Towns and cities around Edmonton, Alberta – Next up is St. Albert (http://StAlbert.ca)
St. Albert is located northwest of Edmonton, straddling the Sturgeon River. Soon, the only thing separating St. Albert and Edmonton will be the Anthony Henday Ring-road highway around Edmonton.
It was originally settled as a Métis community, and is now, one of the oldest original settlements in Alberta.
St. Albert received its town status in 1904 and, in 1907, was reached by the Canadian Northern Railway.
St. Albert’s population is currently about 60,000, with a substantial proportion working in different fields in Edmonton. The city is home to most amenities and it draws shoppers from surrounding areas like Morinville, Westlock, Barrhead etc…
The city has two school systems, Catholic and Protestant. Unlike most areas, the Catholic school system is the “public” system, while the Protestant is the “separate” school system. Full-french and french immersion schools are a key part of the schooling available from Kindergarten through Grade 12, should parents wish to explore that option for their children. The city also has excellent parks and walking/biking trails. The Servus Centre Sports facility features everything from swimming to hockey rinks, indoor soccer court… you name it. It’s a great facility.
Housing and property taxes are generally more expensive in St. Albert, but for many people this is offset by the secure, comfortable feeling of residing in this desirable community. The city has often been portrayed as having a bit of an “elitist” population, but this generalization is not founded in truth, in my opinion.
Check out St. Albert as one of your options, should you be looking to move to the Edmonton area. You just might like what you find.
For more info about housing in and around St. Albert, just fill-in the form below.
Just thought I’d let you know that St Albert actually has 3 school districts. The francophone schools so often get overlooked, which is so sad to see since our community was established by the French! The two francophone schools also have the biggest increase of all the francophone schools in central Alberta. St Albert is great place to live!
Yes, you are quite correct. We did leave out the 3rd school district. It encompasses a large area, but it does include St. Albert.
An excerpt from Conseil scolaire Centre-Nord website:
“Conseil scolaire Centre-Nord (Greater North Central Francophone Education Region No.2) is the largest francophone school district in Alberta with 2,500 students attending our 14 francophone – catholic or public – schools in Edmonton, Fort McMurray, Jasper, Legal, Red Deer, ST. ALBERT, and Wainwright.
Fully funded by the Alberta Government, our schools offer academic programs from kindergarten to grade 12 in accordance with the curriculum set out by Alberta Education and offer many advantages, to list only a few:”
Thanks for catching that. St. Albert is well-known for French-Language schooling.