The base was established in 1950 as Griesbach Barracks. In 1958, No. 14 Service Prison and Detention Barracks opened at the base and the Second Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry was relocated to Griesbach from Currie Barracks in Calgary, Alberta. On 1 April 1966 Griesbach Barracks and RCAF Station Namao were designated CFB Edmonton. In 1970 the Canadian Parachute Training Center was moved to CFB Greisbach from RCAF Station Rivers, Manitoba and the First Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry was relocated to Griesbach from Work Point Barracks in Esquimalt, British Columbia.
The site is no longer administered by the Department of National Defence, but was transferred to the Canada Lands Company in 2001 for $17.5 million, considered fair market value at the time. Former lodger units located here included the Canadian Airborne Centre and the Canadian Forces Parachute Maintenance Depot, both of which were moved to CFB Trenton in the mid 1990s, as plans to close the runway at Namao (CFB Edmonton) accelerated.
Much of the former Griesbach Barracks site underwent major redevelopment, with the entire 620 acres (2.5 km2) fully re-developed in 2018. Part of the land was purchased from Canada Lands in 2003 by the Capital Care Group, and is now used as a long-term care centre - the Kipnes Centre for Veterans, which was opened in November 2005.
