CANMORE – A long-discussed parcel of provincial land in the Palliser area will be handed over to the Town of Canmore, the province announced weeks before the Alberta election.
On Monday (April 17), the Alberta Ministry of Seniors, Community and Social Services announced a 2.3-hectare parcel is being gifted to to the Town of Canmore. The land is estimated to be valued at $8.7 million, according to the province.
“Our biggest hurdles have been access to land and funding,” said Canmore Deputy Mayor Tanya Foubert. “Being able to add this 2.3-hectare lot to the Town of Canmore’s available land inventory will provide much-needed housing, and this is a very big win for our community.”
The land gift is among the final pieces as work and planning continue for expansion of residential housing in the Palliser area, which is among the remaining publicly held land in Canmore for development.
Foubert said the province gave land to develop community housing more than 20 years ago in the Palliser area – where she lives – and the area has provided housing to hundreds of long-term residents.
“I’m able to serve my community in this role because I have a stable place to call home,” she said. “As I stand here, I can’t help but imagine the hundreds of community members who will have a home and the small business owners whose staff will have a reliable roof over their heads at the end of this journey.”
Banff-Kananaskis MLA Miranda Rosin called it a “monumental day” for the region, particularly as people in the area have faced affordability struggles that have led to residents and businesses moving away from the area.
She noted lack of land has been a major issue in developing residential properties, and with a living wage in the community above $30 an hour, developing in the Palliser area is a key way to address affordability.
“We need affordable housing in the community, both to support our economy to maintain labour force retention, but also to build a strong community that can last generations,” Rosin said.
While the land gift is among key considerations to move forward with future development in the Palliser area, the proximity to the provincial election on May 29 could be seen as a way of potentially swaying votes.
The land has long been in the province’s hands and could have been gifted by previous governments – both conservative and NDP – to the Town’s land portfolio.
However, Jeremy Nixon, Minister of Seniors, Community and Social Services, said the upcoming election had no role in gifting the land.
He said Rosin and the Town have been advocating for the land for years, but the COVID-19 pandemic impacted priorities and he had only been named minister in October.
“We need this to be a success. Canmore needs this and the whole Bow Valley region needs this to be a success,” Nixon said.
In addition to the 2.3-hectare parcel, the Alberta Seniors Housing Corporation, which falls under the Ministry of Seniors, Community and Social Services portfolio, also holds a 0.5-hectare parcel of land in the same area.
Though it wasn’t part of the land gift, Nixon said the province is open to future conversations with the Town of Canmore.
“If we’re going forward, we want to continue having these conversations to be able to partner with the local municipality and local service providers to make sure we’re meeting needs,” he said. “I imagine that’ll be a conversation at some point in the future.”
The Town of Canmore wrote a letter in February formally requesting the two parcels near Palliser Trail and the Trans-Canada Highway. The one section is 2.3 hectares and close to the highway, while the 0.5-hectare section is along Palliser Trail and adjacent to a wildlife corridor.
The Town suggested a full land transfer – including caveats and restrictions – as well as a transfer contingent on the Town having a project ready to go for development or a joint request for interest that would allow developers to propose a project on the sites.
Town senior staff met members of the Ministry of Seniors, Community and Social Services in late February to further discuss the proposal. The area of land has been discussed for several years with multiple provincial governments, but the province reached out to the Town before Christmas to restart the conversation.
The Palliser area is largely Town- and Canmore Community Housing-owned land.
The region is consistently referred to as a key answer in helping deal with Canmore’s housing crisis. Public feedback was sought on the Palliser area structure plan (ASP) in March, which will be reviewed by planning staff and be followed by a report to council. The ASP is expected to come forward for council consideration this summer or fall.
Town council approved a staff planning position specifically to focus on the Palliser lands and the downtown area redevelopment plan.
Part of Canmore council’s strategic plan is addressing livability and affordability issues, with affordable housing the most pressing issue in the community. When the plan was passed by council last June, council specifically called on all levels of government to assist with the housing crisis.
The Palliser area has several challenges, including communications and high-pressure gas lines, flood risk mitigation, a much-discussed pedestrian overpass or underpass to cross the Trans-Canada Highway and expanded transit needing to be considered.
The proposed Silvertip gondola, which will go to the Natural Resources Conservation Board to determine if it’s in the public interest of Alberta, includes a Palliser base station and employee housing on the lands.
Foubert said with development of the land falling under Canmore Community Housing’s vital homes program, which has rentals at 10 per cent below market rate, it can reduce a person’s living wage from $32 an hour to $22.
She emphasized there’s still work to be done in the area such as wildlife mitigation, a pedestrian crossing, water and wastewater infrastructure and transit planning – and the Town is eager to work with all levels of government.
“I’m reminded daily, especially when it comes to this specific issue [of housing], there are no easy solutions to complex problems,” she said. “I’m also reminded that we need the support of other levels of government to help address the housing challenges we face in Canmore. We cannot do this alone. We need the support of provincial and federal partners, local business owners and our citizens to move forward with solutions.”
