In its neighbourhood profile of Bellevue, the City of Edmonton muses that perhaps the area gleaned its name from the French term for “beautiful view.” The tiny slice of land starts at Betty Stanhope-Cole Park, overlooking the river valley atop the Highlands Golf Course.
If you always assumed it was part of popular Highlands, you wouldn’t be alone. This neighbourhood is one block away from the area’s historic shopping district — featuring all things tasty from Kind Ice Cream to Fox Burger, Bodega and Candid Coffee Roasters — but also boasts its own amenities, like the Eastglen Leisure Centre and Eastglen High School.
Across that neighbourhood border though, the difference in house prices is staggering. The average listing price (calculated from available listings in February) in Highlands was $816,000 while Bellevue was $390,000.
Nearby, Wayne Gretzky Drive flanks the neighbourhood’s western border for quick access to both South Edmonton and the Yellowhead to the north. Just across that freeway, you’ll find Concordia University and Borden Park. — Alyssa Noel
The Eastglen Leisure Centre is a cornerstone of Bellevue. Small, warm, inexpensive and walkable from most parts of the neighbourhood, it’s beloved by many, enough that the neighbourhood banded together twice to keep it from shuttering.
Back in 2018, it narrowly avoided closure until neighbours lobbied city council to save it. Then, in 2020, Eastglen was added to a short list of facilities slated to be permanently closed due to pandemic-triggered budget cuts.
Joe Hewko, who grew up in the neighbourhood and remembers watching the pool’s construction in 1964, has been at the helm of the effort to save the pool. “What they were doing was not just,” he says. “I thought, ‘If this place is gone…’ This is part of the core of the community.”
He and a group of volunteers once again sprang into action and raised their concerns to council. “I organized the groups and laid out the strategy and gave different people things to speak to,” he says. “You’re only given five minutes.”
Not only did the city decide to keep the pool open, but they also invested some money into a slew of renovations, from fresh paint to new tiles. Eastglen’s doors officially reopened in December 2021.
“I get to walk down my back alley to this little pool,” says Shelaine Sparrow, a Bellevue resident and social director of the Bellevue Community League. “It’s not a mega-centre, which doesn’t suit me. It’s just a charming, lovely pool.”
Where you live shapes how you live. From a serene, secluded space to a bustling hub, the choice you make will define your lifestyle. Your home is part of your personal narrative and each neighbourhood holds its own story. Each city is a collection of small worlds, and Edmonton is home to neighbourhoods that possess their own identities.
We have compiled a guide of some neighbourhoods that we thought were worth highlighting. Not just for their structure but for their philosophy. Some might be familiar to you — as they hold more than 50 years of history — and some are just starting to make a name for themselves.
Have we found the perfect neighbourhood for you?
This article appears in the April 2026 issue of Edify
