The 2017 election is barely 2 days old and the thorny subject of more money for downtown has arisen. In this case it started with the footbridge at the Riverlands… the latest panacea for our downtown.

Definition of panacea. : a remedy for all ills or difficulties : cure-all.

The Riverlands is often being touted as the cure-all for our city’s ills. It will bring businesses to Red Deer. It will stem the exodus of our residents, reversing the decline in population. It will put Red Deer on the map. It will bring people downtown.
23 acres will save Red Deer from it’s current decline, it may help, but only if seen as a portion of the solution.
The city council passed first reading on September 26 2016 of the redevelopment plan for the Riverlands. This took decades, a vision and hundreds of millions of dollars.
Let me start with: 23 acres at 10 million dollars per acre was quite the vision.
Yes, I am talking about the Riverlands at the corner of Ross Street and Taylor Drive. Now the city officials will talk about the costs being less, different budgets and necessitated upgrades and maintenance but anyway you look at it, it has been and will continue to be an expensive proposition.
Riverlands was once our civic yards and people came up with a vision for the riverlands that enjoyed support among successive councils.
The original Civic Yards Relocation budget was $106 million or $4.6 million per acre. Add in changes, cost over runs and it hit $118 million or $5 million dollars per acre, add in transportation, infrastructure and ignoring the fact that the city already owned the land and could have sold as prime riverfront property for future revenue and we are gaining on $138 million or $6 million per acre. We recently added 10 million dollars to expand, upgrade and replace facilities to accommodate outgrowing and replacing already obsolete equipment.
Back to the actual Riverland property, throw in environmental studies, planning, reclamation, demolition, relocating and burying transmission lines, upgrading water and sewer, Taylor Drive/Ross Street realignment, Alexander Way extension, Riverwalk phases 1&2 to name but a few and we are hitting the $10 million per acre mark before we talk about the new water feature and before we discuss Bower Ponds Riverlands Bridge with a budget $ 27.66 million dollars.
$27.66 million dollars so people can save a few hundred metres of walking, the distance walked, if they walked across the already built Taylor Bridge. The footbridge itself adds over $1 million per acre. So maybe I am under estimating the true costs when I say $10 million per acre?
One city councillor suggested that the city needs to build the Aquatic Centre downtown to accommodate the needs of the residents of the Riverlands. Planned for 2020 with a 3 year (2013) budget of $94 million not including demolition. You could add it to costs of the Riverlands but I won’t. You could also add in the proposed performing Arts Centre, and the list could go on, either as a benefit to residents or for promotional purposes.
A vision, prime riverfront property, $100s of millions and many years and we have an empty lot. We have potential, we have vision, we have a plan, but it is an empty 23 acre lot on the river.
One councillor said this going to be the cornerstone and future of our community. This 23 acre lot that has cost the taxpayers 100s of millions of dollars is the future of our community.
We are also starting to develop 2000 acres north of 11a, with a lake, there will be 20,000 plus new residents. Will we spend $1 on a swimming pool, or $I on an indoor skating rink, or even $1 for a high school on 2000 acres, a lake and 20,000 plus new residents? No.
On 23 acres, we will spend millions on fancy sidewalks, water features, $27.66 millions on a walking bridge to bower ponds and the golf club.
It is great to see such enthusiasm, but is it fair to concentrate so much on so little.
Let us ask the candidates. Well, Yes or No?