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CalgaryNEXT | Urban District Redevelopment Plan

While I would prefer that the complex be built in the West Village, as to be a much needed injection of development capital into the West Village, I also wouldn't mind it being built in the East Village, as they would most certainly have to deck over the CPR tracks which would allow for a frontage along both 9 and 11 Avenues, and would likely allow for a lot more parking on the site than is currently proposed for the West Village location.
 
I was wondering about them having to build over top of the tracks the parcels on both sides don't seem big enough to support an arena or stadium. There is enough room to build the complex between the train tracks and 11th , would they ever close 10th Ave. off as it doesn't go all the way through anyways?
 
I'd be OK with either option (EV or WV), but I have a few thoughts.
  • The creosote is exactly the reason for a major public development there, not a reason against it. Much of the problem is remedied just by excavating the soil. I believe residential development might have stricter EA requirements too.
  • The closer a c-train goes to the new stadium, the better.
  • The more CPR tracks are covered, the better.
  • Both areas have decent transit, bike, and road access - but I think EV will be slightly closer to our centre of gravity in 20-30 years. Obviously both are acceptably central.
  • Where ever it goes, it ought to use land as sparingly as possible and limit parking.
 
I prefer EV, but like you I'm okay with either. Straddling the train tracks is a good idea, but the actual field and arena floor will have to be beside the tracks for practical purposes, and maybe the part straddling the tracks can be concourse as well as outer retail, etc... Unless the field and arena floor are right over the tracks 10th ave would likely be closed. I'm okay with that to be honest.
 
I think a stadium might just fit, if configured a certain way. This is McMahon and Saddledome superimposed on those parcels. The arena isn't a problem, and the stadium if made taller and thinner might work. The train could go under the concourse on the one side.......not sure how that would work with dangerous goods transportion tho.

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I prefer the West Village due to our city's Olympic aspirations, to host the 2026 Games. In the West Village, you have the area for the stadium, plus the entire area needed for the Olympic Athletes Village. The West Village is literally the perfect location for an Olympic Village and primary venue.
 
I prefer the West Village due to our city's Olympic aspirations, to host the 2026 Games. In the West Village, you have the area for the stadium, plus the entire area needed for the Olympic Athletes Village. The West Village is literally the perfect location for an Olympic Village and primary venue.
If the Olympics are involved I would be okay with West Village. That said an Olympic village could also do wonders for the gap between downtown and Inglewood.
 
I also prefer the stampede grounds as an option. It will have immediately proximate access to the Red and Green lines and it would be a short jaunt to City Hall for the Blue. There's also less radical road infrastructure needs and better access to parking overall. Not to mention removing the creosote remediation from the areana development costs.

I also don't think that there is any particular need to make the Stadium and Arena a single structure. They Flames most recent proposal is interesting, but if they ended up doing a new arena on or near the grounds and then a stage tear down of McMahon where they rebuild one side at a time, I think they'd end up with two decent and functional structures in good locations.
 
By stampede grounds, do you mean right on the grounds itself? Or along the tracks beside the Stampede?

I like the grounds as my preference for the arena. If only they could work out a deal with the Stampede on revenue.
 
By stampede grounds, do you mean right on the grounds itself? Or along the tracks beside the Stampede?

I like the grounds as my preference for the arena. If only they could work out a deal with the Stampede on revenue.

In or around. Obviously preserving fairground space is an important consideration so that would have to be kept under consideration.
 
I just fear that, if the Stadium/Arena doesn't go in the West Village, especially along with a Vancouver style Olympic Village, we will be waiting another century for the West Village to be fully redeveloped. Whereas the East Village and Victoria Park are already seeing massive amounts of development.
 
Both areas (Stampede/Vic Park and WV) have room for massive redevelopment. Riverwalk will hopefully join them one day.

I agree with Urbanwarrior about WV being more hopeless to redevelop without a massive intervention, but I think the stadium is only an engine to get things started. In the WV, a 17th St CPR underpass, 19th St river crossing, and Riverwalk would probably do more in terms of spurring development.

I'm curious about the nature and extent of remediation necessary. Is it enough a excavate 10 m or soil for parking below every new condo? I feel as though there is a lot of talk around remediation in the WV without much evidence of understanding of the nature of the problem or how to manage it.
 
Agree about the stadium being only an engine to get things started at WV. There may also be other engines out there to do the same thing. Maybe another downtown campus for the UofC, SAIT or MRU? Maybe a medical facility? Maybe a retail complex?
 
Or maybe a few smaller buildings of each. A small medical centre, and a remote campus, and retail building combined in one area.
 

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