Tour raises concerns of building on wetlands
A group of about 70 people gathered in the city's southeast on the weekend to tour lands that have been given the green light for residential development by city council.
Nathaniel Schmidt, a board member of the Alberta Wilderness Association, helped lead the Saturday tour in the Ricardo Ranch area.
Three new developments by three separate developers were all given a green light at a council meeting on Tuesday night.
However Schmidt has been raising concerns about the environmental impact development will have on the riparian ecosystem.
“It's along the river, so there's old growth cottonwoods and also a mix of prairie grassland that feed this wetland complex that is just adjacent to the Bow River,” said Schmidt. “We've lost 90 per cent of that kind of habitat of the wetland riparian areas in Calgary.”
Schmidt organized the tour to show people habitat and wildlife that could be threatened by development. He said they saw great blue herons and threatened bank swallows as they toured the wetlands.
The City of Calgary started work on an area structure plan for Ricardo Ranch in 2018 and held public engagement as part of that process.
That plan was completed and approved by council in late 2019.
On Tuesday night, council voted to lift the growth management overlay for Ricardo Ranch — a technical term that essentially tells the developers they can move ahead with their project. It also commits the city to future capital funding costs.
Ward 12 Coun. Evan Spencer attended the Saturday morning tour. He also voted in favour of allowing the developers to move ahead with their plans.
He said he heard people lament the loss of some of these lands while on the tour, as well as their wish that more could be protected.
“I'm really glad I went because one of the things I'm concerned about is just the way these conversations unfold,” said Spencer.
He said he wants to keep the conversation going, and not let it devolve into a more antagonistic exchange.
Spencer said while the developments are already approved, there are still conversations to be had about how they fit into the landscape.
“From my understanding, there's going to be generous municipal reserve and environmental reserve land that is set aside in these plans,” said Spencer. “Exactly where they are and what that looks like is still yet to be determined.”
Speaking at council on Tuesday night, representatives for the three developers working in Ricardo Ranch — Genesis, Brookfield and Jayman — addressed council on their plans.
Arnie Stefanick of Genesis Land Development said his company was very much aware of the environmental significance of its portion of Ricardo Ranch, which they will call Logan Landing.
“We will not only protect the wetlands, but we will showcase them as one of the gems of this community,” he said.
“Much time, study and thought has gone into these plans, which we believe will stand as an example of great city building years from now.”
He said houses will be well set back from the river, and the most sensitive areas will be left untouched.
He also said there will be public lookouts so that everyone can access the views.
“We want to emphasize that Logan Landing went through a rigorous review process already and met or exceeded all environmental regulatory requirements,” said Stefanick.
Schmidt said he will continue to raise people's awareness about the area and having these conversations now can send a signal to council that some people want to change the narrative on development.