City council questions redevelopment models for two aging Co-op locations
Mayor Naheed Nenshi says proposed plans for the redevelopment of two aging Calgary shopping centres are lacking when it comes to their design and connection to the surrounding community.
Nenshi made the comments at a public hearing on redevelopment plans for two Calgary Co-op locations Wednesday.
The more than 40-year-old locations — one in Oakridge and one in Dalhousie — could see significant changes, including the addition of residential, commercial and office space, if the plans are approved by council.
But at Wednesday’s meeting, Nenshi, and some councillors, critiqued the plans for not deviating enough from Co-op’s traditional vehicle-centric model.
“I’m not convinced these plans are good enough for those neighbourhoods,” Nenshi said. “I think they could be better in terms of design, in terms of interface with the neighbourhood.
“Because you don’t want to build just a power centre with a few apartments in it, you want to build something that is really nextgeneration, urban neighbourhood and I think both of these neighbourhoods (are) really in a position where they could accept something that would be really cool and really add to the value of the community.”
Calgary Co-op has been developing plans for the locations, complete with multiple phases of community engagement, for the last four years.
But at Wednesday’s meeting, Tony Argento, Calgary Co-op’s director of real estate and development, said the co-operative has reached a critical juncture where they may have to abandon their plans if council doesn’t green light the project soon.
“It’s been a been a bit frustrating because we identified we had a problem in our stores four years ago, and with every year that passes by we’re losing customers because the stores are deteriorating,” Argento told council.
“We’re coming to a critical stage where we have to make a decision on whether we’ ll proceed with these projects at all or just renovate.”
Argento told council that Co-op’s research suggests that in Oakridge, 98 per cent of their customers arrive by vehicle and so any redevelopment would need to accommodate drivers.
But several councillors pressed Argento, questioning how the Oakridge development will serve the residents who will eventually live there and the increasing number of Co-op customers who will arrive using transit like the Southwest BRT.
“This is the best you can do and council thinks that’s not good enough,” Coun. Evan Woolley said.
Around $2 million has been spent by Calgary Co-op on community consultations on the projects in Oakridge and Dalhousie, though some residents continue to oppose the plans.
Neighbouring residents expressed concerns about the density of the developments and building heights, and some were concerned about insufficient parking and spillover effects into the community, according to feedback collected by the city.
At press time, council had not yet concluded hearings on the proposed sites.