Parkview residents fighting eightplex builds in court and appeals

Tensions over infill housing are boiling over in Parkview, where residents are resisting multiple multi-unit developments through appeals and court challenges.

Lawn signs along 88 Avenue warn neighbours about what dense infill means: a single eightplex equals "16 doors, 32 people, 16 garbage bins and 32 cars." Corisandra Leyton-High, who lives in an infill herself, supports duplexes and fourplexes but says eightplexes are overreach. She's appealing to stop builder Davach Properties' plans for two multi-unit builds in the neighbourhood.

Leyton-High lost her case before the Edmonton Subdivision and Development Appeal Board in May, but has now filed in the Alberta Court of Appeal with a hearing set for early August. Her argument centres on whether the lots have enough clearance for required paths, retaining walls, swales, and fence posts. The appeal board ruled the plans allowed sufficient space, calling the impact "speculative."

The 2024 zoning bylaw allows buildings with up to eight units in developed neighbourhoods, requiring at least 75 square metres per unit. But Leyton-High and other residents say the bylaw is too vague, especially when multiple eightplexes could sit back-to-back. Ward Sipiwiwiniwak Coun. Thu Parmar confirmed developers are buying up entire blocks in her ward, some telling residents their homes will lose value to pressure sales. "It's not just one or two houses; developers are starting to buy entire neighbourhoods," Parmar said, noting "dramatic changes."

Leyton-High voiced what many feel: "There is a human cost to this. It's not just about our property values going down or the noise or the parking issues. These are neighbours I have come to treasure — good people, kind friends."

The Parkview battle reflects city-wide tension between densification goals and neighbourhood stability.