What is the urgency in implementing the concept plan for the river valley?
Alberta and the Capital Region are experiencing enormous growth. Perhaps like never before in our history, there is a growing recognition of the importance of planning ahead, anticipating the impact of new developments, preserving the environment and not compromising the quality of life we value so highly. The seven municipalities involved have done a good job of protecting the river valley from major developments. But without the commitment and funding to make it happen- there is no guarantee that the river valley as we know it today will be there for generations of Albertans to enjoy. Currently the river valley park system receives almost 10 million visits a year. If special events and reports of usage by user groups are included that number exceeds 14 million visits a year—making the current park system the most visited park site in Alberta. Projections indicate these numbers could grow rapidly over the next few years as a result of population growth in the region and increased awar