2010 Mayors Race

[Bill Bumface]

Originally Posted by Tyler

And have a dumpy, tiny little yard and homeless people wandering through your alley ways?

Some people prefer a larger yard, and the bountiful amenities provided by large conglomerate housing development companies!

There are lots of 50' lots kicking around that are bigger than anything you find in a new neighbourhood.

Or go to the old 'suburbs' from the 50's. HUGE yards, decent sized houses, quiet streets, no bums, and a few kilometers from downtown. And trees of the non-Charlie Brown variety.

And you know what? Bums in your alley, not really a big deal unless you hang out in the alley. The only time I've ever had a bum talk to me or ask for anything was at the 7-11 once. And I could probably hit the homeless shelter with a good driver over the river.

Enjoy your front garage/concrete pad wasteland, but not at my expense anymore please.

[Iowa_Flames_Fan]

Originally Posted by hulkrogan

Thanks x1000. I should register more accounts so I can thank this post more.

I think that bridge does a really good job of straddling the line between completely awesome and utterly embarrassing.

It sort of looks like a cross between a bullet-train and a chinese finger trap.

[Azure]

Originally Posted by Iowa_Flames_Fan

I think that bridge does a really good job of straddling the line between completely awesome and utterly embarrassing.

It sort of looks like a cross between a bullet-train and a chinese finger trap.

Which is why it is probably exactly what the current Calgary government would propose!

[Bill Bumface]

Further to my previous points, I'm not calling out anyone for living far from downtown. If you don't mind the commute and find it worth while for what you're getting where you live, I don't blame you.

I used to live very close to the edge of the city. My place was cheap, my taxes were cheap. I was never in denial that the 7 (SEVEN!) interchanges they built on Crowchild or 3 LRT stations were paid for by people never seeing the benefit, and that a good chunk of the users were from Cochrane and weren't paying a dime for any of it which they used every day (different discussion).

I always knew it wasn't fair, but took advantage of it until such a time came where I decided my lifestyle better fit a different location.

I never would have complained if taxes were majorly adjusted and my resale tanked a bit.

Frankly, the thing that can really help all of this is a massive increase in gas prices and transit prices from the edge of town combined with a revised property tax system.

Until then I don't blame anyone with a bunch of kids feeling like they might as well take advantage of the disproportionately low cost of living on the edge of the city.

[Yeah_Baby]

What is even worse are the commuters from the parasitic communities.

/DESS

[Muta]

Originally Posted by hulkrogan

And you know what? Bums in your alley, not really a big deal unless you hang out in the alley. The only time I've ever had a bum talk to me or ask for anything was at the 7-11 once. And I could probably hit the homeless shelter with a good driver over the river.

I hate it when people use the 'bum' excuse when talking about the inner-city.

Maybe it's just me, but the possibility of a 'bum' walking around in an alley next to a property that I happened to live in would never scare me away from living in the inner-city. Even if I did have children. #1, you're assuming that the bum is an evil entity, and #2, you're assuming that he's going to cause harm to somebody or something. Which very, very few and far between.

I'm so glad I don't live in this kind of bubble. I grew up in the inner-city, with 'bums' walking around everywhere since I was a wee lad playing on the front lawn, and it's really not anywhere near the problem that it's made out to be.

[troutman]

Originally Posted by Muta

I hate it when people use the 'bum' excuse when talking about the inner-city.

Maybe it's just me, but the possibility of a 'bum' walking around in an alley next to a property that I happened to live in would never scare me away from living in the inner-city. Even if I did have children. #1, you're assuming that the bum is an evil entity, and #2, you're assuming that he's going to cause harm to somebody or something. Which very, very few and far between.

I'm so glad I don't live in this kind of bubble. I grew up in the inner-city, with 'bums' walking around everywhere since I was a wee lad playing on the front lawn, and it's really not anywhere near the problem that it's made out to be.

It is an issue - my bike was stolen recently. There was a triple stabbing in Riley Park last month.

[mykalberta]

My vote goes for Nenshi but that is before I have seen any "platforms".

[Ducay]

Originally Posted by troutman

It is an issue - my bike was stolen recently. There was a triple stabbing in Riley Park last month.

This

The fewer bums there are in a community, the less crime. Its proven.

Therefore, we need to speed up the developments around the East and South sides of the city to allow new homes to be built (homes frighten the homeless away, which is again, a proven fact).

[Bunk]

Originally Posted by Muta

It's funny that we debate a single stretch of subway line in Calgary, like it's a life or death situation.

Here in Toronto, one of the candidates for the mayoral election is promising apprx. 2 km's of new subway track PER YEAR under his platform. And people here love the idea. People want the subway expanded, and yes, it's pricey to build, but it's an essential service. In fact, all the candidates want to expand the subway system.

I use it everyday, and it's hugely important - and EFFICIENT - for Torontonians. Especially in a northern climate like Canada's. I can go anywhere in this city without owning a vehicle, and it's a huge city.

For the record, I am all for installing subway track in Calgary. I, personally, would like to see a subway system installed in this city, with inital plans to link downtown tio all the major semi-inner city neighbourhoods. Have your downtown stations, have a station in Kensington and at SAIT, have a station at Mount Royal, have a station at Chinook Centre, have a station at the Zoo / new Science Centre location. And that's just off the top of my head.

Will it happen? Not likely in my lifetime. Atleast, until a philosophical shift in urban planning comes from some new minds down at City Hall. Fortunately, I do think that Kent Hehr, judging by some of his early comments, seems to believe in a vision for Calgary that expands beyond pulling from our own limited, municipal borders and braintrusts.

Most of Toronto's transit expansion will happen in the form of LRT - as per the TransitCity Plan. Toronto's actually about 30 years behind in Transit Infrastructure development. I actually moved away from the Yonge Street line to a location I could walk to work because the system is so overcrowded. Delays due to "signal problems" and the like because the system is literally crumbling became way too big of an aggravation for me.

Calgary will never build heavy rail subway - Calgary made the decision to build LRT 30 years ago and that's the direction it will continue with. Calgary does have a lot of LRT expansion to undertake such as the SE line, North Central line, and 8th Ave "subway" (which is still for LRT) but for a city of its size in the north american context, it's already a highly developed network with very high ridership. Every Alderman and most citizens WANT LRT expansion - it's not a matter of planning philosophy, it's that resources are scarce (or priorities at the provincial level are not on transit) and cities do not have adequate funding to build such massive infrastructure.

[Table 5]

Originally Posted by Ducay

Therefore, we need to speed up the developments around the East and South sides of the city to allow new homes to be built (homes frighten the homeless away, which is again, a proven fact).

Yep, homelessness and bums are definitely an issue in Calgary, but the way to counteract that is to build thriving neighborhoods. The more people run to the suburbs to avoid them, the more homeless there will be in the areas left behind.

[Bill Bumface]

Originally Posted by troutman

It is an issue - my bike was stolen recently. There was a triple stabbing in Riley Park last month.

I'm not about to suggest there isn't more crime closer to downtown, but the stabbing incident you speak of was "two groups of youths - known to each other".

Having your bike stolen, that sucks, and it's part of the gig. Crime in Calgary is still nothing that most people have to spend much time worrying about though. We're lucky.

[Muta]

Originally Posted by Bunk

Calgary will never build heavy rail subway - Calgary made the decision to build LRT 30 years ago and that's the direction it will continue with. Calgary does have a lot of LRT expansion to undertake such as the SE line, North Central line, and 8th Ave "subway" (which is still for LRT) but for a city of its size in the north american context, it's already a highly developed network with very high ridership.

You're preaching the choir, dude.

But there are much better transit systems in North America and around the world, IMO.

[Muta]

Originally Posted by troutman

It is an issue - my bike was stolen recently. There was a triple stabbing in Riley Park last month.

And it was all 'bums' that did it?

My bike was stolen too at one time, doesn't mean I'm scared to live in the neighborhood because of it. Could happen anywhere.

Wasn't there recently a shooting / homicide in a suburban neighbourhood in Calgary? The point is, crime happens anywhere.

[Table 5]

Damn, so that's where my bike went. If anyone sees a bum riding a yellow Canadian Tire BMX from my childhood, I'd appreciate a PM.

[Bunk]

Regarding the relationship between sprawl, taxes and infrastructure - the underlying issue in Calgary (and in all cities for that matter) is that the outward growth pattern has become inherently unsustainable. That is, the amount of taxes that new communities generate are less than what it costs to create the infrastructure and to provide services to them. This is essentially what Plan It was about. It sought to make changes to the density and design of new subdivisions such that they were efficient enough to become financially sustainable. Suburban Developers resist these changes because it means altering a business model that has been highly profitable for 60 years, but has put a massive strain on city finances.

So when the City came up with a new model for growth encouraging more redevelopment within the existing footprint and coming up with new standards for subdivisions they accompanied it with a study that indicated that if the City changed to it's proposed "smart growth" model, the City would have to pay for $11 billion less in infrastructure compared to the 'business as usual' approach.

Opponents to this trotted out all sorts of arguments and scaremongering tactics stating that "you will no longer be allowed to live in a single family house" or "everyone will be forced to live in a 600 square foot box downtown". This is simply not true. What it does propose is ensuring higher density, more efficiently designed and better designed subdivisions. Communities more along the lines of Garrison Woods in design, which have narrower roads, smaller but better quality open spaces, a greater mix of housing types, less waste of land, high density nodes adjacent to transit (or planned transit lines) walkable streetscapes, commercial main streets rather than really inneficient and car-oriented big box complexes, and more efficiently designed road patterns that make transit routes shorter and more logical. Communities that are somewhat different than the typical subdivision of the last 50 years, but are more efficient and actually provide some interesting qualities lacking in typical subdivions.

It also talked about making better use of existing built up land by finding ways to encourage downtown residential growth and revitalization, Transit-Oriented Development and sensitive intensification of older established communities.

If you consider yourself a fiscal conservative this "smart growth" model that candidates like Kent Hehr want to champion and move forward in earnest is what you should really consider attaching yourself to. Ric McIver and Joe Connelly fought hard AGAINST Plan It. They advocate more of a business as usual approach to growth - just let developers do whatever they want, at whatever cost it is to the City and its citizens. If they were successful at stopping efforts at smart growth that Plan It promotes, that will cost the citizens far, far more in taxes than any little grandstanding gesture that they chest thump about with regard to pedestrian bridges or building a fitness facility at City Hall.

[Bunk]

Originally Posted by Muta

Wasn't there recently a shooting / homicide in a suburban neighbourhood in Calgary? The point is, crime happens anywhere.

There have been 7 homicides in 2010. None downtown.

[troutman]

Originally Posted by Muta

And it was all 'bums' that did it?

My bike was stolen too at one time, doesn't mean I'm scared to live in the neighborhood because of it. Could happen anywhere.

Wasn't there recently a shooting / homicide in a suburban neighbourhood in Calgary? The point is, crime happens anywhere.

Yes, it was bums. I talked to the police. They have much more work in the inner city than the suburbs. That's a fact.

I choose to live with it, because the pros outweigh the cons (pun intended).

Aside from murders, it is the drug dealing and related theft/prostitution/assaults that are concentrated in the inner city.

[firebug]

Originally Posted by mykalberta

My vote goes for Nenshi but that is before I have seen any "platforms".

Actually, Mr. Hehr has requested that, for the duration of this campaign, all Candidate's policy positions should be referred to as 'ramps'.

~firebug

[Ducay]

Originally Posted by firebug

Actually, Mr. Hehr has requested that, for the duration of this campaign, all Candidate's policy positions should be referred to as 'ramps'.

~firebug

No not want.




Looks like there was a minor update to Hehr site, but still no details on his platform.