THE HISTORY OF THE SW RING ROAD AND THE WEASELHEAD WALK
Why was the SW ring road planned through a First Nations reserve? How did the Weaselhead come to be owned by the City of Calgary? Why are Unexploded Ordnance being found in the Elbow river valley?
Join me again on this year’s Jane’s Walk through a beautiful and historic part of Calgary, and learn about the soon-to-be-built SW ring road, 60+ years in the making.
The turn-out for last year’s walk was fantastic, and I will be leading it again this year. The walk will be a look at the history of the SW Ring Road, and will give anyone who is interested the chance to explore the past, present, and future of the Weaselhead; one of the most historically rich areas of Calgary.
Travel along the first Provincial highway that was built through the Tsuut’ina Nation reserve over 115 years ago (with origins dating back even before the signing of Treaty 7) and through land that was purchased in the 1930s for the Glenmore Reservoir. See where the Canadian Military operated the largest WWI training camp in Western Canada, and explore the legacy of disputed land ownership and unexploded ordnance that years of military use has left behind. Experience one of the quietest corners of the city adjacent to where the SW Ring Road is planned to be built, see where previous plans would have located the road over the valley, and look at the role that future economic development played getting the road approved.
Details
Date: Sunday May 8, 2015
Time: 1:00 pm
Duration: about 2 hours
Meeting Place: North Weaselhead Parking Lot (at the corner of 37th street SW and 66th avenue SW in Lakeview)
CALGARY-GLENMORE WALK
In addition to my Weaselhead walk, I will be co-leading another Jane’s Walk this year, with Calgary-Glenmore MLA Anam Kazim. This will be held on Saturday May 7, and will meet at Glenmore Landing. Details can be found here.
This walk, which takes place on the opposite side of the reservoir from my other walk, looks at the history of the Provincial Riding’s namesake: The Glenmore Reservoir. From the earliest day of the City, the area around the Glenmore Reservoir has played a central role in shaping the landscape of SW Calgary.
The walk will explore some of the stories that weave into the fascinating history of the area, looking at:
• The use of the reservoir as waterworks project, recreation area and even military training ground.
• The fight to open the surrounding land as public parks, including Heritage Park.
• The development of the area for residential and commercial uses.
• The activism and planning that has shaped 14th street.
• The role of the reservoir in the development of the SW Ring Road.
The walk will take about an hour and will begin and end at Glenmore Landing, after which Anam will hold a Meet-and-Greet with some light snacks.
All of the details can be found here.
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Jane’s Walk in Calgary
Click here to visit the Jane’s Walk descriptions for the SW RIng Road and Weaselhead walk and the Calgary-Glenmore Walk.
and
Cllick here to see all of the Jane’s Walks that will be happening this year
Calgary Ring Road 