Page 56 - 04-June-2024

As one of the oldest neighbour- hoods in Edmonton, Riverdale tells a story full of drama, interesting
characters, and a fair share of controversy — starting with the Cree people the
community’s creation displaced. The 1860s search for gold brought European settlers west, and over the next 30 years they developed Fort Edmonton’s first industrial suburb in one of the North Saskatchewan river’s easterly bends.
D. R. Fraser’s lumber mill and J. B. Little’s brickyard provided jobs (Little’s literal home still stands as Little Brick Cafe),
and the 1905 subdivision set the neigh- bourhood’s earliest shape. Collapsing coal mines, floods and uncaring governments didn’t make life easy for residents of the growing community, but with some homes now housing the sixth generation of Riverdalians, it’s clear that when people move here, they never want to leave.
Kristina Eustace of Kresswell Interiors and her husband, Ryan, of Revive Contract- ing, moved to Riverdale in 2020, and they never want to leave. In fact, they can’t stop falling in love with other homes in the area.
“Being in our industry, we are always looking for projects, either for flips or future moves for us personally,” Kristina says. “We love this neighbourhood so, so much, and when we saw this property, we knew it had lots of potential, but that it was going to come down if somebody else got their hands on it.”
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