OVERALL THEMES

Extensive feedback that we have heard through past engagement will continue to be used by the project team as we advance functional planning.

Common themes that we have heard through all of our past engagement over the years include:

Mobility & Function

  • Citizens value a walkable and accessible community and want to see enhancements to pedestrian and cycling infrastructure to improve connectivity.
  • Citizens are concerned about the traffic impacts on Centre Street, with the reduction in vehicle capacity and impacts to the surrounding network, increased traffic and reduced access through the local community.
  • Citizens have shared concerns about the loss of on-street parking, the availability of parking during peak hours and recognize this as being important to support the local businesses.
  • Citizens have shared concerns regarding the unwelcoming and unsafe pedestrian environment on Centre Street/ Edmonton Trail, largely attributed to the speed and volume of traffic during peak hours.

Green & Healthy

  • Citizens have a desire for ‘people-first’ strategy, want to see a reduction of car use and improve alternate mobility choices.
  • Citizens value green space and have a desire to increase, preserve and protect current green and open spaces in the area.
  • Citizens shared strong value for mature trees and tree-lined streets and want to see these maintained and protected.

Community & Character

  • Citizens value a walkable and accessible community and want to see enhancements to pedestrian and cycling infrastructure to improve connectivity.
  • Citizens are concerned about the traffic impacts on Centre Street, with the reduction in vehicle capacity and impacts to the surrounding network, increased traffic and reduced access through the local community.
  • Citizens have shared concerns about the loss of on-street parking, the availability of parking during peak hours and recognize this as being important to support the local businesses.
  • Citizens have shared concerns regarding the unwelcoming and unsafe pedestrian environment on Centre Street/ Edmonton Trail, largely attributed to the speed and volume of traffic during peak hours.

Economic & Development

  • Citizens have shared a desire for a diversity of housing types throughout the surrounding communities and see this as important to the future success of the Main Streets.
  • Citizens value many of the existing services and businesses in the area and would like to see new businesses and complementary uses to create a vibrant community for residents, and a destination for visitors.

2021

SEGMENT 2 FUNCTIONAL PLANNING

As part of Green Line’s segment 2 functional planning, the project team completed an integrated communications and engagement program that provided citizens the opportunity to participate in meaningful engagement. We ensured coordination across all of the active projects as part of our segment 2 functional planning, including North Central Mobility & BRT Studies, Crescent Heights Mobility Study and Streetscape Master Plan for Centre Street North.

Engagement and communications occurred for segment 2 projects from October 2020 through to April 2021 over two phases of engagement and one phase of information sharing. Throughout the project we engaged with residents and Calgarians at-large, Community Associations, Business Improvement Areas, local business owners, special interest groups and ward offices.

Our first phase of engagement included listening to Calgarians and exploring their opportunities and challenges related to the various projects. The feedback from the first phase was used to inform initial concepts and ideas, which were presented back to the community for evaluation in our second phase of engagement. Our final phase included information sharing, reporting back on how community input has informed the final recommendations, and sharing the final project recommendations with the public before Green Line Committee.

We employed a variety of engagement and communications tactics, including a stakeholder working group, online surveys, virtual workshops, meetings and presentations, digital web-based open houses, in-community sounding boards, postcards and letters, signage, social media and email newsletters. We took extra care to ensure that our approach was meaningful, inclusive and removed barriers to participation. This included the use of plain language and descriptive materials for those with low-vision, translated materials in simplified and traditional Chinese, the use of 311 for feedback and the piloting of new digital based tools to improve user experience.

Throughout the entire project, we held over 46 public sessions and stakeholder meetings and conducted 13 online surveys. In total, over 60,000 people were made aware of the project through our communications campaigns, we connected with over 15,000 participants through our engagement opportunities (online portal and sessions) and received over 1,600 ideas and contributions across all phases.

*Please note that these metrics above are not inclusive of our final phase, as this phase is still underway at the time of this report and will be updated to reflect final participation.

At a high-level, some of the themes we heard through the engagement included a desire for an enhanced Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service, concerns about the mobility network in the future, strong desire for a vibrant and walkable Centre Street North and concerns about impacts within Crescent Heights. We also received a mix of visions for the Bow River LRT bridge, that incorporates convenient access and viewpoints, while being designed in an environmentally sensitive way.

What We Heard Reports

2020

UPDATED STAGE ONE ALIGNMENT ENGAGEMENT

We conducted engagement between January 29 and April 30, 2020. Click here to view the What We Heard report. Feedback received help inform Council decisions on the recommendation for an updated Stage 1 alignment, an updated business case, our borrowing bylaw, as well as our governance.

Check out the videos and presentation from our online town hall sessions

Thank you to everyone who participated in our online town hall sessions on May 20 and 21, 2020. There were 162 attendees at our May 20 session, and 134 attendees on May 21. Links to videos of the sessions are below, and a record of the questions and comments received will be posted to this website in the coming days.

Some attendees had questions about property impacts and acquisition. Please review the Property Acquisition Information Sheet. You may also call 311 if you still have questions.

Green Line Town Hall #1 - May 20, 2020

Green Line Town Hall #2 - May 21, 2020

Presentation slides from town halls

INFORMATION BOARDS

Complete list of informational boards used at public engagement events in February and March 2020.


2019

Community Planning Along the Green Line

Since 2015, the Community Planning Department at The City of Calgary has been engaging with communities along to Green Line alignment to inform new Local Area Plans.

A local area plan identifies and guides where and how future growth and (re)development should happen within a specific area. A local area plan aims to integrate and enhance the existing fabric of the area and ensure the area is vibrant and thriving in the future.

To learn more about these Local Area Plans, please click here.

2018

Green Line in My Community

In January 16, and February 13, 2018, The City of Calgary held open houses and pop-up session with community members to provide information about the Green Line LRT -Stage 1 and to collect input on station design, station look and feel, safety and security and community experience.

Input collected from the public will be reflected in the technical documents that will be reflected in the technical documents that will guide the construction of the Green Line - Stage 1.

What We Heard Reports

Information Boards


2017

Beltline Alignment

In 2017, the Green Line team continued engagement with the community about potential alignment options through the communities of Victoria Park & Ramsay.

What We Heard Reports

Information Boards


2016

Beltline & Centre City

in 2016, The City held a series of engagement events to solicit input on the community’s expectations, issues, concerns and interests regarding alignment options for the Centre City/Beltline portion of the Green Line.

What We Heard Reports

Information Boards

North

Station Area Workshops

In the spring of 2016 the Green Line project team held five Station Area Workshops for the North portion of the alignment. These workshops were used to talk to communities around the stations about how they would use the stations and how they would get to and from the stations.

What We Heard Reports

Transit Oriented Development Workshops (North)

In 2016 three transit oriented development (TOD) workshops were held for the North portion of the alignment. These workshops, also known as design charrettes, are multi-day collaborative workshops that brings together citizens, consultants and City staff to create a community-based TOD plan for the areas near future stations in Crescent Heights/Tuxedo Park and at 64 Avenue and 40 Avenue stations.

Crescent Heights & Tuxedo Park

40 Avenue

64 Avenue

Speaker Series

in 2016, The Green Line speaker series provides some insight into key principles that are shaping the way we plan and design the new Green Line LRT.

In our first session, we explored “City-Shaping” and how the project has the potential to change entire communities along the alignment. Our second session looked at “How to build a transit village”, focusing on the transit-oriented approach to community planning. Our third session explored at how Green Line is “Shaping the way we move”. We looked at the transportation trends from the 1980s to today, how we plan to build on current trends and also heard from a group of panelists who have helped shape mobility in their city. Our fourth session looked to the future: What will the Calgary we pass to future generations look like? How does the new Green Line help shape the city for the future. Watch the videos from the sessions below.