A group of neighbours in west Edmonton are filing a court challenge against a nearly 30-bedroom infill development slated for their cul-de-sac, arguing they did not receive proper notification regarding the project.
Simone Van Gelder, who has lived on the cul-de-sac in Laurier Heights for more than a decade, said she believes signage about the development on the vacant property was not prominent enough.
“We didn’t know where to look, we didn’t know how to look,” she said.
Van Gelder said she and some of her neighbours were unaware of the project until the deadline to appeal the development permit with the city — 21 days after a permit is approved — had already passed.
Residents filed an appeal regardless, but lost.
Van Gelder and other neighbours are now challenging the rejection of their initial appeal in the Alberta Court of Appeal. The City of Edmonton suspended the development permit while the case is before the courts.
The court date is set for late October. In the meantime, Van Gelder is raising concerns about requirements for adequate notification of residents about new projects in their communities.
The city approved the permit for the development in April. Van Gelder said residents living close to the lots found out about the project in May, from a real estate agent who spotted the permits on the City of Edmonton’s online database.
Earlier this year, Edmonton-based development company Berkshire Homes submitted plans to the city to develop two semi-detached dwellings and a backyard house on adjacent empty lots the company bought several years ago.
CBC News reached out to Berkshire Homes, which was struck from Alberta’s corporate registry in 2024, but the company declined to comment.
Simone Van Gelder has lived in Laurier Heights for over a decade. She said she believes residents didn’t receive enough notice regarding the infill project in their cul-de-sac. (Bob Grieve / CBC News)
In an interview with CBC News last month, Van Gelder cited parking, waste management, aging infrastructure and a lack of bus routes on the major roadway passing the cul-de-sac as concerns she has about the project.
Van Gelder said she and other residents did not see any signage posted on site alerting the community to the incoming development.
Berkshire Homes submitted photos to the city in response to the original appeal, showing the developer posted lawn signs in front of the fence that surrounded the site. In a written response, the company said that “there is no evidence … that the signage requirement was not met.”
However, Van Gelder said that signage was not permanently fixed to the fence until after residents filed the initial appeal against the development permit in early May.
Ward sipiwiyiniwak Coun. Thu Parmar, who represents Laurier Heights, said the signs fulfilled posting requirements.
Van Gelder said representatives with Berkshire Homes were difficult to reach through the contact information listed on the on-site notices, and often did not answer calls or emails.
How does the city notify residents?
After a permit is approved by the city, developers have 14 days to post signage with details about the project on the designated site.
Lyla Peter, director of development approvals and inspections with the City of Edmonton, said on-site notices must be posted so they are not easily removed and must stay on site throughout the construction process.
She said site notices are meant to help residents reach out to developers if they have comments or concerns about a project.
In addition to on-site notices, the city is required to post notices online after a permit is approved, Peter said.
Van Gelder said she believes printed notices should have been delivered to nearby households; Peter said that only happens when projects require a zoning variance.
Parmar said the onus is partially on residents to be aware of changes in their community, noting that blanket rezoning introduced in 2024 means residents have to be even more vigilant.
“The City of Edmonton can’t be everywhere, in all places,” she said.
Kalen Anderson, CEO of real estate advocacy group BILD Edmonton Metro, noted that with the development surge in Edmonton due to blanket rezoning and a recent population influx, developers and the city must work to foster public trust through transparent communication about new projects.
“What really helps to build trust is clarity and confidence that people understand what’s going to be happening and where,” she said.
“When that communication breaks down, the trust is fractured.”
Anderson said she would like to see developers going door to door to introduce themselves and notify residents about projects, on top of posting on-site notices.
“Planning is a verb, it’s not a one and done,” she said.
“You don’t change a bylaw, put district plans or have a singular community conversation and it’s over. It’s something that we have to continue working at diligently day in and day out.”