In March 2012, Councillor Gael MacLeod joined residents of Thorncliffe Community for an early morning walkabout to observe cut-through traffic on 63rd Avenue.
Gael appreciated the opportunity to see this area of community concern - from a residents perspective.
It helps her gain a deeper understanding of the issue and enables her to better communicate with the city department responsible for addressing it.
Thank you to all the residents and Community Association representatives who volunteered their time (so early in the morning) to advise Gael and share their ideas of solutions to local concerns.
If you have an area of concern in your Ward 4 community that you think Gael should be aware of or see in person, please contact her office:
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Local Concerns From a Local Perspective
There is nothing more informative than understanding community issues from a resident’s perspective. To gain that valuable perspective, I’ve started a series of Community Walkabouts to learn more about the unique needs of each Ward 4 community.
For example, we started our tour of Highland Park by walking down a beautiful tree lined street of
 older homes. We soon came upon a derelict house with obvious evidence of transient occupancy and activities that could negatively impact the neighbours.
We also saw many poorly maintained rental properties on Centre Street that seem to be awaiting future redevelopment.
As an inner city community, Highland Park is on the cusp of redevelopment. That makes it essential to stay on top of these kinds of situations to prevent the community from falling into general disrepair and become less desirable for renewal efforts.
Land owners are seeking to realize a profit, the community is seeking to improve its landscape and new development needs to occur in a way that respects existing residents and accommodates future resident’s needs.
As a result, I have been strongly advocating for the completion of the Centre Street Corridor Study as called for in Plan It Calgary.
With proper research and planning, the right decisions can be made to ensure this community transitions into a revitalized inner city neighbourhood.
In Hidden Valley, we witnessed many of the traffic challenges resulting from cut through traffic, the most common concern I hear about. This newer community is only 20 years old but dealing with early design issues that didn’t account for growing communities to the north and west.
The Hidden Valley pond and fountain were originally seen as a significant feature of the community. However, the fountain no longer works and residents now have to contend with the unpleasant side effects of a large body of stagnant water, particularly in the fall when there is limited rainfall.
Because I now fully appreciate the situation, I am better able to advocate on behalf of the residents and assist in their pursuit of a long-term, cost effective solution.
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Walkabouts are just one example of how I am learning about the diverse needs of communities in Ward 4 and what I can do to be of assistance. They are an excellent way to keep me informed and up-to-date on the issues you care about.
I’m looking forward to future walkabouts in Ward 4, now being scheduled for 2012.
If there are issues in your community that you would like me to see firsthand, please give my office a call at 403-268-3727.
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