Editor: The Banff National Park Management Plan sets a population target for the Banff townsite of 8,000 permanent residents.
I know this number matters to our community and to all Canadians who care about the future of Banff National Park. A year ago in May 2016, the population reached 98 per cent of the limit, and our town has continued to grow.
Moreover, Parks Canada is contemplating developments outside the townsite which will add population pressure to the town. We appealed the Homestead Inn project because this important limit to growth was being ignored in the planning process. I am concerned that in rejecting our appeal, the DAB has not taken this issue as seriously as it should have, despite repeated direction from the federal government to limit development in the national park.
Our town is good at growth; but managing growth, less so. The rules in the management plan were carefully designed to balance the needs of businesses, residents, park visitors and wildlife.
All we ask is that any new commercial development is assessed in terms of the cumulative impact of all these projects. If our town’s current planning framework fails to ensure this policy, then what is? Town planners and Parks Canada, who should be the responsible authorities in this situation, are taking the kind of laissez faire attitude that leads to trouble.
We know the consequences: congestion; soaring housing costs; harm to nature.
Banff was incorporated almost 30 years ago and for those three decades our collective decisions have favoured business growth over the quality of life of our residents. Now our town is all grown up, and it’s high time to deliberate carefully its future.
This appeal may have been lost, but the conversation is far from over. Discussion of population limits, crowding and town planning in a growth-limited era will be front and centre in this year’s civic election.
This is an opportunity to be creative. Our future as a town is not to grow like a teenager, but like an adult, growing in culture, wisdom and community strength, protecting our national park for all Canadians.
Peter J. Poole,
Banff
