New waterfront district, seniors growth projected in City’s 2050 draft plan

“It sets out things like growth, development, environmental policies,” said superintendent of planning Robert Sissons. “It should guide us over the next 30-year time period and set policy at a lower level.”

The 78-page document covers all sectors of Medicine Hat and what they could look like in three decades, with specific attention paid to the downtown core.

One of the highest priorities in the draft vision is the creation of a ‘Waterfront Development District’ that would focus on blending park space, high-density housing, and potential retail development along the South Saskatchewan River.

“Numerous other cities like Kelowna, Calgary, Saskatoon, Winnipeg all have these really nice, well developed waterfronts which really help to drive development and make it a really enjoyable urban living experience downtown,” said Sissons.

The proposed district would stretch from the western edge of Riverside Veteran’s Memorial Park east to past the former Medicine Hat Arena.

A conceptual plan would need to be established if Medicine Hat City Council vote to approve the 30-year plan and would have to consider all redevelopment sites within a 400 metre radius of the district.

Although much of the proposed area would be situated in Veteran’s Memorial Park, Sissons doesn’t expect the overall footprint of the park to be impacted if approved.

“Right now there’s a barrier in terms of River Road and also right at the edge of the water it’s difficult to get really close to the water,” said Sissons. “So, in terms of allocation of park space there wouldn’t be a net decrease. We would look at just re-balancing where some of the current park space is.”

There is no official timetable on when this vision could become reality, as planning and development of a concept would be the first official step following council’s vote later this year.

Discussion has also picked up on the future of Finlay Bridge in the design, which could eventually be turned into pedestrian-only crossing if deemed necessary by the City.

“Bridges of that era generally have a limited lifespan longer term,” said Sissons. This is a 30-year plan, so it might not be one of the first components of the plan. But, ideally if at some point vehicles were no longer using it, it would be a great asset to have it as a pedestrian bridge.”

Population growth was also one of the largest pillars of the document, which projects Medicine Hat’s overall population ballooning to 80,000 residents by the year 2050.

Sissons said that’s based on data collected over the last five years and represents 0.8 percent growth per year in the short-term, with a gradual decline to 0.6 percent annually.

“We’re expecting on an average, over a 30-year time frame, about 400 to 600 people a year,” he said. “Which works out to roughly about 125 to 175 new dwellings per year.”

Medicine Hat’s demographics are also expected to shift towards a more senior population, with that base projected to grow from 18 percent to 33 percent of the population by 2050.

According to the City, mobility methods in Medicine Hat will likely change and will have to include evolving technologies along with updates to recreation facilities to meet the needs of an older population.

However, Sissons said it’s going to still be a priority to attract young families to live in the city.

“The composition of the demographics is going to definitely skew more towards a seniors population, which is not uncharacteristic of many cities within Canada,” he said. “So, one of the aspects of our growth then is that we’re going to have to make that up with attracting new residents to the city.”

The City is asking residents to review the plan and take part in a survey to share their thoughts on their website until June 25.

A public hearing on the 30-year outline meanwhile has been tentatively scheduled to take place at council’s meeting on September 8.

by Scott Roblin

New waterfront district, seniors growth projected in City’s 2050 draft plan

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