About 100 residents signed a petition calling for the Town of Black Diamond to stop approving large development permits until a long-term water supply is in place and water restrictions are no longer needed.
The Black Diamond Development Corporation introduced the petition during a public information session it hosted in the Griffiths Seniors Centre on Sept. 19 to address its concerns about the proposed Mountain View development beside the Oilfields General Hospital. It is aiming for 300 signatures.
The group formed in June following an open house about the proposed development to speak out about concerns regarding three 41-suite apartments and 10 attached villas proposed on five acres of land just west of the hospital.
Carl Fisher, who lives in the Woodridge area, told the more than 100 people in attendance last week that large developments shouldn’t be approved until the water situation in Black Diamond and Turner Valley is back to normal.
The town lost its water treatment plant and all but one well in the 2013 flood.
“The current system cannot collect enough water to supply water to the two towns without restrictions,” he said. “The Town of Black Diamond should cease the issuing of development and building permits until such time as the Sheep River Regional Utility Corporation can supply adequate water to the towns of Turner Valley and Black Diamond without restrictions.”
Mayor Glen Fagan said the utility corporation is in the process of locating more sources to bring the supply up, and is awaiting approval to pump about 6,500 cubic metres of water per day out of the Sheep River. Only 65 per cent of the two towns’ supply has been recovered since the flood, he said.
In addition, crews have been repairing water leaks in Black Diamond, including two that cut the town’s water use in half – down from about 1,800 cubic metres of water per day to less than 900, he said.
As for the petition, Fagan said guaranteeing no water restrictions before future development ignores the town’s responsibilities to downstream provincial, inter-provincial and international commitments.
Residents’ concerns about the Mountain View development came to council at its Aug. 2 meeting, where several spoke up about the impact construction, which is expected to commence this fall if approved, could have on the hospital.
Those concerns were raised again last week.
Ted Bain, who lives in Riverwood Estates near the proposed development, reiterated his unease about the impact drilling vibrations in the bedrock so close to the hospital could have on sensitive equipment and dust getting into “every nook and cranny” in the hospital.
He told those in attendance that he’s read studies that reveal environmental noise raises blood pressure, reduces sleep and impairs a person’s ability to heal.
Bain also shared his concerns about the risk of nearby construction further damaging the hospital.
According to old newspaper articles, the hospital required up to $4 million in renovations shortly after being built when swelling clay below the foundation caused damage to the roof and walls. The articles state a section of the hospital was demolished, the ground stabilized and two new wings built in 1990.
Gary McCarol, a retired geological engineer, questioned if the proposed site is appropriate to build a four-story apartment building with underground parking.
“It’s only 20 to 30 metres from the wing of the hospital,” he said. “I’m about certain it’s going to be the same surface underneath.”
In an earlier interview with the Western Wheel, developer Todd Gow, of Circle G Vitality Communities in Calgary, said he is aware of the stability issues and that engineers have been hired to address any problems with the ground.
“I’ve been assured by the construction company and the architect that they dealt with this type of stuff before,” he said. “They‘ve also done a lot of research on what happened at the hospital as well. We would never have bought the site if we thought there would have been an issue with that.”
Fagan said the Town is doing its due diligence as its development officer reviews the permit for the Mountain View development.
“You provided as much information as you can to our development officer, council and administration,” he said. “Please let this process proceed the way it should.”
It is not council’s place to stop the development, he said.
“The developer could come and sue the Town and everyone in this room,” he said. “We have to allow the process to go through the stages it needs to go through. It’s not something we have control over.”
