Coun. Morgan Nagel has deferred his proposed motion in the face of an outpouring of feedback from residents and stakeholders that firmly points to a need for more public consultation before he brings the motion back to council, likely expanded.
It was two weeks ago that the outspoken town councillor brought forward his notice of motion to explore the idea of building an alternative road that would cut along Cochrane Hill toward Sunterra and back along the current gravel road (the end of 4th Ave in Cochrane Heights) in an effort to alleviate increasing town traffic congestion.
"I would say the number one thing I'm hearing from people is that they are really happy to see council talking about additional traffic solutions ... but a lot of people aren't convinced that is the best route," said Nagel, adding that as traffic pressures continue to mount, council must seriously examine additional ways to alleviate it – and that regardless if the interchange at highways 1A/22 is funded in the coming fall provincial budget, it will not solve all the traffic problems for the town.
Nagel said he intends to come back to council in the coming weeks with an expanded, or perhaps entirely different motion. His eventual goal is for council to direct administration to study the possibilities for alternative roads – suggesting using Retreat Road or a more northern route into Rocky View County to deal with the current and future developments on county lands north of town could be candidates for exploration.
The proposal drew significant feedback – both positive and negative – on social media. Most recently the Franciscans at Mount St. Francis Retreat Centre, who own much of the lands that the road would go through, have expressed concerns that they were blindsided by Nagel's motion and that it emphasizes their "need to examine their property lines and develop a plan for their south lands."
On the heels of celebrating 70 years in Cochrane and the unification of the east and west Franciscan chapters, the Catholic faith-based fraternity is taking stock of its future, including land holdings, and how to continue the spiritual journey of helping others in the face of dwindling numbers – with 555 active friars across the country in 1949 and only 55 today.
What is up for discussion at present is some 160 acres of the Fransican's lands that are within the town's boundaries (the balance of the 450 acres of land holdings in this area are located in adjacent Rocky View County).
Nagel said he looks forward to a presentation from the Franciscans, who he met with last Friday, to help inform changes to his motion.
While many on social media applauded Nagel's traffic calming efforts, many expressed concern about the proposed route – including concerns from Sunterra and Cochrane Heights residents; slope stability and viability of the proposed route.
