A new beginning for the community of Bridgeland-Riverside is finally rising from the ashes of the old Calgary General Hospital.
Builders and developers were invited last week to buy the first eight plots of land on the old hospital site. And in what could be a nod to the linking of past to future, it has fittingly been named The Bridges.
“Today we can look ahead to an exciting new future of renewal for this land and this community,” said Ward 9 Alderman Joe Ceci.
“The Bridges will effectively and efficiently increase population, while revitalizing one of Calgary’s oldest established neighbourhoods.”
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| ‘The Bridges’ in Calgary will help revitalize area, says alderman. |
The first set of three phases of the 36.8-acre redevelopment will total 425 residential units. Two later phases will add 716 and 434 units for a total of 1,575 units, or up to 2,500 new community residents.
The inner-city community will also soon enjoy an 8.7-acre central park and pedestrian boulevard along 1st Avenue N.E.
The Bridgeland-Riverside community hall and associated facilities will be relocated to the park area.
After the hospital was blown up by the Klein government in October 1998, the city gained title to the 37-acre parcel of land and started a planning process that has lasted more than three years, including public consultation and a design competition.
The first phase will see four parcels developed along 1st Avenue N.E. between 7A Street and 9A Street, and another four along the north side of Murdock Road, three of which will face the large central park.
Two sites facing 1st Avenue are designated for mixed commercial and residential use – establishing a connection to existing businesses on 1st Avenue, said Sharon Purvis, manager of residential planning and development in the city’s corporate properties department.
The city is accepting offers on the sites until the first week of June, and the first land sales could go to city council for approval at the end of July.
Bryan Dozzi, a member of the Bridgeland-Riverside Community Association planning committee, said residents moving into the neighbourhood will also make the businesses on 1st Avenue more viable.
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