Calgary urged away from 'paving paradise'

krista sylvester/metro calgary

Calgary Food Policy Council’s Paul Hughes shows a back alley in the city’s southwest, where he says detached garages have taken away from the overall atmosphere of the neighbourhood.

Published: February 08, 2010 5:49 a.m.

Last modified: February 08, 2010 1:23 a.m.

(1)

Print article

Text size

Imagine the vibrancy and friendliness of Sesame Street in your very own backyard.

If Calgary Food Policy Council chair Paul Hughes has his way, the city of Calgary would look a lot more like the friendly cartoon neighbourhood than houses side-by-side separated by infills and laneways.

“I think we should be promoting green spaces and arable areas instead of focusing on aesthetics. I think we need to have more garages in the front of houses and under houses than in the backwards,” Hughes said.

Hughes pointed out the infills between garages and laneways take away valuable space that could be used as gardens. Instead, the garages create almost no neighbourly contact, he added.

“You go down an alley and you can’t see your house, you can’t see your neighbours and often there is crime associated with it because you can’t see anything.”

Hughes would like to see council move towards promoting front laneways and garages connected to homes, instead of “paving paradise”.

Council is set to discuss the land-use of the Infill Housing Policy today and Ward 7 Ald. Druh Farrell says she believes the city’s current bylaws are accurate to the city’s needs.

“I don’t think it’s as simple as just putting a driveway in the front, there are challenges to both,” Farrell said.

She added she believes altering neighbourhoods may actually be detrimental to the community character.

“I think the communities that don’t already have front garages don’t want them.”

more local stories

Dozens of child porn charges laid against former Calgary courts security guard

Calgary police believe social media was used to exploit the accused's relationship with the alleged victims.

Abbotsford gears up for lingerie football

The outlandish Lingerie Football League (LFL) has announced Abbotsford as its second Canadian franchise in the league’s pursuit of ratings and legitimacy outside the U.S.

Learning gets boost, but not top marks

While a welcome change to 2011’s cuts, Alberta’s budget delivered on Thursday is not earning top marks with stakeholders in education.

Add your comment

Comments are not reviewed before posting. If you believe a comment has violated the commenting guidelines, please alert a moderator using links provided.