Establishing the Association

In 1911, James Carruthers registered a restrictive covenant at Alberta Land Titles, on most of the lots created in his new subdivision south of Stony Plain Road to the North Saskatchewan River and west of Groat Ravine to 142 Street. His vision for an attractive Garden City Suburb with winding roads following the natural topography and the inclusion of many parklets became known as Old Glenora and Capital Hill. The restrictive covenant specified no commercial development, one dwelling per lot and established building setbacks. This regulated development and preserved the key features of the Garden City Suburb.

In 2011, the City of Edmonton’s residential zoning bylaw was amended to intensify development city-wide. Properties in the neighbourhood were ‘in motion’ and it was anticipated that commercially-motivated initiatives would follow. A small group of concerned property -owner-residents, spearheaded by Bryan Robinson, began discussing potential ramifications of the new zoning bylaws and on February 12, 2012, a meeting was convened. Attended by over 20 residents, the main focus was the Carruthers Caveat and how it might be applied to protect the historic character of the neighbourhood and its architecturally driven unique building styles.

In the months that followed and with further development pressures mounting, consensus emerged in the neighbourhood of the need to organise an association to advocate for the conservation of the area’s historic character. Working with property owners and developers would be key to ensuring compliance with the Carruthers Caveat and promote development respecting the existing architecture and streetscape that is essential to the defining character of the area.

An ad hoc task force was established and developed the objectives to:

-Preserve the historic neighbourhoods of Old Glenora and Capital Hill by defending the conditions of the Carruthers Caveat to influence development in the community;

-Educate buyers, realtors, developers and new and existing residents about the terms, conditions and obligations of the Caveat;

-Educate the public with respect to the history, the architecture and the beauty of the Old Glenora and Capital Hill areas of the City of Edmonton.

The work of the citizen’s group and the task force resulted in the formation, on August 16,2013, of the Old Glenora Conservation Association, incorporated with David Finlay, Bryan Robinson and David Percy as founding officers.  Since those early days the Association has grown to over 200 members and has been led by the Board of Directors which has been active in monitoring development permit applications, invoking the Carruthers Caveat where appropriate and working with the City’s Council and administration to promote the heritage value of the neighbourhood.