Neighbours ask council to block golf course loss
Cedarglen Homes plans to redevelop Harvest Hills into residential area
Neighbours of a northwest Calgary golf course slated for redevelopment are asking city council to halt those plans, saying it’s a tragic loss of green space for a community that’s already too crowded.
The Harvest Hills Golf Course was closed in February after its new owner, Cedarglen Homes, announced it had applied to make the space into a residential area.
“There’s a lot of residents and families that use that golf course,” said Rick Lundy, the president of the community association for Northern Hills, just north of Harvest Hills.
“Taking it away from us is a problem. Our area is bursting at the seams when it comes to the amount of the population in the area, and taking away any green space is a problem.”
Lundy said it’s not an issue of NIMBYism, or “not in my backyard,” saying the community already has inadequate resources. The lack of public high schools nearby means his kids spend more than an hour a day on buses, he said, and Harvest Hills is lacking in medical and recreational services.
“We’re already in an infrastructure-starved community, and now the city is thinking of allowing thousands of new residents,” said Lundy. “It doesn’t make any sense.”
Moreover, Lundy said he’s concerned the redevelopment will drive down property values for area residents.
“When I purchased my home, there was a golf course in this area,” he said.
“Now, out of the blue and because of a financial gain, we’re allowing a developer to come in and totally disrupt that.”
Lundy said his organization, which represents 58,000 people, is banding together with community associations in the Hamptons, Highland Park and Shawnee Slopes — other neighbourhoods with similar concerns.
Together, they plan to argue that Calgary city council should not approve the redevelopment of golf courses in the city.
“This is a bad practice for this city to be looking at,” Lundy said.
“I think this is just going to be the tip of the iceberg.”
Coun. Jim Stevenson, who represents the area, said he understands why residents are upset. However, he said he’ll wait to pass judgment until the issue comes before council.
“It’s private land, and so the landowner has the right to request the change of use,” Stevenson said, adding people are right to be concerned about a lack of services in the area.
“I have to keep an open mind until a public hearing is over. That’s the law.”
Though the item was on the planning commission agenda for this week, it’s now been delayed, he said. One information session has already happened, and the proposal is expected to be put before council later this year.
A second information session will take place in September.