A sunny start to May ☀️

IN THIS ISSUE

➡️ New department store opening

➡️ Two large housing developments proposed

➡️ Red Dress Walk taking place this Friday

QUICK HITS

🏗️ Mount Edward Road Development: A proposed housing development between Mount Edward Road and Canadian Tire has resurfaced. Last July I wrote about a project that was before Charlottetown’s Planning Board for 370 housing units spread over four apartment buildings and four townhouses. The project was back on the Planning Board agenda this week (YouTube / 9Min). The layout of the site remains unchanged, but the number of proposed units has increased to 464. The additional units are being added by increasing the number of storeys for two of the buildings from four to six. The Planning Board supported a motion to move the project to city council for a vote to send the development to public consultation. I shared some drawings on this project on the Island Edition Instagram page.

🚧 Former Irwin Printing Co: A 31-unit apartment building is being proposed for the site of the former Irwin Printing Company at 19 Richmond Street in Charlottetown. The property was purchased by 103040 PEI INC. in March. Since then, the building that housed Irwin Printing, which has been in a dilapidated state for years, has been torn down and a plan drawn up for a four-story building with underground parking. The developer, who also owns the neighbouring property at 15 Richmond Street, is seeking approval to route access to the underground parking garage around the historic building at the neighbouring property so the garage door can be located at the rear of the building, rather than at the street. I also shared some drawings on this project on the Island Edition Instagram page.

BUSINESS BUZZ

🛒 New Department Store: Islanders in search of a good deal and some shopping satisfaction may find what they’re looking for at a new mid-sized value-driven department store that’s opening in Charlottetown. Hart, a chain of family-owned stores that bills itself as “a leading destination when it comes to shopping for home and apparel products” is setting up shop in the former Brick location at Belvedere Plaza. No one from the company would tell me when the store will open, but they have started searching for staff, with an anticipated start date of May 8.

🚌 Magical Island: We all know PEI is a magical place, now Disney has confirmed it. Adventures by Disney announced a new tour package this week that will bring travelers to the Maritimes for a guided tour, including two nights in PEI. Tour groups meet up in Halifax for their first night before taking the ferry to Wood Islands the next morning. While here, they’ll stay at Rodds Crowbush Resort and visit typical tourist hotspots in Cavendish. Ten tours are scheduled for this coming season between early June until late September.

📽️ Staying Put: City Cinema will not be moving from its home on King Street anytime soon. Charlottetown Film Society, the non-profit organization that operates the cinema, was exploring the idea last fall of moving the city’s only independent theater to the basement of the Arts Hotel on Kent Street. The idea was shelved due to concerns that the move could jeopardize the financial stability of the organization.

Have a tip or hear a rumour of a business opening or closing? Drop me a line, I’ll look into it.

BY THE NUMBERS

Jet Setters

📈 89%: Pandemic recovery at Charlottetown Airport is ahead of schedule. Travel through YYG in 2022 reached 89% of the airport’s record-breaking 2019 year. Despite a slow start to 2022, 341,649 passengers moved through the airport last year, with record levels from June to October. The airport expects 2023 to set a new record.

✈️ 5: Charlottetown Airport will be served by five airlines this summer connecting Islanders to seven destinations. Aside from Air Canada, WestJet, Swoop, and Flair, YYG will welcome Portner Airlines later this month. To help facilitate additional airlines, YYG is in the final stages of implementing a common use passenger processing system, a technology used in airports that allows airlines to share airport resources, such as check-in desks, kiosks, and gates, instead of having dedicated resources for each airline.

💰 $20M: An expansion of Charlottetown Airport’s terminal is currently underway, which will include an enlarged lounge area with additional seating, increased space for security screening queues, and an outdoor seating zone within the departure lounge. The project will be carried out in phases over multiple years to minimize disruptions during peak travel seasons. The outdoor lounge is expected to open this summer.

ISLAND LINKS

🚧 PEI Road Work Map: I’ve updated the PEI Road Construction Map. This update includes planned capital projects in Charlottetown, as well as 9 kilometers of street repairs in the city. There’s also a layer with four left turn lane projects the province has put out to tender (Bonshaw, finally!).

🧑‍⚕️ Mental Health and Addictions Campus Update: Health PEI staff provided an overview to Charlottetown councillors on mental health and addictions projects, including an update on the mental health and addictions campus in Charlottetown. You can watch the presentation on YouTube (11 minutes) or read the presentation (PDF/1.7mb).

⚡ Energy Future: The PEI Energy Corporation, along with the Department of Environment, Energy and Climate Action, is collecting feedback on energy-related legislation and public perceptions of the current energy status on PEI. The results will help the government make informed decisions regarding energy policy and legislation development. Feedback is being collected through this online survey.

Island Links is a new content block where I can share useful information with you that doesn’t necessarily require much of a write up. Have a useful link to share? Drop me a message so I can pass it along.

#PEIslandEdition

So...was this you? ⛵️

Dawn Dawson snapped this picture on Facebook: "If you were the two guys out for a sail around 2:30 by Fort Amherst (Sunday) here is a photo I took of you and your boat."

Tag @PEIslandEdition or use #PEIslandEdition to get your post featured in Island Edition!

COMMUNITY CORNER

🏙️ The Shape Stratford Community Conversation continues tomorrow with a growth management workshop where attendees will evaluate various growth options and discuss the challenges and benefits of each possibility. All residents are encouraged to attend. This workshop is part of the Shape Stratford project, a $1.1M initiative aimed at reducing pre-development barriers to affordable housing. For more information, visit this event listing on the Shape Stratford website.

👢Join the Aboriginal Women’s Association of PEI on Friday, May 5 for a Red Dress Walk honoring missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people. All participants are encouraged to wear red. The Red Dress Walk takes place from 1:00 - 4:00 PM at the Victoria Park Pavilion.

🚮 The 50th annual PEI Women's Institute roadside cleanup takes place on May 13. Collect and bag up litter along roads and leave the bags for provincial highway staff to collect. Wear gloves, bright clothing, and sturdy shoes. See this PDF poster for more information, including details about cash prizes to be won.

Send a quick message if your organization would like to publish a quick PSA. There's no charge for these. Max three per-issue.

WEATHER

Wednesday

🌧️ H 4°C 🌡️ L 2°C 
💨 ENE 19 km/h, gusting 37

Thursday

☁️ H 7°C 🌡️ L 2°C
💨 NE 28 km/h, gusting 56

Looking Ahead

👀 Sunshine and double-digits this weekend!

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