Burnswest is seeking community feedback for its new proposed development, which will be presented at its first open house Sept. 14 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the RancheHouse. The plan will also go to Cochrane council in the near future.
The 148-acre development is located at the current Burnco gravel pit site, southwest along Griffin Road. The gravel pit has been in operation for more than 30 years.
The development would be situated southeast along Griffin Road between Spray Lake Sawmills Family Sports Centre (SLS Centre) and the community of Riverview.
“Our preliminary vision is for a mixed-infill development, comprised of mostly residential uses on the west side of the property such as single-family, semi-detached, townhomes and multi-family,” explained Blaise Fontaine, engagement specialist for B & A Planning Group.
She said the build-out (although preliminary) would include between 650 and 750 units on the residential side.
Early estimations indicate that following approvals, construction could begin as early as late 2017 with Phase One units available for occupancy by 2018.
The full build-out is anticipated to take around 10 years.
Burnswest is currently conducting an environmental review of the development lands and “do not anticipate any significant remediation requirements prior to beginning infrastructure construction” according to its website, rocklandpark.ca.
The development team, which is currently referring to the area as ‘Rockland’ have three concepts on the website that will seek feedback at the open house; the team will also ask for community naming suggestions.
“Commercial and business park uses on the east side of the site (north of the SLS Centre) are currently proposed to provide more business opportunities for the town’s economic growth … there may also be an opportunity for a small main street interface to knit both sides of the community together.”
With respect to access, Fontaine said “our concepts include access options on the west side of the site via the existing River Avenue. Access on the east side of the site will be from two traffic circles on the future upgrades to Griffin Road. Before development occurs, it is anticipated that upgrades to Griffin Road (future James Walker Trail) will be developed at the east side of the site to the SLS Centre.”
The residential development, which will tie into the existing town water and wastewater systems, will “also include a new stormwater management pond on the west side of the site”.
Jim Burns, former president of Burnco, is the developer who owns Rockland Holding Ltd., an affiliate of Burnswest companies.
Over the past few months, the Burnswest team has been holding smaller format stakeholder meetings. The intention of the open house is to engage with the community on a broader and more public-scale.
Following the open house, the developer will post a concise report of their community feedbacks highlights on their website and is anticipating a second open house prior to presenting to town council.
Feedback is encouraged to be directed to community planner Chris Andrew at 403-692-5232 or [email protected].
