Lack of services, transit key issues
Candidates say infrastructure is not keeping pace with new development
In the northwest suburbs of Ward 2, the provision of services and infrastructure are key issues heading into the Oct. 16 municipal election in Calgary.
Ward 2, changed only slightly since the last election in 2013, runs from more established neighbourhoods such as Ranchlands and Hawkwood to new suburbs that have sprung up north of Stoney Trail over the last decade, such as Nolan Hill and Sherwood.
Rana Saulat, a local resident, said there is a common concern in the newer areas that services are still catching up to development.
“We have almost pretty much the same issues: we don’t have a recreational system, we don’t have (bus) shelters, no removal of snow,” said Saulat, vice-president of the Sherwood Community Association.
The Ward 2 contest features three challengers — George Georgeou, Christopher Maitland and Jennifer Wyness — looking to knock off incumbent Joe Magliocca.
Maitland, a 31-year-old Evanston resident, said there needs to be better planning for new development, calling services such as transit in the area “atrocious.”
“There’s a real disconnect with the infrastructure and the transit that’s just not following the development,” said Maitland. “There seems to be an excuse every time, yet they’re opening more and more development to the northeast of us and that’s only going to add to the problem.
“If the services can’t keep up, we should not be releasing a 10,000, 20,000-family home development. We need to plan that properly.”
Maitland, who served as Magliocca’s executive assistant in his first year on council, is also running on a platform of instituting a recall system, where citizens can remove their councillor for poor performance.
Georgeou, who is building a home in Evanston, said he sees a lack of leadership on the current council.
“When it was a different era, with different leaders in there, things seemed to actually be getting done,” said the 41-year-old real estate developer.
Georgeou said traffic is a key issue as the area grapples with development, with new neighbourhoods choked off by lack of access.
“I’d like to make the new communities as free-flowing as the old communities in terms of traffic flow,” he said.
Wyness said ward residents are frustrated over a lack of action on projects, such as an enhanced overpass for 14th Street NW.
She said citizens want “balanced growth” that ensures services match Calgary’s expansion.
“There’s future bus stops out in Evanston, but the rapid transit to go along with the development isn’t there. The way people access that community in and out isn’t being addressed as rapidly as the development is,” said the 35-yearold public relations consultant who lives in Citadel.
Wyness also criticized Magliocca for voting against a recommendation in May to freeze city council’s wages in 2018.
“The most important thing is where our tax dollars go when they hit the system,” she said.
The 52-year-old Magliocca said he’s shown his fiscal conservative credentials over the years by fighting to lower taxes, but “unfortunately, we’ve got certain people on council, they’re greedy, and they want the money all to themselves.”
“That’s all I hear (from residents) — we’ve got to stop spending, we’ve got to start being more responsible with our money, and we have to make sure that people don’t have their pet projects,” he said.
Magliocca said traffic has always been a top issue in the area but as work is being finished on Sarcee Trail, that will help remove heavy trucks from Shaganappi Trail and Symons Valley Parkway.
He also said he will propose a plan for the “last mile” of transit, which would see the city use a private company to bolster existing bus service.
“Get minivans or vans to go around the neighbourhood and drop them off, to a bus depot or to an LRT station where it’s more convenient and a lot easier in the community,” said Magliocca.