Bringing discussion right into the park

Community Services director Mitchell Hamm brought the conversation about the future of the Jim Uffelmann Memorial Park right to its users.

On Oct. 1, users were provided an overview of the park's assessment, had a chance for one-on-one conversations with Hamm, and could indicate whether they agreed or disagreed with some general statements.

"I think a lot of the conversation is just some concerns about what's going to change," says Hamm. "I think that from an administration standpoint, we understood that coming into the project everyone feels very strongly about this space. We're just very excited about having this conversation and taking the next steps to council to see where we're going with this."

Community Services director Mitchell Hamm, left, discussing concerns with users of the Jim Uffelmann Memorial Park.

While the full environmental study completed on the area won't be released until a November town council meeting, Hamm provided some general comments.

"The environmental survey came back with less impact than we had expected based on the visional that we had seen at the space, but that doesn't take into account the bank erosion," says Hamm, "so removing the bank erosion severity from the conversation, we were happily surprised by the outcome of the ESA (environmental site assessment) 1."

The ESA revealed there could be some contamination from adjacent land uses, but Hamm isn't sure if a level two assessment will be completed. 

"The suggestion by the environmental company that performed the ESA 1 was to potentially do an ESA 2. We're still undecided on whether that's the best course of action. The ESA 2 is very expensive and the outcome is more determining of industrial waste as opposed to what the impact of having a dog park would be here. We have to evaluate if that's the best choice for our next steps."

The park was originally established as Cochrane's first off-leash area and offered ample green space and access to the Bow River. A paved pathway was added later to evolve the area into a multi-purpose park. Dogs and their owners continue to be the top users of the 10-acre park.

Its use will expand even further should it become part of the Trans Canada Trail.

Part of the assessment included understanding the conflict between park users. During one of the 13 visits, one seemingly aggressive dog was not under control by its owner. Several cyclists appeared to be travelling above speed limits, especially during peak hours when pedestrians and dogs were observed dodging bikes. Children were also witnessed scootering into pedestrians walking along the trail on several occasions.

The public consultation began in the spring and is wrapping up. The final report and next steps are scheduled to be reviewed by council in November.