City looking at ways to keep Calgarians engaged

When Dave McCarrel moved to the northwest community of Valley Ridge, he became involved in the local community association to meet people.

That was 20 years ago, and McCarrel has been active ever since.

He helped lead efforts in 2008 to build an outdoor ice rink now recognized as one of the best in the city, and also a recent project to construct an outdoor fitness park equipped with a variety of exercise stations that opened in September.

Industry spokesperson says construction fund largely going unused

Players in one of the city's most active multi-family construction areas have made limited use of a cash-for-density fund established by the City of Calgary, says a spokesperson for the industry.

While a number of projects have been brought forward related to the Beltline Community Investment Fund (BCIF), the CHBA-UDI Calgary Region Association, the umbrella organization for the builders and developers in and around Calgary, is scratching its head about why the fund hasn't been used more.

Secondary suites and sustainability highlight Sano Stante's year as CREB® president

The year was 2011: Naheed Nenshi was in his first full year as mayor, secondary suites had become part of Calgarians' daily lexicon and the term "sustainability" had started to creep into community development.

Looking back at it now, then CREB® president Sano Stante noted his year at the helm not only gave him a front-row seat to the action, but an enviable opportunity to influence change.

He noted his work with CREB® in advocating council to legalize secondary suites across the city stands out the most from his year of presidency.

"It's something I was really proud of," said Stante.

Calgary to look at popular alternative to street parking

Nobody likes paying for street parking, but imagine if the money collected went directly into improvements for the community where you parked.

That's the idea behind Parking Benefit Districts (PBD), a concept gaining traction in a number of U.S. cities and may be on its way to Calgary.

"Parking Benefit Districts provide a solution to that political problem (of charging for street parking) as it creates a mechanism where the revenue generated stays in that local area," explains Greg Morrow, who sits on the CalgaryPlanning Commission and holds the Parker Professorship in Metropolitan Growth and Change with the faculty of environmental design and Haskayne School of Business at the University of Calgary. "You can direct parking revenue into local improvements like sidewalks, or installing new themed street lights."

City's new pedestrian strategy heads for city council

With Calgary's push to increase the number of cyclists on city pathways and roadways garnering media attention, City Hall has now turned its attention toward those that get around on two feet rather than two wheels.

Set to go before council on May 2, the City's new pedestrian strategy is aimed at making Calgary a "safer, more enjoyable, and easier" for pedestrians, and could see major changes to the way all Calgarians get around the city.

"We have a very strong program around transit (and) vehicles. Then we had a cycling strategy. So a similar approach is now being levelled toward pedestrians," said project manager Andrew King. "So now we have a pedestrian strategy which really is going to focus on bringing improvements to make walking better and making conditions better for pedestrians."

Seeking to standardize, increase allowances and simplify applications

City council on May 2 is set to debate amendments to the land use bylaw that would alter the requirements for secondary suites and backyard suites in low-density residential districts.

The amendments aim to standardize parcel width, depth and area requirements, and increase the maximum floor area for both secondary and backyard suites. These changes would simplify the application process for applicants in districts where secondary suites can be legally developed.

The proposed amendments would delete the minimum parcel depth and minimum parcel area requirements for accessory suites. The area and depth of a parcel would otherwise regulate for single detached dwellings in all the districts where these deletions are proposed.

Contentious topic back in the news

Secondary suites are back in the news thanks to a marathon council meeting at City Hall recently that saw 26 suite applications up for approval.

Sure to provoke those on both sides of the debate, CREB®Now takes a look at some of the latest developments in what is quickly becoming Calgary's very own version of The Song That Never Ends.

$10,000
With 26 individual secondary suite applications up for approval at council, the process dominated the day at City Hall, taking roughly 10 hours to hear from all involved. While council members are not paid overtime, City staffers are, meaning the cost of the review could cost taxpayers in excess of $10,000.

Soil contamination a major hurdle for any West Village development

The Calgary Flames' season may be over, but that doesn't mean hockey talk in the city has come to a close.

In addition to fans' usual examination of how things could have gone differently, the question of where the team is going to play its home games in the not-too-distant future remains.

Part of that answer will come to light April 25 when Calgary Municipal Land Corp. (CMLC) reports findings to city council from its six-month environmental assessment of land in West Village where Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corp. (owner of the Flames, Calgary Stampeders and Calgary Roughnecks) is proposing to build the much-debated CalgaryNEXT project.

City needs to pave the way for small housing option

If Tiny House Hunters, the compact-sized spin-off of HGTV's hit show House Hunters, is anything to go by, tiny homes may be coming to a neighbourhood near you. That is, if the neighbourhoods near you are in the United States.

Up north, however, the question of whether tiny houses will be fully embraced by Calgarians is up for debate.

With their limited size – usually around 400 sq. ft. or less – tiny houses often come at a fraction of the price of their traditional counterparts. Though prices vary from builder to builder, Kijiji listings for tiny homes for sale in the Calgary area range from about $17,000 to $39,000.

Move comes after SWBRT confrontations

The City of Calgary has launched a new online tool to give citizens and stakeholders an opportunity to have a dialogue on City projects.

This comes less than a month since the City ceased face-to-face consultations following allegations that staff members were verbally and physically assaulted during community consultations for the Calgary Southwest BRT.

"This is a new way for Calgarians to learn about and provide input on City projects," said Cindy Pickett, director of customer service and communications for the City.