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Press, 19 October 1978, Page 3

If Edmonton was put on the world map by the rec e n t Commonwealth Games, there will be no need to repeat the exercise in order for it to stay there. This buss' Canadian city seems destined to take its place on equal terms with the great economic capitals of the world.

This might seem an exaggerated forecast for a city of only half a million people but few economists contest it.

The days when Edmonton’s chief claim to fame as as a frontier trading post on the banks of the North Saskatchewan River have long since faded. Now it is the geographical cer.re of the flourishing oil and gas industry of Alberta. attracting investment like a giant ‘ conomic magnet. The rate of growth, already spectacular, is accelerating a-, the demand for development of energy resources increases. Where it will all end is anybody’s guess, but there is no doubt where the energy spotlight will be focused in the next decade. Things have changed. Now there is so much financial activity in Ed» montan, so much building, manufacturing, and distribution, that banks and lending institutions had no alternative but to move to the “oil capital”. There are now 12 chartered banks in Edmonton, with a combined tola! of 206 branches. In addition, 15 trust companies have offices in the city: there are 25 loan association companies, 80 different life insurance companies, 89 companies which deal in other forms of insurance, and 51 finance companies. Some indication of the vigour of the economy can be gained from the birth of a new daily newspaper. The Edmonton “Sun” began publishing in April as a rival to the city’s other morning newspaper, the “Journal.” The “Sun’' is tabloid, with its front page in full colour. Newspapers are declining in many parts of the

.ne discovery ot oii in nearby Leduc in 1947 started Edmonton on the path to financial security. Further discoveries of oil in Alberta and, now, the certainty of large scale development of the Alberta oil sands, have brought people and money pouring into the city.

Edmonton’s claim to >e the “energy capital of Canada" is totally justified. It might never hold title to oil sands or coal fields, but business and industry in Edmonton will continue to reap rich dividends from the development of these energy resources.

The city is the supply and service supermarket for energy development in Alberta. And this is on a massive scale. Manufacturers, equipment suppliers, transport operators, provisioners and banks, engineering and technical skills help make up the supply lines servicing the on-site manpower and machines harvesting the energy materials.

It is estimated that the development of energy resources in Canada will create one million new

world. The arrival of a new one is an event of some significance. Another major development has been the opening of the S64M rapid transit rail system, which has its main terminal under the business centre of the city. It is carefully integrated with the bus system and solves the problem of moving large numbers of people quickly and cheaply through the high density' business area. Retail trade has been growing at the almost unbelievable rate of 21 per cent, annually. The latest available figures put the value of this at nearly S3M. The wholesale trade has shown an even more dramatic increase — from ■S627M to more than $2 billion in the four years up to the end of 1976. There are 15 major shopping malls and, in Metro Edmonton, 2150 retail stores.

The presence of the oil fields accounts for most of the growth, but not all of it. Edmonton is in a province which is not only rich in resources but

jobs within the next decade. The city fathers are certain that a high proportion of these will be in and around Edmonton. Edmonton is already the fastest growing city in Canada. It is divided into the city proper and what is known as Metro Edmonton. a larger area which included a proportion of the surrounding county land. There are about 500,000 people within the municipal boundaries and a further 100,000 living in the Metro area.

The population, 60 per cent of which is under the a-,e of 35, is increasing at an annual rate of two per cent. Edmonton is expected to become the next Canadian city to reach a population of one million. This is likely to occur just before the turn of the century, according ta the Edmonton Regional Planning Commission. But the more widely held view is that the million mark might be passed within a decade.

One thing is for sure: the rate at which people are streaming into Edmonton is surpassed Only by

which also has the lowest personal income tax in Canada. There is no sales tax, no succession duty or gift tax: it has the lowest fuel tax; and it. has the lowest unemployment rate in Canada. Many businessmen regard the city as a tax haven.

Unemployment is considered low at 3.9 per cent and the wage level is high enough to make the ordinary New Zealand worker weep into his beer with frustration. The average weekly wage in Edmonton is $220, but weekly incomes of $5OO are not uncommon and skilled workers can- earn anything up to $40,000 a year with overtime.

Even so, not everybody is happy with the* rate of Edmonton’s growth. The possibility of a fast-paced development degenerating into a condition of urban sprawl and producing an overheated economy is recognised by many.

Among those who are concerned are members of the Governemnt of Alberta, which would like to see the growth artificially

the increase in investment in the city. The total value of building permits for metropolitan Edmonton last year was nearly $793M. Of this figure, SIB3M was for commercial buildings. More construction activity took place in Edmonton last year than in any other Canadian city west of Toronto.

Not surprisingly, the construction industry is thriving. There are some 600 construction companies in Edmonton, employing about 20,000 building tradesmen. The skyline, already' punctuated with skyscrapers, is changing rapidly. At night, this is a spec® tacular sight. The soaring profiles of tall buildings and the blaze of high-rise lighting provides a striking effect as one approaches from the south. Much of this skyline has been shaped within the last decade. In this time, more than $3 billion worth of new construction has taken place within the municipal area.

Edmonton now commands attention in the

slowed ar, at least, controlled. At the same time, the projected population growth leaves the Edmonton council with no alternative but. to expand its industrial base in an effort to meet the need there will be for jobs. It can be vigilant, but it cannot slow the growth.

There are no major areas of concern at present In many cases, Edmonton is the Eden of Canada. But it is not without its blemishes.

Lured by the siren song of boom conditions and good paying jobs, Canadians are leaving areas of high unemployment in other parts of Canada to seek work in Edmonton. They bring with them some unwanted social problems.

“Many of these people arrive with limited or no resources and, unable td find work, apply for welfare. Trying to cope with the problems of these transients is putting a strain on the city’s social services budget,” the editor of “Trade and Com-

money markets and board j rooms of the international ; community in a way in ■ which few cities have 1 done before. The massive ; capital requirements of ■ energy resource devel- ; opment is attracting the ’ big commercial spenders i from around the world. Tokyo industrialists, West I German financiers, British ! businessmen. Texas oil ■ men. Wall Street bankers j come to visit, like what I they see. and take their ; place in the industrial acreage of the city.

The trend has been slowly growing since the 19705. Now it has almost reached the explosive stage — a stage where the city’s identity is in some danger. Clearly this boom situ- I ation did not come over- i night. Banking and finance struggled over some rocky i roads before finally arriving in Edmonton. During | the 1950 s and 19605, big money borrowers requiring capital for major works had to convince experts in other parts of Canada and even overseas of I their ability to repay. It j always took time.

merce” magazine, Robert Tyre, said in a recent article.

Jobs, he says, are not so plentiful for unskilled workers as some people would like to believe.

Although the main emphasis is on big business, the city has not forgotten the environmental and educational needs of its citizens. The valley of the North Saskatchewan River is its most promi= nent physical characteristic. Development in the valley has been strictly controlled to ensure the preservation of its natural beauty.

Eleven per cent of Edmonton — 10,923 acres — is parkland, and a high proportion of this is "in the river valley. It has 50 per cent more green space per capita than any other city in Canada.

Everything suggests that the economy of Edmonton will continue at a hectic pace, out of kilter with the rest of the world. Many more believe that the economy has not yet even shifted into high gear.