by D. Jeanne Kimber
Our Association Annual General Meeting will be held in the latter half of June, although the exact date is yet to be determined. Over the next two months, I ask that you consider volunteering to join the Board. We can have a maximum of 15 Board members according to our Bylaws. Being a Board member gives you the opportunity to participate more fully in decisions about the community and the community centre. If you wish to learn more, please don’t hesitate to contact myself or one of the other Board members. You can reach me at [email protected].
The Guidebook for Great Communities and the North Hill Communities Local Area Plan (NHCLAP) were debated at a public hearing of Council on March 22. The number of citizens who spoke at the hearing set a new record. The Guidebook establishes a framework for the creation of new local area plans and the North Hill Communities Local Area Plan is the first plan created in conjunction with the Guidebook. I spoke in support of the Guidebook, while fellow board member Greg Miller spoke in support of the NHCLAP. We offered our support to both documents, while still pointing out some areas for improvement, including the need for ensuring a refresh cycle for both documents. As a result of the public hearing, the Guidebook was referred back to City Administration for further discussion and refinements, with the aim of coming back to Council during the summer for approval. The NHCLAP was also brought to Council on April 12 for further discussion and direction. At that time, several amendments were brought forward by Councillor Farrell and passed by Council. For further information about the Guidebook see https://www.calgary.ca/pda/pd/current-studies-and-ongoing-activities/guidebook-for-great-communities.html?redirect=/guidebook. For information about the North Hill Communities Local Area Plan, check out https://engage.calgary.ca/NorthHill/realize.
The Highland Park Preschool offers an excellent part-time program for three- and four-year-olds. You can find information about our Preschool program on our website www.highlandparkcommunity.ca. To register your child for September 2021, please contact [email protected].
Our Community Clean-up will be held on September 18, 2021, and a metals recycler and e-waste recycler have already been booked for the event. The City is also increasing the green cart pickup schedule to weekly starting the beginning of May. In the meantime, please keep in mind that City garbage trucks do not pick up large, bulky items like sofas or mattresses. These need to be taken to the City landfill. You can find out more by checking out the City’s What Goes Where A-Z webpage at https://www.calgary.ca/uep/wrs/what-goes-where/a-to-z-listing.html.
The Board of the Association is proceeding with the process of obtaining funding approval for additional work on the community centre. Having made some wonderful improvements to the interior, we now intend to improve the redirection and drainage of stormwater around the building, especially along the south side and the NE corner. Other plans include construction of a garbage enclosure (as required by the City) and new roofing on the north roof. Longer term, we would like to see the construction of a rain garden to help with stormwater management, and space for community garden beds.
Speaking of stormwater management, we are still waiting for spring and summer rainstorms, but don’t forget to make sure your eavestrough downspouts are down so that rainwater drains away from the foundation of your house. Downspouts should not be directed toward your neighbours’ property and should not cause overflowing onto city sidewalks.
The format of this newsletter has transitioned to digital, although the publisher has continued to provide paper copies. If you know of a neighbour who relies on a paper copy, then we suggest you print a copy for that neighbour or tell them what they want to know. We will be emailing the link to the digital copy to everyone on our distribution list. If you are not on our email distribution list, then please send an email request to [email protected]. You can access issues directly from the publisher’s website at https://mycalgary.com/magazines/highland_park_highwood/ or from our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pg/highlandPkCA/posts/?ref=page_internal. If you want a paper copy of the March or April issues, please also email the hall manager.
