Shouldice Riverlands

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Shouldice Riverlands

• for Montgomery
• for Calgary
• for Calgarians

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Goals

• Protected, preserved (enhanced) river lands
• Fields for amateur football
• We can achieve both in Calgary

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Current uses/users

• walking
• dog walking
• jogging
• bicycle commuting
• recreational bicycling
• in-line skating
• bird-watching
• kite flying
• catch and frisbee

• families with toddlers
• seniors
• caregivers with nursing home residents
• wheelchair users
• photographers
• exercising
• skiing
• enjoyment of nature

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• Current use

• Proposed use

• Used by residents
• from all over Calgary
• of all ages
• for a huge variety of leisure and recreational
  uses
• all year round

• Used primarily by
• school age boys
• for football
• for a few months of the year

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• Current environment

• Proposed environment

• Natural area
• Trees
• Bushes
• Shrubs
• Natural reclamation
• Open access
• Bow River Pathway bisects the area.

• Artificial turf
• Fenced
• Bleachers
• Paving
• Restricted access
• Lights
• Loud speakers
• Scoreboard
• Proposed concession

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The river edge pathway is highly used by
walkers, joggers, cyclists and inline skaters of
all ages all year round. City of Calgary pathway
brochure.
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Excerpts from Protecting Open Spaces --- City of
Calgary policy document

• The primary use of the River Valley Park System
  will be passive, low intensity, informal,
  unstructured activities.
• The River Valley Park system will be designed to
  accommodate the planned intensity of use in each
  specific area to ensure the integrity of the
  landscape and waterways, and overuse may be
  accommodated by creative alternatives outside of
  the river valley.

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• Landscape features contributing to the visual
  continuity and aesthetic quality of the River
  Valley Park System will be protected, maintained
  and enhanced where appropriate.
• If possible, pathways within linear parks should
  be aligned in such a way as to eliminate or
  reduce damage to Natural Environment Zones.
• Furthermore, the pathways should be set back an
  appropriate distance from significant habitat
  areas to allow sufficient buffering from human
  use to sustain the habitat capabilities of the
  site.

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We have been here before

• In 2002-2003 an indoor soccer facility was
  proposed for Shouldice beside the Bow and
  relocated because
• Threat to the Bow River and adjacent river lands
• Inappropriate use of river front land
• No solution for parking and traffic

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Montgomery Area Redevelopment Plan

• Parks, recreational and community facilities
  should be improved in cooperation with residents,
  the Community Association and The City of
  Calgary. Future improvements to Montgomerys
  parks should be undertaken with reference to the
  Action Section of this Plan.
• The needs of the aging population should be
  integrated into parks improvement strategies.

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Bow River Pathway realignment

• The proposed pathway is
• between the river bank and a berm (south)
• a hedge and the berm (west).
• Unsafe because
• Narrow --- no space for twinning or escape
• Ice --- in trough and shaded

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Opportunity for Montgomery

• Protect the Bow River lands enjoyed by our
  community for generations to come
• Show leadership to all of Calgary
• Insist on the process and policy guarantees from
  the City of Calgary to Montgomery
• Enhance the appeal of these lands through
  small/inexpensive measures

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Suggested recommendations

• Find an alternative location for the football
  fields that
• is at least 60 meters away from river frontage,
  and
• can provide adequate parking and traffic
  management
• Dedicate the existing city owned river frontage
  in Shouldice Park for urban natural area.
  Specifically, rezone the city-owned land within
  60 meters of the Bow River as Urban Nature
  District S-UN.

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Goals

• Protected, preserved (enhanced) river lands
• Fields for amateur football
• We can achieve both in Calgary

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Web site

• RiverlandsPreservationCalgary.com
• Email info_at_RiverlandsPreservationCalgary.com