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This actually looks fairly nice, better than in some of the earlier pictures imo. The original layout was fairly decent, although way too much of that pebbled concrete that seemed to be everywhere in the late 70's and early 80's, for my taste.

Hopefully this will be a bit more refined and so go better with site and the buildings nearby.
 
IanO said:
GEC Architecture

Construction is underway on the Government Centre North Plaza revitalization at the Alberta Legislature Grounds in Edmonton. Built in the 1970s, our team collaborated with Government of Alberta and Janet Rosenberg & Studio to redesign the North Plaza to preserve the existing and historic mature tree canopy, improve the pedestrian promenade and terraced seating areas, rebuild the reflecting pool and ornamental dome fountain, and transform the terraced wading pools into three interconnected, interactive spray parks.

Inspired by Alberta’s natural landforms and climate regions, the design will include native plantings from the Prairies and granite boulders mined from mountains made of Rundle stone.

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GEC Architecture | LinkedIn

GEC Architecture | 7,242 followers on LinkedIn. Behind every great experience is a great host. Calgary • Edmonton • Toronto | Behind every great experience is a great host. In our cities, this means architecture that sets a direction, anticipates what people need, and manages complexity...
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That looks surprisingly good, considering the expectations I had.
 
I disagree.... what happened to all the stone waterfall features bordering a 'winding river' as shown in the initial concept art?

We're essentially going from the vast array of architecturally interesting pools, water features, stepping stones, and fountains - to more grass and couple spray nozzles on a concrete pad?
.... So then it's a carbon copy/extension of the existing Federal Plaza pad

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I look at the original images and see a very active busy park, but I also notice a wheelchair off in the shadows. Maybe its my current experience with someone in a wheelchair but the new renderings appear more inclusive. Some person or child in a wheel chair can also participate.
 
Mixed feelings about this based on that new render. It looks nice but also pretty generic and uninspiring. All these projects on the Legislature grounds get so close to being great and never quite clear the bar. I'm still bitter about the lack of a skating rink and restaurant at the Federal building/plaza. That plaza works well in the summer but is so barren and cold the rest of the year—I fear the same will become of this with its rather flat and featureless topography.

I spoke with someone with close knowledge of this project and apparently, they've really tightened the timeline to complete it. That is why it's getting tented and will be worked on all winter. I wasn't able to get an estimate on when it's expected to be done though.
 
It's not as interesting as what it replaces, but having it open and good sightlines with grass areas to sit and lots of water area for kids is pretty good actually. It should not compete visually with the Leg, the rendering with the rocks was way too much going on. What's important is the view of the Leg not this landscaping.
 
Greenspace said:
It's not as interesting as what it replaces, but having it open and good sightlines with grass areas to sit and lots of water area for kids is pretty good actually. It should not compete visually with the Leg, the rendering with the rocks was way too much going on. What's important is the view of the Leg not this landscaping.
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I mostly agree, although I feel what was there before overdid the concrete a bit too much. I don't have young kids, but I imagine more than a few scraped little knees and elbows there over the years.

A really good point earlier about the skating rink for the winter, that would have been great and made it more usable throughout the year.
 
a large temp fabric structure has been erected covering a good deal of the work area. I suppose so work can continue throughout the winter months.
 
'A really good point earlier about the skating rink for the winter, that would have been great and made it more usable throughout the year.'

It continues to be a real shame that after a 250-300mil project, that the beautifully placed/large skating rink in the upper plaza with existing supportive infrastructure is still left undone.
 
Airboy said:
That is a lot of expense to add to this project.
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Coming after the Legislatures rehab, I bet the GoA is willing to pay a bit extra to have this wrapped up ASAP.
 
It would be good if they could take advantage of the milder weather so far this winter to move things ahead. The grounds get a lot of use in the summer so the sooner this is done the better.

This fairly major refurbishment to the grounds is also something that hasn't happened in around 40 years, so the extent of the work and cost should be put in that context too.
 
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