St. Albert is a bustling city of activity. With new communities being constructed in Jensen Lakes, Erin Ridge North, Easton, and Riverside – it’s an incredible time to build a brand new home in St. Albert!
With equally high demand for single family homes, Kerri-lyn and Jason Holland get a lot of opportunity to return to their hometown roots of St. Albert while showing homes and meeting with the many builders working on new construction in St. Albert.
“It is shocking to see St. Albert’s growth. We’ve definitely watched it change – from the evolution of the downtown to the growth of the city’s borders west and north. St. Albert is always a place where both developers and people in general want to invest,” says Kerri-lyn Holland. “With all the real estate opportunity in St. Albert, I certainly get to come home often!”
New Home Construction at Jensen Lakes, St. Albert
We thought it would be fun to take the Holland’s through some of their old community stomping grounds while introducing you to the community they know and love!
First stop is Servus Credit Place. This 43 million dollar multi-purpose leisure centre built in 2006, services the health, fitness and sporting needs of the city’s population base. With the Landrex Water Play Centre, a full fitness gym, several indoor soccer pitches, basketball courts, running track and programming – it is also home to 3 NHL sized ice rinks including the Go Auto, Mark Messier and Troy Murray arenas.
Inside the Go Auto Arena lies the Hockey Hall of Fame celebrating St. Albert’s hockey hero’s including our own Jason Holland. Having grown up in Morinville, Jason spent much of his time playing on the ice surfaces of St. Albert in Midget AAA with the St. Albert Raiders. He grew his skills on the ice along-side other St. Albert players like Jerome Iginla and Fernando Pisani.
Kerri-lyn Holland also competed heavily in sports in St. Albert becoming a master of the Dojang.
“I started Taekwondo in St. Albert when I was 8 years old and continued training there until I was 18. Over that time I was provincial champion, Junior National Champion and placed 3rd at the World Junior Championships. In between I did numerous other competitions and championships all while training out of St. Albert. It’s where I received my 4th Degree Black belt.”
Next we stopped by Elmer Gish School where Kerri-lyn did her elementary schooling. We then popped into Paul Kane High School. Kerri-lyn is a proud PK grad! The High School’s replacement school is currently being built on the current school grounds. The 38.7 million dollar replacement school will add 300 new high school spots to the district.
With new young families steadily moving to St. Albert, the school district has seen record setting growth in elementary schools over the last few years. The St. Albert Public School District knew they needed to prepare for those same children to go to High School. The new High School expansion is slated to open in 2022. Paul Kane is one of 3 St. albert High Schools.
Just a quick walk from Paul Kane is St. Albert’s downtown. Perron District is a pedestrian friendly block of unique and locally owned boutiques, restaurants and attractions. Nestled up against the Sturgeon River, Perron Street is the place to visit!
If you’re hungry you can get any flavour profile you crave! Grab wine and tapas at Tryst Wine and Small Plates, the best Sushi you could ever eat at Sushi Park, Thai food at Songkran Thai, your baked sourdough at Bread Love, meats and deli sandwiches at the Grapevine Deli, Italian food at San Remo Italian Bistro, a taco and margarita at Cerdo Tacos or a burger and beer at Jack’s Burger Shack ! On Saturdays you can find Western Canada’s largest farmer’s market in front of St. Albert Place and through the Perron district, with ice cream at Midtown Apothecary!
Parking in the Perron District is easy – just park across from St. Albert Place. You can’t miss it! Home to government, history, arts and culture, the building is one of Alberta’s most beautiful buildings with curved rooftop and waterfall feature.
Designed by Alberta-born architect of Métis descent, Douglas Cardinal, St. Albert Place’s organic design flows in structure and shape along-side the Sturgeon River’s edge. Which today has a beautiful park system that runs along it from one end of St. Albert to the other. It is often the backdrop for numerous St. Albert triathlons, a sport Kerri-lyn herself competed in heavily for many years.
In the Perron District you’ll also find the St. Albert Public Library and the Arden Theatre, which opened in 1983 and has played host to renowned artists like Celine Dion and Jann Arden as well as running its own children’s theatre company. The Arden also hosts numerous dance festivals and competitions every year.
Kerri-lyn herself competed in Ukrainian Dance on the stage of the Arden. Almost every St. Albert child has performed on its stage, as The Arden hosts school Christmas concerts every year.
While St. Albert does have a reputation for being the most expensive city suburb it actually ranks 3rd behind Leduc and Strathcona County with an average home price of 465k. But currently the housing market is hot in St. Albert and highly competitive.
St. Albert boasts a safe community, larger yards close to exceptional schools, parks and playgrounds and city services such as elevated garbage and recycling pickup services, road repair and winter road plowing in residential neighbourhoods. These are all amenities and services St. Albert residents love about this suburb.
“St. Albert is a really great community for young families and even seniors who are looking for a warm, safe community feel,” says Kerri-lyn Holland. There is so much to do for both the young and adults, from the massive parks system for both summer cycling and walking to winter cross country skiing. There is a large spray park, outdoor and indoor pools, even a massive skate park for teens. St. Albert has always prioritized green spaces, so there are mature trees through-out the city and beautiful parks and paths. And now with the new communities being built, like Jensen Lakes, there are new amenities on the horizon like the Jensen lake and beach house that are a big draw for those who want that outdoor summer lifestyle. There truly is so much to love about St. Albert and I am always excited to represent my hometown to the clients we work with.”
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