What could Alberta's Capital City look like in five years? Here's some of the most influential projects being proposed!

Did you know that in the past eight years since 2010, USA has built the equivalent of ten Keystone pipelines?  Meanwhile, we're facing daily protests and delays for the Trans Mountain pipeline, a 980 km (610 mile) expansion project.

The question facing energy companies today is where best to invest their capital to get their product to market.  Should they be investing to build upgraders and refineries here in Alberta to convert bitumen into diesel and gas products locally, or should they continue investing in pipelines to ship heavy product to other markets like Texas where these refineries already exist?

It's like a flashback in time right now, a City and its prized NHL team at odds over the future of their athletic program and critically, the home that they will play in.  Fortunately for Edmontonians, it's not groundhog day in this Town, but rather, this is occurring in our Sister City of Calgary just three hours south.

When we think of innovation and trends leading us into Edmonton's future regarding our commercial developments, a few words must now come to mind... Simons Londonderry Mall.  Not likely the general public's first thought, but since Londonderry Mall announced their $130 Million renovation and redevelopment plan in 2014, this has come to fruition, notably due to the largest solar system in Edmonton that now swathes the new Simons development.

It's no secret that Amazon released a Request for Proposals last week to determine the location of their new headquarters - HQ2.  Every major City is jumping at the opportunity to have a company of this magnitude enter their market, to say nothing of the billions in capital expenditure and thousands of jobs created.   Take a look at what their top decision drivers are here.

After months, or rather years, of doom and gloom for the derelict malls that encompass huge swaths of land in our urban epicenters, a pathway has presented itself for the landowners of these properties.  One solution to the woes of these Class B and C malls is their conversion into warehouse space for the ever growing and expanding E-Commerce market.

The Calgary Ring Road Agreement created opportunity for the Tsuut'ina First Nation to formulate a partnership that would bring about success, prosperity and longevity to their future generations.  The fortunate developer of choice in what is now one of the largest first nation developments in Canada? Canderel.

As urban cities continue to grow in population and expense, and the availability of warehousing  space continues to diminish, developers are being forced to look at alternative options to counter increasing industrial land prices and lease rates.  The solution:  build upwards, not outwards.

Last week, an Open House was held by the ICE District in order to outline the plan and vision for Phase Two Development of the District to the North of Rogers Place

How much value do you place on the accessibility of a City when you think of its potential for growth and development?

One of the main components that all great metropolitan cities have in common is an inclusive, comprehensive public library to provide knowledge, opportunity and cohesiveness to the community at large.  See what the Edmonton Public Library (EPL) and the City have done to reach these goals.

As we near the midway mark of 2017, it's been exciting to see the changes to our Downtown Skyline as existing development projects near completion, while others break ground and continue to mold our core.

The Alberta Government hosts a website called majorprojects.alberta.ca that outlines the inventory of all private and public sector projects across the province that are valued at $5 Million and greater.  Have a read here to see what's going on in Alberta.