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View Poll Results: St Patrick's Island bridge comp: Which one do you like?
Rosales + Partners 15 8.11%
Halcrow Yolles (The Reach) 57 30.81%
Halcrow Yolles (Eddie & Flow) 16 8.65%
Manu Chugh 26 14.05%
Busby Perkins + Will 37 20.00%
Buckland Taylor 5 2.70%
Saucier + Perotte 7 3.78%
Delcan 17 9.19%
Marc Boutin 21 11.35%
Sturgess Architecture 47 25.41%
Infinity Engineering 69 37.30%
Arup & Kasian 36 19.46%
Arup & Falko Schmitt 1 0.54%
Arup & Frederick 2 1.08%
SPF with Arup (O-Bar) 9 4.86%
SPF with Arup (Glide) 53 28.65%
Rogers Stirk Harbour 4 2.16%
DeJong 8 4.32%
IBI 0 0%
CH2MHILL (option 1) 2 1.08%
Team IBHL 1 0.54%
RFR / Halsall 9 4.86%
Endres Ware & Amman Whitney 10 5.41%
Other (specify with post) 6 3.24%
Multiple Choice Poll. Voters: 185. You may not vote on this poll

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  #481  
Old Posted Mar 29, 2012, 12:20 PM
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Originally Posted by Tropics View Post
Ehh, it could not be actual waterfront, that would be exceedingly dangerous for swimming, add alot of liability to the city once a kid gets caught up in a current and goes over the weir. Not to mention any sand on the shore of a river like the Bow will be gone in about 10 minutes from the time they put it down ... I would skip a beach, it is not the right place for it at all.
...
While I agree that a beach there would not work - it's not because of the current or wier. That part of the Bow has some of the lightest current in the city as the river is quite shallow there. Also, given that Harvey passage is done, I think it might even be fun to float from there to the old weir location!!

As for the river removing the sand, if you visit the section by the bridge out of the parking lot, there is an eddy bay that holds fine silt quite well, though not a place I would like to swim.

All that said, the Bow is not a beach river, unless it is like Sugar beach (Toronto) which I think would be better located downtown - perhaps by the PB??

Anyway, glad to see this progressing. I'm spending alot of time in this area along the river running this year and look forward to watching the improvement as Riverwalk is so far a massive hit.
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  #482  
Old Posted Mar 29, 2012, 12:49 PM
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Originally Posted by Wooster View Post
Went to the St. Patrick's Island Open House.

The design is much further along than I thought it would be. The landscape architecture firm they've procured has a preliminary design in place - and are soliciting feedback for the second iteration.

The big idea is to reintroduce the flow of the river through the Island in two spots as it once was. One of them will be mostly a wetland, the other will be a river-rock bed with the water flow fluctuating depending on the time of year. It will be flooded for skating in the winter, and they're considering a beach on one side.

The earth from the excavation of those channels will form a hill feature in the middle of the Island for sunning in the summer and sledding in the winter.

The east end of the Island (near the parking lot which will be reconfigured) will be the most intense with use. Potentially a restaurant use, small amphitheatre, splash pools and so forth.

A fairly large swath of the Island will be natural - with sections cordoned off for 15-20 years to help regenerate the natural vegetation (with pathways through them).

New York based W Architecture and Landscape Architecture is one of the designers. http://www.w-architecture.com/

Denver based Civitas is the other design partner http://www.civitasinc.com/

Construction drawings to be complete this fall. Construction to commence next spring and will last 2 years.
Thanks for the information. It sounds like a promising plan that is making the most of projected increased use of the park while at the same time keeping some of it in its natural state.
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  #483  
Old Posted Mar 29, 2012, 1:44 PM
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Originally Posted by ByeByeBaby View Post
The Bow has some strong currents, but I don't know if they're strong enough to pull someone back in time to when there was still a weir.

Couldn't make it to the open house (hope the materials are made available online), but what people are saying sure sounds promising. And I'm looking forward to the Ft Calgary to Inglewood bridge; let's get Oscar Neimeyer on the phone!
The weir is most definitely still there. And while it is now safe to swim over, I wouldn't want to be an unsure swimmer trying it. That being said, there wouldn't be any swimming area that didn't have some kind of barrier between it and the main course of the river.
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  #484  
Old Posted Mar 29, 2012, 2:57 PM
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The beach along the interior channel of the island - no real current to speak of.
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  #485  
Old Posted Mar 29, 2012, 3:49 PM
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I would absolutely love the beach aspect of this project. A "beach" is not too be taken literally as some people have. When they refer to a "beach" they are simply saying it is a gathering place along the river where you can sit and look out at the scenery.

On a very hot day, yes there will be people wading/swimming in the water. generally, the bow is tad cold to have a swim when the temp is below 25 degrees Celsius.

This beach is NOT where you take your toddler.......lol.

I don't really agree about them restoring more of the islands natural vegetation. They should have a few minor spots of restored area, but to cordon it off seems strange. I was hoping to see a very open, urban design where you could literally see from end to end of the island. I don't think people realize just how massive this thing is.

I am really pushing for something more urban. Tall vegetation everywhere is just not attractive for many people. I will reserve judgement for later because I have not seen the design yet.
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  #486  
Old Posted Mar 29, 2012, 5:02 PM
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Originally Posted by Elbownian View Post
Stopped by the open house for a bit, as I was involved in the feedback process and wanted to see the end result.

$20 million is the budget for the island redevelopment (excluding the bridge). Not an enormous amount, but I expect it'll go a long way considering the general theme seems to be to keep things as natural as possible. Most of the real development (amphitheatre, canoe launch) is concentrated near the parking area off Zoo Road, leaving the bulk of the island fairly wild. Very much like the idea of reintroducing the natural flood channel.

The bridge is growing on me. I never really minded it (though other designs were more interesting), but it looks like it'll be a nice place for a casual stroll, or to just sit on one of the benches and admire the scenery - a good piece of recreational infrastructure, as opposed to the commuter orientation of the Peace Bridge. Still not sold on the access ramp to the island though - it interfaces awkwardly with the bridge deck, and doesn't seem suitable for accommodating mixed pedestrian and cycle traffic.

So I was quite pleased overall, though I think a mockup model of the island (as opposed to just the bridge) would have been nice to get a bit more visual context. Maybe at the next event! Also got to meet Wooster, which was a nice bonus for attending.
Wow. 20 million is much more than I anticipated. I had thought they were way too ambitious in their concept, but it's seeming more realistic now.

Upon second sober thought, I wish they would integrate some more of the active programing on the west end of the island. The amphitheater, kids play area, boat launch etc is all by the zoo. Should be an even distribution.
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  #487  
Old Posted Mar 29, 2012, 5:04 PM
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Originally Posted by kw5150 View Post
I would absolutely love the beach aspect of this project. A "beach" is not too be taken literally as some people have. When they refer to a "beach" they are simply saying it is a gathering place along the river where you can sit and look out at the scenery.

On a very hot day, yes there will be people wading/swimming in the water. generally, the bow is tad cold to have a swim when the temp is below 25 degrees Celsius.

This beach is now where you take your toddler.......lol.

I don't really agree about them restoring more of the islands natural vegetation. They should have a few minor spots of restored area, but to cordon it off seems strange. I was hoping to see a very open, urban design where you could literally see from end to end of the island. I don't think people realize just how massive this thing is.

I am really pushing for something more urban. Tall vegetation everywhere is just not attractive for many people. I will reserve judgement for later because I have not seen the design yet.
I hear you about the urban concept, but it's important to keep in mind this type of project isn't always for people.
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  #488  
Old Posted Mar 29, 2012, 7:31 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kw5150 View Post
I would absolutely love the beach aspect of this project. A "beach" is not too be taken literally as some people have. When they refer to a "beach" they are simply saying it is a gathering place along the river where you can sit and look out at the scenery.

On a very hot day, yes there will be people wading/swimming in the water. generally, the bow is tad cold to have a swim when the temp is below 25 degrees Celsius.

This beach is NOT where you take your toddler.......lol.

I don't really agree about them restoring more of the islands natural vegetation. They should have a few minor spots of restored area, but to cordon it off seems strange. I was hoping to see a very open, urban design where you could literally see from end to end of the island. I don't think people realize just how massive this thing is.

I am really pushing for something more urban. Tall vegetation everywhere is just not attractive for many people. I will reserve judgement for later because I have not seen the design yet.
I find it a tad ironic that someone who is always touting the environment is proposing they essentially clearcut the entire island so you can "see from end to end". I would count myself as someone who would lament the loss of 200 year old cottonwoods to make way for sod and some extra restaurants, which would undoubtedly contribute to the litter you so frequently complain about.
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  #489  
Old Posted Mar 29, 2012, 11:17 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kw5150 View Post
I don't really agree about them restoring more of the islands natural vegetation. They should have a few minor spots of restored area, but to cordon it off seems strange. I was hoping to see a very open, urban design where you could literally see from end to end of the island. I don't think people realize just how massive this thing is.

I am really pushing for something more urban. Tall vegetation everywhere is just not attractive for many people. I will reserve judgement for later because I have not seen the design yet.
I gotta disagree with you. The inner city has loads of parks with little or no natural vegetation areas; Central Memorial, most of Prince's Island, the green spaces by Fort Calgary and the Talisman Centre, a majority of the Bow pathways from Crowchild to Pearce Estate/Nose Creek, Sien Lok Park, Riley Park, Rotary Park, Murdoch Park, Crescent Heights Park. Most of these are large grass areas with trees at the perimeter, maybe some small patches of natural vegetation in some. A more natural approach would be good for St. Patrick's.

To me, I think of an "urban" park as one that has urban activity at the edges, which interacts with the park in an interesting way. Something like Central Memorial, Crescent Heights or Sien Lok, or (more in the future than today) Murdoch Park or the Riverwalk. St Patrick's doesn't have anything urban directly adjacent to it, and (except potentially a little bit along the road) never will.
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  #490  
Old Posted Apr 25, 2012, 10:24 PM
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The Truth about Graham swallowing the losses comes out!

The cover picture on this article really highlights, IMO, that the bridge or bridges might be better located where the Bow and Elbow meet in terms of a Memorial Drive crossing and proximity to the Bridgeland LRT station.


St. Patrick's Island pedestrian bridge to use same construction firm as Peace Bridge
The same firm that assembled the Peace Bridge will construct the next pedestrian bridge at St. Patrick’s Island, the East Village development agency announced Wednesday.

Graham Construction wound up nearly 1 1/2 years behind schedule on the $25-million Eau Claire footbridge, an intricately designed steel helix by Santiago Calatrava.



Read more: http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/ca...#ixzz1t5rLwsds
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  #491  
Old Posted Apr 25, 2012, 11:10 PM
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Hopefully Graham stays clear of that Spanish welding company. lol
Looks like the fabricating is happening in Montreal, good news for the timeline.
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  #492  
Old Posted Apr 25, 2012, 11:20 PM
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Originally Posted by Innersoul1 View Post
The cover picture on this article really highlights, IMO, that the bridge or bridges might be better located where the Bow and Elbow meet in terms of a Memorial Drive crossing and proximity to the Bridgeland LRT station.
i couldn't agree more. wherever this bridge is placed, is will be on my commute to work and in so many ways it makes sense to place the bridge at the elbow/bow, and hence closer to the lrt on the north side. it would really reduce the amount of backtracking to get to the elbow river path.
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  #493  
Old Posted Apr 26, 2012, 2:01 AM
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  #494  
Old Posted Apr 26, 2012, 2:30 AM
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Originally Posted by CalgarySun
Among the proposed developments are festival spaces, an amphitheatre, wading pool, picnic areas, nature trails, boardwalks and a canoe launch.
An ampitheater, that could be very cool.
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  #495  
Old Posted Apr 26, 2012, 4:15 AM
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Originally Posted by unibrain View Post
Thanks for posting the links. I made the mistake of reading some of the comments posted and it seems like the knee-jerk haters of everything new want to make this into PEACE BRIDGE SCANDAL 2.0.
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  #496  
Old Posted Apr 26, 2012, 3:36 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MonctonGoldenFlames View Post
i couldn't agree more. wherever this bridge is placed, is will be on my commute to work and in so many ways it makes sense to place the bridge at the elbow/bow, and hence closer to the lrt on the north side. it would really reduce the amount of backtracking to get to the elbow river path.
I agree with this, but if you placed the bridge in the middle (approx.), the traffic at the west end of the island would be significantly lower than it is even now, even with the improvements.

Given that the plan isn’t likely to change too much at this point, wouldn’t it be a more reasonable thought to add a short bridge from the train station directly over to the island, along with a proper pedestrian crossing around the 12 st. SE bridge?
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  #497  
Old Posted Apr 26, 2012, 5:24 PM
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Originally Posted by Full Mountain View Post
I agree with this, but if you placed the bridge in the middle (approx.), the traffic at the west end of the island would be significantly lower than it is even now, even with the improvements.

Given that the plan isn’t likely to change too much at this point, wouldn’t it be a more reasonable thought to add a short bridge from the train station directly over to the island, along with a proper pedestrian crossing around the 12 st. SE bridge?
That seems like overkill. Nearly all travel patterns are addressed efficiently by the existing bridges on the east side, and the new bridge on the west.
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  #498  
Old Posted Apr 26, 2012, 6:31 PM
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That seems like overkill. Nearly all travel patterns are addressed efficiently by the existing bridges on the east side, and the new bridge on the west.
While the existing bridges address them, I think they are far to small for any volume in particular 12 St SE to Inglewood, but the 12 St NE to Memorial is nearly as bad, I think at some point both of these bridges will need to be expanded to accommodate more active mode users.
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  #499  
Old Posted Jul 5, 2012, 2:48 PM
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The river level has finally dropped sufficiently for them to restart work on this, with the pile-driver back in action this morning on the island.
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  #500  
Old Posted Apr 3, 2013, 12:37 AM
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4 Pickers set up today...

My shitty pic.
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