Rideau-Roxboro has been a unified community since 1928, yet the city of Calgary has shown a curious tendency to split it into two for its own purposes, as seen in the recent West Elbow Local Area Plan. The creation of the non-existent Rideau Park and Roxboro put the community at a disadvantage from the start, as residents could not speak for two separate entities. There has always been only one community association.
Despite protests, the city proceeded with road upgrades and enhanced redevelopment typically kept at the edges of other neighbourhoods, cutting right through the middle of Rideau-Roxboro. During the recent Mission Bridge construction, the area was properly referred to as Rideau-Roxboro in a promising project description that highlighted pedestrian enhancements and special attention to preserving heritage features. The construction company echoed this idyllic vision, but the full scope of the project was never disclosed to residents.
As expected, the city widened the bridge and reinforced it, tore out the street gardens at the community entrance, widened the roadway, and haphazardly paved over the cobblestone crosswalks that were designed to prevent speeding. Almost immediately after completion, the city began diverting high-speed emergency vehicles from Macleod Trail through the community, despite the fact that it is easier, faster, and safer for such vehicles to stay on major routes.
Rideau-Roxboro is perhaps too pleasant for its own good. The street gardens and cobblestone crosswalks were designed by renowned urban architect Bill Milne to create innovative safety measures and a unique, safe human-vehicle interaction. These features have been in place since 2000, and there have been no traffic incidents of any kind. Pedestrians and cyclists move about safely, and the community has lovingly cared for the gardens.
Residents made it clear they were not trying to disallow emergency vehicles. Like many other communities, emergency vehicles came through about once a month, and when they did, it was understood to be serious. Now, they come through at high speeds with sirens blaring almost daily, often in odd patterns, such as five Sunday mornings in a row around 10 a.m. This can feel intimidating. Heavy trucks from Macleod Trail cut through daily, and the worry about children is constant. It would take just one child stepping off a school crossing for a tragedy to occur. The community is only two blocks long, with two school crossings in the middle—one at the bridge and one at 30th Avenue and 4th Street S.W.
The once beautiful heritage neighbourhood now feels temporary. The city plans another vaguely defined three-week infrastructure rebuild at the intersection of 30th Avenue starting June 8. According to the city, it cannot replicate the historic lamps that residents paid for because it is too costly, and it lacks the budget or time to order the same lamps or properly consult with the community. It cannot replace the black poles but has offered to paint new ones, even though hundreds of black poles lie in the Manchester yards. The city claims there are plans, but residents are not allowed to see them.
Will the city again pave over the cobblestone crosswalks? Widen the roadway? Do pedestrians and cyclists in Rideau-Roxboro not matter in these times of high pedestrian deaths? Can the city erase a community whenever it wants? Will this all end on December 1, when a new chief administrative officer takes office? By then, it may be too late.
Mary Graham has lived in Rideau-Roxboro for 35 years. She represented the community on the Inner City Transportation Study in 2000, when city administration also tried to create two imaginary communities, this time called Rideau and Roxboro. They were unsuccessful.
