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May 10, 2007
(Red Deer, Alberta) – During the coming week, The City’s Electric Light and Power department will be relocating an overhead power line that currently crosses through the new Civic Yards site at 40 Avenue and 77 Street into Three Mile Bend Park.
“Now that the Civic Yards project is approved, we can no longer have the overhead power lines running across the site due to safety considerations during construction and after the site is developed,” said Ligong Gan, The City’s Electric Light and Power Manager. The existing power line is being re-routed to run south on 40 Avenue and then east inside the boundary of the Civic Yards beside the Three Mile Bend access road.
“Once we reached the southeast corner of the Civic Yards property, we had planned to re-route the overhead line north within the site boundary,” said Gan. “But doing so would have meant removing a large stand of trees in the area. To minimize the impact on the trees, our best option was to extend it into Three Mile Bend and run it along the path beside the Civic Yards site since there were no large tree stands in this area.”
Electric Light and Power crews will be working in the area until around May 18, weather permitting, to re-route this overhead power line. Citizens are asked to maintain a safe distance and use caution where work is occurring. Once the new line is complete, the power will be diverted without any interruption to customers.
“Parks staff have worked closely with Electric Light and Power and the Civic Yards contractors to manage the ecosystem and develop landscape design that will allow the new Civic Yards site co-exist harmoniously with Three Mile Bend,” said Greg Scott, Manager of Recreation, Parks and Culture for The City. “We’re considering a series of berms along the property line, as well as natural screening that uses plant life to maintain the aesthetics of the area. We also anticipate creating future pathways that will weave in and out of the Civic Yards property to further enhance park users’ experiences.”
The City follows a conservation and reduction philosophy and sound environmental planning principles and protection strategies. “Whenever possible, we are following landscape management practices that allow us to incorporate, reuse and recycle existing materials from the site,” said Scott. “Once the site development work is complete, we plan to recover mulch material that Parks can re-use in other applications. If there is extra fill material available, we’ll consider ways to incorporate it into landscape features within Three Mile Bend Park.”
Citizens can get updates about the Civic Yards Relocation project at www.reddeer.ca/civicyards or watch for bulletins on the new sign/bulletin board that will be installed near the main parking lot in Three Mile Bend in the coming month.
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For more information, please contact:
Ligong Gan Greg Scott
Electric Light & Power Manager Recreation, Parks & Culture Manager
The City of Red Deer The City of Red Deer
(403) 342-8341 (403) 342-8159
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