JANUARY
A young cougar on the brink of starving to death that had been hunkered down under the porch of a house in the Middle Springs neigbourhood for several days has been euthanized. Parks Canada wildlife experts decided to put down the six-month-old female cougar on Jan. 3 on the advice of a wildlife veterinarian who said it was unlikely to survive much longer because of its poor health.
Backcountry skiers feel lucky to be alive after an avalanche swept them 300 metres down Grand Daddy Couloir on Bow Summit in Banff National Park. Canmore’s Josh Forster and Calgary’s Chris Giddens, along with a party of two they met on the way, heard a boom before the avalanche took them on a violent ride.
FEBRUARY
Rocky Mountain School District 6 announces it’s closing Field’s elementary school at the end of the school year. The Kindergarten to Grade 3 school had just three students this year and one enrolled for 2017. Since 2002, there have been fewer than 10 students registered each year.
A prominent climber from Las Vegas stumbled across a hibernating bear on Mount Rundle, forcing Parks Canada to close an area known as Trophy Wall to protect both the bear and climbers. David Allfrey and his accomplished American climbing buddy Jesse Huey were on the descent from climbing Sea of Vapours when they came across a cave with a denning bear inside, waking it up.
Members of the Bow Valley wolf pack took down an elk on top of a train overpass at the east entrance to the Banff townsite Feb. 1, giving several onlookers a firsthand look at the amazing hunting skills of wolves. The wolves began the chase near the Banff Indian Grounds and ended up funneling the cow elk onto the train overpass, where the pack killed it in full view of people driving by.
MARCH
The Liberal government has no plans to revisit the former Conservative government’s controversial approval of site guidelines that open the door for a major expansion at Lake Louise ski hill – but say that doesn’t mean anything’s a done deal.
“No projects have been approved yet,” said Catherine McKenna, Environment and Climate Change Minister, during a quick trip to Banff. “Going forward, we’ll work under the site guidelines and work with Lake Louise.”
The federal government announces $39 million in infrastructure upgrades, wildlife underpass upgrades, ecological protection such as prescribed burns, and facility upgrades for Banff National Park.
Field and Lake Louise firefighters battled a blaze at Emerald Lake Lodge that destroyed an operations building March 22.
The Town of Banff buys the Bow Valley Credit Union’s building on the 200 block of Beaver Street for just over $1 million.
APRIL
Parks Canada has ditched plans to widen the Bow Valley Parkway. An assessment determined a 2.5-metre wide paved shoulder along the 49-km scenic parkway between Banff and Lake Louise would not address speeding issues. Instead, Parks said traffic-calming measures were being investigated to reduce speeds.
Banff’s fire department releases its 2015 call-out figures, showing they are getting busier and busier every year, with 2015 setting a record for the number of emergencies. The department responded to 527 emergencies, surpassing the call volume of 499 in 2014.
The Alberta government’s provincial school tax requisition has dramatically gone up for the Town of Banff by 10.8 per cent, from $6.2 million to $6.7 million.
Grizzly bears ambling across ski runs in Lake Louise and Jasper force the closures of lifts and runs. Female bear 138 has caused temporary closures of the front side of the Lake Louise ski hill several times because she’s been feeding on early season green-up.
A collared male from the Fairholme wolf pack went on an impressive two-week trek inside and outside the protected boundaries of Banff National Park – then came right back home again. Data from a GPS collar on a wolf from the Fairholme pack, known as 1505, shows he travelled almost 500 kilometres on 13 days in March, travelling from the park into the Ghost River area and as far north as the Brazeau River in the foothills before turning around.
The remains of a Calgary hiker who fell over Twin Falls in Yoho National Park in September 2015 are found. Parks Canada and RCMP recovered the remains of 19-year-old Jeremy Pendergast on April 28 about 500 metres below the 80-100m falls. DNA confirmed it was Pendergast.
MAY
Banff broke a 124-year-old temperature record on May 2 when the mercury soared to 24.3 C. Climate records for Banff go back as far as 1892 and, according to Environment Canada, the next hottest May 2 day was in 1998 when the temperature reached 23.2 C.
The Bow Valley community generously reaches out to evacuees and emergency responders in fire-ravaged Fort McMurray in their time of need. In the wake of the biggest wildfire disaster in Alberta’s history, thousands and thousands of dollars have been raised by local businesses and community organizations. A handful of RCMP officers in Banff and Canmore were deployed, as were some firefighters from Canmore and a fire rescue physician.
National park law enforcement wardens implemented an annual no-stopping zone on an 11-km stretch of Highway 93 South in Kootenay National Park earlier than usual after two cases were reported of people feeding bears.
JUNE
The Bow Valley begins to see an influx of Chinese tourists with the start of three non-stop flights arriving at Calgary International Airport from Beijing.
The alpha female of the Bow Valley wolf pack is shot and killed by Parks Canada wildlife managers following several incidents involving bold behaviour, when she approached people and got into human food and garbage.
Troubles started earlier in the year when wolves from the pack fed on human garbage, including fast food wrappers and juice containers at the Johnston Canyon parking lot. The garbage came from two construction waste bins.
A new visitor experience survey shows tourists to Banff National Park and the townsite are generally very satisfied with their visit, but struggle with the value for money in retail stores, restaurants, hotels, museums and other paid attractions. The study was commissioned by Banff Lake Louise Tourism, Town of Banff and Parks Canada. The study shows visitors were also less satisfied with a lack of parking and public washrooms in the townsite, as well as concerned about big crowds throughout the park and value for money for what they pay for entry fees.
A feisty Chihuahua spent five days and four nights in the wilderness of Banff National Park, managing to avoid hungry wildlife, before she was finally reunited with her owner. Bitzy escaped her owner’s motorhome parked at the day use area at the B.C-Alberta border on June 4, and wasn’t found until five days later at Bath Creek flats, eight kilometres west of Lake Louise.
Sunshine Village is running its gondola this summer for the first time in many years to get more visitors into the sensitive alpine area, including Sunshine Meadows, and announces plans to open its on-hill hotel summer 2017.
Banff RCMP investigates two separate sexual assaults in the townsite. On June 24, a woman reported being confronted by a man who fled after allegedly sexually assaulting her near the bridge on BowAvenue. Later that same day, just before midnight, a woman was approached by an unknown man who allegedly sexually assaulted her near Lynx and Caribou streets.
Parks Canada launches a free weekend shuttle service to Upper Lake Louise this summer in an attempt to relieve traffic and parking congestion in the area. Almost 8,000 vehicles a day make the trip to the lake on Saturdays and Sundays during July and August.
For the first time in almost a decade, a new Banff hotel opens its door – Moose Hotel & Suites on Banff Avenue – on June 24 in time for the busy summer.
JULY
The deaths of three more wolf pups on the railway tracks in Banff National Park has renewed calls for Canadian Pacific to slow down trains in known wildlife hotspots. A freight train hit the young-of-year pups July 4 west of the Banff townsite – the latest members of the troubled pack to be killed at the hands of humans.
A computer glitch causes overbooking for Lake O’Hara beyond its established quota. The area has a quota of about 240 people a day to reduce ecological concerns and give visitors a wilderness experience. Parks decided to use an additional bus to accommodate the overbookings.
It was a deadly weekend in the mountains, with one man dying after falling out of a canoe on Moraine Lake in Banff National Park and another man falling 200 metres to his death over a cliff on a ridgeline named The Secretary Treasurer above little Yoho campground in Yoho National Park.
A long-term transportation study recommends mass transit for Banff be further investigated, including a $66 million aerial gondola or an $8 million bus system. To accommodate the increasing number of visitors, the study says both ideas need intercept parking lots at both entrances to town in order to work.
A massive multi-day search for an experienced scrambler who went missing near the summit of Mount Carnarvon in Yoho National Park has come to a happy ending. A tired and hungry John Deon, 54, was spotted and rescued by helicopter in the Amiskwi River valley July 26 after going missing July 22. Deon and his hiking partner decided to separate near the ridge at the top of the 3,046-metre peak – which officials say is not a common practice for Deon on his scrambling adventures. He had been last seen heading down the west face of Mount Carnarvon.
The body of a missing Calgary boy was recovered from the Kicking Horse River in Yoho National Park July 24. An extensive search for Behzad Ahmad, 11, began July 22 when he fell into the fast-flowing Yoho River near Takkakaw Falls. He was found about 100 m upstream of the Trans-Canada Highway on the Kicking Horse River, 13 kms from where he fell in.
Banff politicians delved into the issue of spot zoning to allow Husky Oil to move ahead with redevelopment plans near the east entrance to town, while at the same time attempting to protect existing auto service bays in the Shell gas station on Banff Avenue.
Council decided to retain the 10 per cent cap on the amount of space for convenience retail and eating and drinking allowed in gas stations in the CA commercial service district, but that won’t apply to the 600 block of Banff Avenue where the limit will now be 70 per cent.
AUGUST
A federal health an safety officer who touched off a storm of controversy when he ordered national park wardens be equipped with handguns 16 years ago is finally able to get on with his life. All matters related to the national warden sidearm issue came to a conclusion when Robert Grundie finalized a confidential settlement with the federal labour program regarding his unfair labour practice complaint.
Parks Canada has outright banned use and possession of VHF radio receivers in Banff, Yoho and Kootenay national parks following suspicions members of the public were using telemetry equipment to search for wildlife like wolves and bears for photographs.
SEPTEMBER
Whirling disease is confirmed in fish in Banff’s Johnson Lake, prompting widespread emergency testing throughout the park and in Alberta amid fears it’s spread to other water bodies, including where threatened native bull trout and westslope cutthroat trout live. This was the first known case of whirling disease in Canada. It has since been found in many other locations in the park, including the Bow River upstream and downstream of Bow Falls, and in the province, including commercial fish hatcheries. The disease has been prevalent in the western and northeastern United States since being introduced from Europe in the 1950s. It has been known to decimate fish populations.
Parks Canada backs away from privatizing hot springs in Banff, Jasper and Kootenay national parks. Environment and Climate Change Minister Catherine McKenna announced Parks would continue to operate Radium hot springs in Kootenay, Jasper’s Miette springs and Banff’s Upper Hot springs.
A 53-year-old woman is dead and a 55-year-old man is in critical condition after being struck by a tour bus Sept. 21 near Castle Mountain viewpoint in Banff. According to RCMP, the incident happened when the tour bus rolled forward and down a steep embankment into the Bow River.
A young wolf with a history of getting into food and garbage because of people’s reckless behaviour was seen several times in a residential neigbourhood in Banff. The wolf was not found, but it’s believed it got into an unsecured bag of garbage in an alley off the 100 block of Muskrat Street.
A Golden resident becomes the first avalanche fatality victim of the season following a Class 1 slide near Lake Louise on Mount Victoria Sept. 25. Prominent adventurer Trevor Sexsmith, 27, was killed. The avalanche pushed Sexsmith over a 300 m cliff.
Banff gives administration the green light to borrow $23.8 million to pay for a long-awaited 132-unit affordable housing development on Deer Street. It won’t be taxpayer funded but covered by rents. The development is expected to house about 250 people.
Stoney Nakoda proposes a new name for Tunnel Mountain – Sacred Buffalo Guardian Mountain. Following an historic signing of the Buffalo Treaty in Banff Sept. 29, signatories of 15 First Nations gathered signed a resolution put forward by Stoney Nakoda to begin the official process with the Geographical Names Board of Canada to rename Tunnel Mountain.
OCTOBER
Jan Goro, a Banff senior accused of murdering a man in Ontario 40 years ago, is a free man after being locked away for the last three-and-a-half years. On Oct. 28, an Ontario Superior Court judge ruling in Milton granted a stay of proceedings – a ruling that halts further legal process in a trial – based on an application by defence counsel for Goro, who is now 70.
A female black bear is struck and killed by a freight train in Banff National Park, leaving behind an orphaned cub to find a way to survive on its own.
The Town of Banff slaps Canadian Pacific Railway with a stop order over plans to demolish a 106-year icebox building without a permit and for the unauthorized construction of a new building at the Banff train station.
Brewster Travel Canada officially reopens its gondola terminal on top of Sulphur Mountain in Banff after a 13-month, $26 million redevelopment.
Banff Mayor Karen Sorensen calls out Parks Canada for failing to come to the table to discuss real solutions on how to handle increased visitation and traffic in 2017 when entry to Banff National Park is free. The municipality is looking for
intercept parking lots. The mayor ended up meeting Catherine McKenna, minister of environment and climate change whose portfolio includes Parks Canada, in the coming weeks to the plead the Town’s case
A 57-year-old Banff Parks Canada employee died in a workplace accident when he fell off a bridge at the intersection of Trans-Canada Highway and the Bow Valley Parkway. The body of Dave Raham, known to friends as Bammer, was found at the bottom of an overpass bridge. An occupational health and safety officer’s investigation into the workplace death concluded Parks Canada failed to ensure his safety
NOVEMBER
Parks Canada is looking at the possibility of removing all fish or draining Banff’s Johnson Lake to get rid of whirling disease there.
No decisions have been made, but several options are under consideration for the small lake – the site of Canada’s first whirling disease find – to prevent the fish disease from spreading into Two Jack Lake and Lake Minnewanka, as well as the Upper Cascade River where threatened westslope cutthroat trout live.
The RCMP’s Major Crimes Unit was called to Banff to investigate the death of Michel Lemire, whose body was found in the Bow River near the pedestrian bridge Nov. 6. The death was treated as suspicious; however, this is was a precaution to determine whether or not foul play has been a factor.
The Municipal Planning Commissions gives the green light to the Town of Banff’s Deer Street affordable housing project. The Town is trying to address a housing shortfall in the townsite. However, the development permit has since been appealed by neighbouring residents.
DECEMBER
The amount of development activity in Banff is at a five-year high, with the planning department expected to have handled between 90 and 100 applications by the end of the year. That’s up from 79 development permits last year, 55 in 2014, 48 in 2013 and 64 in 2012.
The Town of Banff is getting close to $15 million in provincial-federal grant funding for transit related projects, including money to build park-and-ride lots and buy a fleet of buses to shuttle visitors downtown. The municipality has no approval from Parks for intercept lots.
A development appeal board ruling effectively kills a controversial policy that allows a reduction in on-site parking as an incentive for construction of more rental apartment housing. In deciding the appeal by several Marten Street residents concerned about a lack of parking for the a 25-unit apartment complex, the quasi-judicial board found a 33 per cent reduction in required parking under policy C-122 did not meet the variance test of the land use bylaw and incorporation agreement. To get around the ruling, council has given first reading on putting the provisions of the policy directly into the land use bylaw.
Redevelopment of the Homestead Inn into a 71-room hotel gets the go-ahead from MPC. Neighbouring businessman Peter Poole has filed an appeal, but legal advice is being sought to see if the development appeal board has the jurisdiction to hear it.
A Banff Centre computer system was hacked and RCMP charged Tomas Towne, a 50-year-old who is no longer employed at the Banff Centre, with mischief involving data and unauthorized use of a computer under the Criminal Code.
