Could Edmonton finally see more development in its far south?

This is 41st Ave Southwest, a stretch of road on the south side of Edmonton. Now, on one side sits rows of homes, and on the other, farmland as far as you can see. But a call to expand further south hopes to change that soon. Despite looking like the edge of town, 41st Ave isn't actually along the city's borders. Back in 2019, the city annexed about 9,000 hectares of land, pushing that border further south. In the year since, that land remains unchanged. The folks who are living within the lands that were annexed in 2019 have been patiently or maybe not so patiently waiting for this action to take place because their lives and livelihoods depend on follow through with the promises that were made. Now, a handful of Edmonton groups, including Build Edmonton Metro, are calling on the city to give a green light to start expanding. Leduc County is booming. Parkland County is booming. They all have a lot of net new land coming available that is shovel-ready. The city of Edmonton isn't there, so they have to go now to start the planning because it takes two to six years to even be ready to compete. According to Build Edmonton, the Southside is one of the fastest-growing parts of the region. They argue that adding more infrastructure just south of 41st Ave will bring in significantly more revenue for the city. But not everyone in Edmonton feels outward expansion is the right path forward. We know that continuing to sprawl outwards will continue to raise property taxes by adding more roads, more pipes that we have to maintain forever. Even the city councillor for that ward shares a similar sentiment. Unfortunately, keep moving outwards is not a sustainable path. Despite this, Morgan feels that expanding south might be the right move. We do have that land that's south of 41st Ave within the city limits right now, and I think we're probably at that point where we need to look at further work in that area. The decision to approve planning for the land south of 41st Ave will fall to Edmonton City Council within the first three months of 2027. Trisha Watershed, CBC News, Edmonton.