The provincial government confirmed Wednesday that they will fund substantial renovations to Fort Edmonton Park over the next three years.
This announcement revealed details of April’s provincial budget report that committed $33.5 million through the Alberta Jobs Plan to the development of Edmonton’s beloved park.
Fort Edmonton Park will receive an estimated $4 million in 2016-17, $16 million in 2017-18, and $14 million in 2018-19.
Premier Rachel Notley announced that facilities will now be open year-round, which will generate around $7 million for Edmonton’s economy and $23 million for the province. She also revealed that the Indigenous People’s Experience exhibit, the 1920s Midway, and the Hotel Selkirk will be upgraded in this phase of renovations.
Research by Econometrics Research Limited revealed that this project will create an estimated 455 full-time jobs during construction, and 57 permanent full-time park-related jobs after its completion, government officials said.
“With this investment through the Alberta Jobs Program, an important chapter in our history will be shared and the economic impact of this historic site will continue to grow into the future with new employment and business opportunities,” Notley said.
A communications coordinator for Fort Edmonton Park told CTV Edmonton that construction is expected to begin in the fall of 2017, with a goal to complete work May 2019. She also said that if any closures are made during the construction process, the park will attempt to maintain public access to the majority of the facilities throughout the duration of the project.
In 2014, Edmonton City Council committed $70 million to improve necessary utilities, but that project will not begin until the current infrastructure upgrade is completed in 2019.
Fort Edmonton Park signed Memorandums of Understanding with the Confederacy of Treaty Six First Nations and the Metis Nation of Alberta in January 2015 to bring their cultures to the forefront of the cultural catalog at the park.
The historic park was built in 1974 and it sits on 64 hectares along Edmonton’s river valley. Fort Edmonton Park features the 1846 Hudson’s Bay Fort and it portrays Edmonton’s early history with the streets of 1885, 1905 and 1920.
