A historic Calgary park, decimated by the flooding of the Bow River in 2013, has reopened to the public, continuing its century long history in the northwest.
On Saturday, the traditional pastime of skating on the Bowness Lagoon resumed, after the park was closed for the 2013/2014 season and the majority of the 2014/2015 winter months.
“It’s been a long struggle,” said Ward Sutherland, Ward 1 Councillor, who has lived in the area for over 50 years. “We made a very difficult decision last year. We decided to close the park completely. By doing that, we’re open today.”
According to Sutherland, sections of the park would have remained closed until 2016 if the decision to completely close the park had not been made.
Alana Delong, Calgary-Bow MLA, says the improvements to the park began prior to the floods of 2013
“This is something that has been going on for several years,” said Alana DeLong, MLA for Calgary-Bow. “We had started rebuilding the park before the floods came. We were essentially in the middle of construction when the floods came.
“There was a tremendous amount of damage that was done to the park during the floods and so it has been an awful lot of work to get it back to this point.”
DeLong says the efforts of restoration crews are visible throughout the park.
“The work that has been done here is absolutely fantastic. The restaurant that is going to open here …gorgeous location.”
The City of Calgary provided $10 million in funding for Bowness Park upgrades and the province supplied $3.6 million to assist with the park’s flood recovery.
Improvements to the park include:
- A new centralized square with fire pits and easy access to the lagoon
- New lagoon water management system
- The ‘All seasons of Bowness’ restaurant
- Tea house with skate and boat rental
- Improve traffic system with centralized parking
- An emphasis on pedestrian/cyclist safety
- Year round washrooms
- An accessible playground
Future plans for the park include the construction of a wading pool and the return of the children's train ride.
