The 940

1977 Sarcee Trail South Route Location Study

Though the planning for a Southwest Ring Road had been started in the early-to-mid 1950s, it remained little more than a line on a map for the next few decades. It took the pressures of growth, and the establishment of a new Provincial park, for the City to move the project from long-range thinking to a more detailed phase of planning. By the mid 1970s the planning for the Sarcee Trail extension, as it was then known, had become a priority to the City, even if the need for the road was recognised to still be decades away.

The study would look at routes that traveled from Glenmore Trail to Highway 22x, though I will focus on the portion that crosses the Elbow River, from Glenmore Trail to Anderson Road. For more on the crossing of the Fish Creek, see here. Continue reading “1977 Sarcee Trail South Route Location Study”

The Southwest Calgary Toll Road

The Tsuu T’ina are holding an election today (November 26 2012) for Chief and Councillors, and naturally the issue of the ring road has been among the forefront of the issues being raised.

Two of the contenders for the position of Chief, current Councillor Ivan Eagletail and former-Chief Roy Whitney, have at one point or another been on record as favouring a toll road payable to the Tsuu T’ina Nation in order for the Southwest Calgary Ring Road to be allowed through the reserve. While Eagletail made his support known recently, Whitney last mentioned support for the toll concept over a decade ago. Though this type of deal may be a departure from the current proposals, it is not a new idea for this road. Continue reading “The Southwest Calgary Toll Road”

The Priddis Trail and the Weaselhead Bridge

A growing population south of Fish Creek are demanding a road through the Tsuu T’ina reserve to be able to get to central Calgary easier. The Government has approached the Nation about routing a road through the reservation and crossing the Elbow River at the Weaselhead. If this sounds familiar, the next part probably will not: The Tsuu T’ina agree to the road, the land is surrendered at no cost, and the road is built. The year is 1900, and a road through the Weaselhead and the reserve is open to the public.

(Photo by Alison Jackson of the Priddis Trail near what is now the Weaselhead parking lot, September 29 1963. Courtesy of the Calgary Public Library, Community Heritage and Family History Digital Library.)

Continue reading “The Priddis Trail and the Weaselhead Bridge”

Grey Eagle Casino Expansion

On September 18 2012 the Tsuu T’ina Nation announced a $65 million expansion of their Grey Eagle Casino facility, including a hotel and entertainment complex.

The plans include a previously announced gaming-floor and restaurant expansion for the casino, and for the first time a 4.5 star, 178-room hotel, plus a 2000 seat entertainment centre with conference space and banquet facilities was announced.

Continue reading “Grey Eagle Casino Expansion”

The Grey Eagle Casino

1996 is the earliest public mention of plans by the Tsuu T’ina to develop a casino, the same year the Harvey Barracks was closed, and a full decade before the land was cleared and returned to the Nation. The original plans called for a casino, hotel and entertainment complex, and on June 30, 2004, the Nation voted to proceed with the Casino portion. Groundbreaking on the 84,000 square foot casino was held September 14 2006, and was open to the public in December 2007. The casino was controversial from the very beginning, especially in regards to access. Continue reading “The Grey Eagle Casino”

‘The 940’ plays a very important role in the history of the Southwest Ring Road. It is the centre of ring road planning from the very beginning, and in many ways remains the key to an alignment on Tsuu T’ina lands. But what is the 940?

The 940 is a 940 acre parcel of land that makes up the north-east corner of the Tsuu T’ina reserve. It is bordered by the City of Calgary on two sides, 37th street SW and Lakeview to the east, Glenmore Trail and Glamorgan to the north, and the Elbow river and Weaselhead defines its south and west borders. Every official alignment of a major road in this area has the road cutting directly though the heart of this land. Continue reading “The 940”

2009 Southwest Calgary Ring Road Design: Opening Day Stage

(For information about the 2013 ring road agreement including maps, click here)

In my previous article (found here) I wrote about the design of the Southwest Calgary Ring Road, and included the road diagrams. Those diagrams showed the ‘Ultimate Stage’ of the road, which showed the road as it would be once fully built out, something that would happen only once Calgary’s population reached the 2.1 million mark. However, they do not represent what would initially be built in the short term if this road becomes reality. This article covers the ‘Stage 1’ or ‘Opening Day’ design for the road that would be built if (or when) a deal is reached.

THE FUNCTIONAL PLANNING STUDY

Focus Engineering designed the road from about 2005 to about 2008, and did so with on behalf of the Province, with input from the City of Calgary, the Tsuu T’ina and stakeholder groups. The final road design is contained in the final Functional Planning Study (FPS) document.

‘OPENING DAY’ ROAD DIAGRAMS

The following diagrams are of the ‘Opening Day’ stage of the Southwest Calgary Ring Road, taken from the Functional Planning Study. The number in the circles on the road indicate lane count. Please click on the images to see a much larger version. (Note the direction of North, as the orientation changes from diagram to diagram).

101st Street SW and Highway 8 to 69th Street SW. Continue reading “2009 Southwest Calgary Ring Road Design: Opening Day Stage”