We’d like to thank those of an environmental bent who appeared at the public hearing related to Canmore’s Municipal Development Plan, Tuesday (March 23).
As it turns out, there was a good turnout in council chambers, but here in the Outlook newsroom, we wondered, and were a little concerned, that the hearing would turn solely toward the topic du jour in town, housing – affordable or otherwise.
In recent times in Canmore (Banff as well), housing – the lack of, the cost of, suitability of, development of, etc. – has been paramount in the minds of many, almost to the exclusion of all other considerations when it comes to development.
When opposition seems quickly raised against any project with an affordable, even market priced, housing component, when people state housing needs to be part of a community-wide conversation, despite the topic dominating conversations going back to the 1990s, and when, prior to the Tuesday public hearing, Outlook letters to the editor were already suggesting the Town was concerned with housing at the expense of all other considerations, we had our concerns.
So it came as something of a relief, frankly, that the environmental/conservation community was at the fore in having its voice heard in relation to the proposed MDP.
Housing has become such a polarizing issue in Canmore, we wondered if anybody would even notice, say, that the idea of re-opening a coal seam or diverting the Bow River as a flood mitigation measure might have been included.
The thing is, other topics of conversation that regularly arise include our green space, wildlife corridors, connectivity, overuse of green spaces by humans, off-leash dogs and proximity of development to said green and wild spaces, etc.
Now is not the time for the community’s focus to stray away from the environment by being sidetracked by housing issues. Our green spaces and the natural environment, after all, are for everyone in the valley, residents and visitors alike.
Hopefully, with town council receiving input from concerned members of the public who want to see concrete wording in the MDP, and environmental impact statements in relation to particularly sensitive areas (almost everywhere around here), an MDP the entire community can embrace will be the end result. Environmental impacts must be a top priority with almost any planning and development procedures.
After all, in the Bow Valley, unlike much of Alberta, we do closely co-exist in our wild spaces with wild things and we agree with hearing speakers who reiterated that our wild spaces are some of the community’s greatest assets.
Those wild spaces and green areas are embraced by residents and envied by those who would like to be.
We’ll agree with Colleen Campbell, who stated, “It is critical to recognize the revised MDP will affect the ecological conditions up and down the valley and it is our duty to establish the best possible MDP,” Campbell said. “At the very least, we should restore policies related to the environment as stated in the previous two municipal development plans and to do any less would be negligent, even shameful and regressive.”
The town itself is just one element in the overall Bow Valley environment, and it must blend seamlessly with everything surrounding it.
