By Kathy McCormick, Calgary Herald February 21, 2009
The developers who purchased the Shaw-Nee Slopes Golf Course are hoping for a hole-in-one when the controversial 58-hectare site goes to the city for rezoning to transform it into a unique inner-city community -- but they'll have to use some mulligans first. Residents of the surrounding neigbhourhoods are adamantly opposed to any re-development.
"We don't want to see this development and we'll counter every step," says Gloria Dingwall, president of the Shawnee/Evergreen community association.
The large-scale development, which would create about 600 multi-family and 460 single-family homes, will destroy the surrounding neighbourhood, she says. But the developers say the golf course land is perfect for the city's goals of rejuvenating and densifying inner-city neighbourhoods -- one of the prime objectives of the city's Plan-It Calgary strategy, which is now in its draft form and will guide the growth of the city in the future.
The project would be done in a sustainable way, says Will Hoes, who heads up the redevelopment plan for Geo-Energy Enterprises. "We believe this is responsible development, if you take into account what the environment is here and what the city has in mind with Plan-It, and you build within that environment," he says.
The existing use was not sustainable from a financial standpoint for the previous owners of the land, and it is not a viable option for the future, says Hoes. But the controversial project could affect the whole city, says Gloria Dingwall.
"This development would be precedent setting if city council agrees to rezone the land from its current designation of special purpose-recreation district," she says.
"The primary goal of the community association is to see these lands maintained for the purpose they were intended. Loss of this green space in our community would set a precedent for the removal of green space from any Calgary community."
The preliminary plans for Shawnee Park were unveiled Jan. 22 at an open house, when developer Geo-Energy Enterprises told a crowd of about 300 people that Shawnee Park, still in its preliminary stages, would be another inner-city redevelopment not unlike the successful Garrison Woods, if approved.
Plan-It Calgary embraces concepts such as transit-oriented development (TOD), which promotes multi-family growth around transit hubs, creating more density in the inner city and reducing sprawl. In turn, that higher-density housing will be more attractive to first-time buyers and those on limited incomes who need easy access to transit, thus addressing yet another issue within the city -- creating more affordable housing. Shawnee Park fits that bill, says the project's developer.
The eastern edge of the land is within 600 metres of the Fish Creek C-train station, which is one of the criteria for the TOD housing. But the location alone--and the detailed plans by Geo-Energy to retain as much green space as possible--means the community will be higher end, says Hoes.
"These will be different types of condos closer to the C-Train station," he says. "There will be no highrises and the condos will buffer the rest of the housing further west." The proposal calls for some condominium apartments that Hoes says will be four or five storeys at the highest--"not the highest density, but acting as a transition to the single-family homes."
Almost the whole community will be in a bareland condominium, even though many of the dwellings will be single-family homes.
People will still own their own homes, whether single-family, townhouse, or duplex, but the land around the homes will become common property owned by the condominium corporation.
It will allow the developers to come up with creative solutions to bring more green space to the area, says Les Humphrey, a senior planner with AECOM, which is working with Geo-Energy on the plan. "This will be the place where people will want to live with homes having immediate park environments in their backyards." Cluster housing is a concept that has been used previously with success in other communities and will be adapted to parts of Shawnee Park, says Humphrey.
"It's highly successful in Seattle and California presently, and it is a proven concept that allows builders to build within the green environment," he says. "Wildwood Park in Winnipeg is another example--and it's 50 years old. Homes there rarely go up for sale; people just remodel them." The concept involves clustering some of the homes closer together in a group with minimal front yards, allowing large, open areas at the back that continue to a green space --all with mature vegetation and trees from the original site.
"A real social element comes into play," says Humphrey. "With clusters, there's much greater interaction with neighbours."
Even with other housing, the mature trees and landscaping will be preserved wherever possible, and the bareland condominium will mean the grounds will be looked after and snow removed. "We think that's what people are looking for today," says Humphrey.
"This concept allows you to not have to go into a traditional condo. You still have your own separate living space, but you have no maintenance to take up your time."
The plans call for a large buffer of 20 to 30 metres between new development and the existing homes around the golf course, and the mature landscaping will be preserved there. The heart of the community will be the large green space, mature trees and an existing pond in the middle of the development. "We want to open this up to the community to enjoy," says Hoes.
"Residents say that the golf course is the heart of the community, but it's not accessible unless you are a golfer. We plan to leave this large substantial element as a park with the water feature--and we're proposing to build a community centre on the pond that will be open to all the other communities surrounding the area." But that worries the community association, says Dingwall.
"If it's a condominium, there will be a condo board--and do you really think that board will want all of the neighbours surrounding the community wandering through all the time?," she says. "We have huge concerns there."
Some existing pedestrian paths and bike trails will be expanded and go through the whole community, connecting it to the outside neighbourhoods and Fish Creek Park. Leading into that central core is the primary entrance into Shawnee Park from James McKevitt Road S. E. The main road--called a "grand boulevard"-- will be as wide as 50 feet or more, with mature trees and a median that's big enough to have a bike path down the middle.
On the north side of the development, a separate street that sits closest to the hill leading down to Fish Creek Park will likely contain 64 more traditional estate, single-family homes. Overall, the community will have strict architectural guidelines that will be "upper end," says Hoes. says "We recognize the importance of the natural environment and it's rare to be able to build in an environment like this," he says. "We'll develop in a sensitive fashion--our mandate is to build within that environment."
Humphrey agrees: "The commitment of the developer is to ensure the quality standards and character of the community are high and the building is done with an adherence to what's to there."
He says the award-winning community of Garrison Woods "is a starting point." The process of obtaining approval for the project could take upwards of three years, says Hoes, before land could even be readied for development. Before that, several steps, including more public meetings, will be undertaken. Right now, the developer is doing a traffic study of the area.
That, too, concerns Dingwall. wall.
"Projects currently underway way in our community but not yet fully completed or occupied will add to the existing traffic congestion," she says. "This is an established community with road systems that were neither planned nor built to accommodate the additional 1,100-plus units on the golf course that Geo-Energy is planning to build." The complexes now under construction or selling include include 240 units at Highbury on the eastern edge of the proposed new development. Others in the vicinity include 300-plus units at Canvas Can-vas at Millrise, 193 units at Evergreen Grove and 354 units at Sanderson Ridge.
Meanwhile, Geo-Energy is continuing to meet with city administration on the concept plan.
"We will be putting in an application for rezoning to the city within the next one-and-a-half to two months," says Hoes.
As for the community association's part, it has hired a lawyer, says Dingwall. "We have a plan that we will execute to fight any change to the rezoning."
IN SHORT
PROJECT: Redesignation of Shaw-Nee Slopes Golf Course land to allow for a redevelopment of the 58-hectare site to Shawnee Park, a master-planned community with approximately 600 multi-family and 460 single-family homes. It would take the shape of sustainable development, says the developer, Will Hoes of Geo-Energy Enterprises. It would have a large component of bareland condominium lots of both multi-family and single-family homes to allow unique development parcels such as cluster housing. Some estate single-family homes would be closer to Fish Creek Park, and some low-rise condominiums nearer the Fish Creek C-train station, adhering to the City's Plan-It Calgary growth strategy, which includes transit-oriented development. The neighbourhood would have a large component of green space, keeping as many of the mature trees and original landscaping as possible, and would include a community building at the core adjacent to the pond already in place on the site.
LOCATION: South of Fish Creek Park and north of James McKevitt Boulevard S. W.
DEVELOPER: Geo-Energy Enterprises.
WHERE IT'S AT TODAY: The developer has a concept plan in place and will be applying for land redesignation at city hall within the next six weeks to two months.
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