are entertaining an idea many think is a pie in the sky — building a gondola across the North Saskatchewan River.
The urban planning committee agreed Tuesday to find out how much it would cost to do a feasibility study on a gondola that would carry passengers between downtown Edmonton and Old Strathcona.
Councillors insist the move won’t cost taxpayers’ money.
I’m definitely not in the pro-gondola camp– Coun. Andrew Knack
“No public dollars,” Coun. Michael Walters said. “This can be paid for by private investors.”
The committee asked staff to report back in mid-October with cost estimates and the likelihood that private investors will foot the bill for the study and the potential project.
Councillor Michael Walters, right, doesn’t want taxpayers to pay for a feasibility study on the gondola. (CBC)
He said if the study comes back showing the city would have to pay $100,000, they will not move further.
The gondola debate started when Gary and Amber Poliquin pitched the idea for The Edmonton Project, a competition spearheaded by local businesses for a new Edmonton landmark. The couple’s idea won the competition in March.
The proposal includes an eight-car gondola connecting Whyte Ave. Jasper Avenue at the Shaw Conference Centre with a stop at the Rossdale power plant.
“When I first heard this idea I thought it was ridiculous,” Coun. Andrew Knack said.
After reading a report prepared by the Edmonton Transit System Advisory Board, presented Tuesday, Knack said it was worth taking another tentative look.
“I’m definitely not in the pro-gondola camp.”
The ETSAB looked at gondola projects in several cities, including Portland, Oregon and Berlin, Germany.
“This is a viable project that warrants further consideration and study,” the ETSAB said of the proposal for Edmonton.
“As Edmonton grapples with how to increase transport capacity across our river valley and better connect Downtown and Old Strathcona, a gondola is uniquely well-suited to provide this capacity,” the report says.
Councillors want the fall report from city staff to include how a gondola would breathe life into the the Rossdale redevelopment plan.
“I’m very intrigued by this idea,” Coun. Ben Henderson said.
Coun. Tim Cartmell doesn’t want the city to spend any more time on studying the gondola proposal.
Councillor Tim Cartmell doesn’t think it’s worth the city’s time to look into the gondola project further. (CBC)
“Even in the best of circumstances, this project is not proceeding anytime soon,” Cartmell told the committee Tuesday, calling the gondola “essentially a dead-end.”
Cartmell said getting staff to look at the gondola further will take focus away from a “very challenging capital budget for the next few years.”
The capital costs for a gondola project typically range from $9 million to $60 million US per kilometre. It costs the City of Edmonton an average of $138 million per kilometre to build LRT tracks, the report says.