CANMORE – A redesignation of an existing direct control district to potentially develop four- and six-storey affordable housing builds will head to a public hearing.
Canmore council gave first reading to create a direct control district that would likely see two buildings constructed at 100 Palliser Lane where the off-leash dog park is located. The public hearing will take place May 7.
The redesignation of the district, if approved by council, will allow for a change in building height from 16 metres to 26m and remove minimum parking requirements.
“I’m really excited about new opportunities and new direction that we are going to explore. … I’m excited for people to come to the public hearing and express their concerns and help us as best we can deal with those concerns,” said Coun. Wade Graham.
While there is a proposal to eliminate the land use bylaw’s minimum vehicle parking requirements, both Town staff and council emphasized vehicle parking would still be involved in any project.
It would, however, provide Canmore Community Housing (CCH) – the landowner – the option to go below the requirement in the Town’s land use bylaw.
With the creation of parking often a significant expense – typically between $25,000 and $50,000 per stall depending if it’s open air or underground and offloaded onto the unit purchasing price – it gives CCH flexibility in establishing affordable housing.
“It will allow for no-parking housing options for people who choose to live vehicle free,” stated a staff report. “This also increases the affordability of housing by eliminating the cost of providing parking stalls that would otherwise be included when requiring a minimum number of stalls per unit.”
Across the country, many municipalities have either eliminated minimum parking standards or are in the process to do so. As part of the federal government’s $4 billion Housing Accelerator Fund, one of the requirements was to reduce or eliminate parking standards.
On Tuesday (April 2), Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said a new $6 billion housing and infrastructure fund will be introduced in the upcoming budget. However, any municipality wanting money will have to allow the building of fourplexes regardless of existing zoning and the elimination of minimum parking requirements.
Banff council is in the process of eliminating its parking requirements, which was part of its successful Housing Accelerator Fund application that brought in $4.66 million, in an effort to reduce its housing shortfall estimated to be between 700-1,000 units.
If the direct control district in Canmore is redesignated by council, Coun. Joanna McCallum noted fewer parking requirements would be a change, but a possibility to see if it helps residents who may not have vehicles.
“This is the first parcel to be developed under the [area structure plan]. It’s quite a substantial unit count, which is exciting for the town of Canmore and residents of Canmore. … It is more of a newer concept in North America, especially within western Canada, but I would say we talk about letting the market decide and we’ve never really done that with parking. We say ‘let the market decide. You want this unit, how many parking stalls do you want?’ but then we actually cram in stalls that may be not necessary.”
Anika Drost, a development planner with the Town, said parking will still be required but will allow CCH to determine what is ultimately needed for a development.
She said a courtesy mailout was sent by the Town to adjacent buildings, which received feedback from residents of the Blakiston building raising concerns of preserving sunlight and views, removing parking minimums and the need for a pedestrian underpass or overpass crossing from Teepee Town to the Palliser area.
Drost said any building orientation would take place at the development permitting phase to minimize impacts of loss of sunlight and views. CCH is having an information session April 17.
“The district is the tool and mechanism to implement the policies of the ASP and it needs to be in place before future development can be processed,” she said.
A pedestrian underpass or overpass has long been discussed, but would have to navigate a myriad of roadblocks with existing communications lines, high-pressure gas lines and flood risk, which would all have to be factored. A major aspect also has Alberta Transportation having an option to expand that section of the Trans-Canada Highway from four to eight lanes, meaning anything built would have to factor in for that possibility.
The province announced earlier this year it would continue a wildlife fence from Banff National Park’s east gates to the Bow River bridge, which would significantly reduce human-wildlife collisions in the area.
In 2022, council was shown nine potential renderings for a pedestrian overpass or underpass
A pedestrian overpass was part of the original Palliser plan in 2000 as the population expanded, but has been kicked down the road as development in the area stagnated. In the Town’s 2023-28 budget and business plan, $550,000 is forecasted for 2027 and $11 million in 2028 for a pedestrian crossing but nothing has been council approved.
The 60-metre underpass at Cougar Creek beneath the Trans-Canada Highway connects that area of the community to Bow Valley Trail. The federal government and the Town contributed funds for the project and it addressed connectivity and public safety after people had been struck crossing the highway.
The land, owned by CCH, was originally part of the Palliser Trail ASP that was adopted by council in 2000. As part of the plan, three buildings at 200 Palliser Lane were built with 60 units, but 100 Palliser Lane was never developed.
Council passed an updated Palliser Trail ASP in 2023, which focuses on establishing roughly 1,300 residential units, including more than 1,000 being affordable. As part of the plan, it would feature mixed-use development to add commercial space as well as open space. The full build-out is expected to take 10-20 years.
It would also tie into the Town’s use of active modes of transportation that focuses on walking, cycling and use of public transit rather than simply relying on personal vehicles.
“I believe this bylaw achieves what was envisioned through the ASP,” said Canmore Mayor Sean Krausert.
