This would be the metropolis’s first try at redeveloping a park-and-ride lot into housing — a tenet of the housing technique metropolis council handed final September.
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As a part of its transit-oriented growth objectives, the Metropolis of Calgary intends to transform one of many park-and-ride tons on the Franklin LRT station into housing.
The Franklin station straddles Memorial Drive, with park-and-ride tons on the north and south sides of the station. David Couroux, the town’s planning lead for transit-oriented growth, stated the town solely plans to redevelop the southside lot.
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“We’ll be trying primarily at housing on that website,” he stated. “If there are different facilities which can be possible, maybe retail, there could be a possibility for somewhat little bit of that…nevertheless it’s too early to say if we may make that work or not.”
This would be the metropolis’s first try at redeveloping a park-and-ride lot into housing — a tenet of the housing technique metropolis council handed final September.
As for why the Franklin station was chosen, Couroux stated there are numerous close by facilities that make it appropriate for housing, reminiscent of two faculties throughout the road, quick entry to public transit and the town’s 5A community, and a plethora of retail choices alongside each seventeenth Avenue S.E., and at Marlborough Mall.
It’s too early to verify what sort of housing types can be included or what number of items the event would come with, Couroux stated, including the town continues to be a number of years from any dust being turned on the challenge.
Nevertheless, he stated the town envisions residence buildings ranging wherever from 4 to 12 storeys tall.
“We’re within the technique of creating an idea for the positioning that we will share with the group and get suggestions on what their impressions of our idea work is,” he stated. “That will result in a proper land use and description plan utility. We’re searching for that to be in entrance of council earlier than the tip of 2024.”
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The proposed growth additionally contains public security enhancements alongside adjoining Radcliffe Drive S.E. and investments to a public park in Albert Park/Radisson Heights.
It’s a city-led challenge, however Couroux stated the municipality may find yourself partnering with or promoting parts of the land to non-public builders.
Whereas the south car parking zone appeared full on Wednesday morning, Couroux claimed metropolis knowledge present the 2 Franklin LRT park-and-ride tons have been solely 50 to 60 per cent utilized in 2023.
He stated the town intends to go away a number of the parking within the south lot intact, although it’s too early to counsel how a lot.
“We need to preserve our transit operation there, so as soon as we get into the idea and know the way a lot land we’ve to work with, that would be the time we will truly discuss concerning the potential variety of items,” he stated. “That places us into spring earlier than we will hammer that down.”
‘The group doesn’t need it’
As for a way space residents really feel concerning the metropolis’s proposal, a member of the area people affiliation claims most are towards the event.
“The group doesn’t need it,” stated Les Burton, the vice-president of the Albert Park-Radisson Heights Group Affiliation.
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He stated many residents are already “up in arms” about one other city-backed housing proposal in Radisson Heights. Final fall, the town introduced plans to construct as much as 280 townhomes on the website of former David D. Oughton College, which was demolished in 2016.
That got here after Albert Park was razed and changed by Albert Park Station, a 271-unit, multi-storey apartment complicated that was completed in 2015.
“It looks as if we’re the dumping grounds,” Burton stated, referring to the variety of new housing initiatives popping up in Radisson Heights. He argued the neighbourhood’s infrastructure is outdated, and wasn’t constructed to accommodate greater density.
“I’m not saying something is dangerous about all of this — I’m simply saying we’re tapped out.”
He additionally claimed the 2 faculties throughout from the Franklin LRT station — Radisson Park College and Sir Wilfrid Laurier College — are each working at close to capability enrolment, which means they possible couldn’t accommodate an inflow of scholars.
“I perceive there’s a housing crunch within the metropolis, however our metropolis is large,” he stated. “That crunch needs to be unfold across the metropolis.”
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‘Higher late than by no means’
The group’s consultant on metropolis council, Gian-Carlo Carra, stated he’s enthusiastic concerning the metropolis’s plans, noting he even recognized the Franklin LRT station park-and-ride as a possible transit-oriented growth in his grasp’s thesis again in 2005.
“Higher late than by no means,” the Ward 9 councillor informed reporters Tuesday. “The perfect time to plant a tree is 20 years in the past, the second greatest time is now, so I’m delighted we’re rolling on it. Town goes to have to determine scale this up and get it shifting shortly.”
Whereas he acknowledged the proposal will include its share of critics, Carra argued the conversion of under-utilized parking tons close to transit stations into mixed-use, high-density developments is the “gold normal” for addressing Calgary’s housing disaster.
“Franklin goes to the primary of dozens the place we begin to do that work,” he stated.
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