With Rocky View County (RVC) council’s adoption of the Bragg Creek Revitalization Plan in December 2015, staff and residents are already hard at work looking at how to begin implementing some of the recommendations and actions identified within the plan.
According to RVC Senior Planner Amy Zaluski, the first step was the formation of the Bragg Creek Revitalization Committee – a group of community members working with a County facilitator to select priority projects on an annual or semi-annual basis that will be undertaken with the help of community volunteers.
“Some of the actions that came out of the plan, the County has to take the lead on. For example, the design guidelines and the upcoming ASP amendments that need to be made in order to move forward with the revitalization plan,” Zaluski said. “But there are lots of actions within the plan that include things like streetscape improvements, plantings and other projects of that nature.”
Zaluski said some of these projects may be development-driven and will happen as developments move into the hamlet, but there are a number of potential projects that just need “someone to take the lead on and figure out how to do it.”
Some of this leadership will be provided by RVC through a facilitator, Carole Stark, who will assist the committee as it takes shape. According to Zaluski, Stark put out a call for interest in the community last month, and is now in the process of working with the interested residents to set up the committee’s Terms of Reference, its mandate, and how it will function as a group.
“This committee will be our doers,” Zaluski said. “It’s a new thing for the County, but there was a lot of buy-in from the community as we were doing our engagement that they wanted to take ownership of this plan – but they wanted support, as well. So we thought hiring a facilitator would be a good way to get it going, and so far, we’ve seen some great support from the community.”
The committee has yet to hold its first meeting, but Zaluski said it will be getting together in the coming weeks to establish the function of the group and look at what projects can be started right away.
“This revitalization plan is an ongoing thing,” she said. “It’s probably never going to be finished, but if people keep working on smaller projects around the community, it will build momentum and people will start to see changes. I think that makes everyone more eager to participate and get into the process, once they can see things starting to happen.”
In order for the plan to move forward Zaluski said there will need to be amendments made to the current Greater Bragg Creek Area Structure Plan, which was adopted in 2007. An open house will be hosted at Snowbird Chalet May 26 for residents to learn more about the proposed amendments and provide feedback before the amendments are brought to council.
“People are getting a little mixed up with all these different projects going on in Bragg Creek, but it’s all a part of the revitalization umbrella,” Zaluski said. “Since the flood in 2013, this community has really been struggling – especially the business community. With all of these projects and residents working together with the County, we are really starting to move the hamlet forward into the future.”
