The backer of a massive $4-billion development to be built just west of Calgary has shelved the project, and they are blaming it partly on the formation of a board the NDP created when they were in power..“We have decided to remove ourselves as a funding group … although we will remain a presence in MD of Rocky View, economically, we have decided to shelve the Gardner project,” Ryan O’Connor, president of Western Securities (WS) wrote in an email to the Kenney government obtained by the Western Standard..“For the last 16 years, we have tried to obtain approval for a mixed use residential / commercial development with over 2,000 homes and approximately 300,000 sq.ft. of retail / commercial development. We have even proposed seniors housing and a sports centre. .“The project would take approximately 15 years to complete and would employ hundreds of people. When completed, its value would be well over $3 billion, adding significantly to the tax base of Rocky View County.“.And Western is laying the blame directly at the city of Calgary and the Calgary Metropolitan Region Board, which controls development in the counties around the city..“At every turn, Calgary has blocked or bullied Rocky View County from approving the project. This after us spending millions of dollars on planning and engineering studies. And now, the Calgary Metropolitan Region Board, with Calgary directing regional planning decisions, is the last straw for Western.,” O’Connor wrote in the letter obtained by the Western Standard..“Sadly, it isn’t just Calgary. The urbans of the region vote together to stifle competition from the rurals (mainly due to the fact that Calgary provides water and wastewater to many of them and uses that to influence them to vote Calgary’s way)..“The CMRB was enacted by the NDP. It is a fourth layer of bureaucracy that is driving investment away. It needs to go. Frankly, it’s not the Alberta way to hold down your neighbours so you can prosper..“There is a need for regional planning on issues like transportation, waste management, recreation etc., but we do not need a behemoth board like the CMRB to make this happen. This is an extra layer of red tape that makes Alberta less competitive.”.It’s not the first time a developer has gone against the CMRB. Other developments have battled with them including the Cross Irons Mill mall..O’Connor said he had hoped for more from the Kenney UCP government..“We would be delighted to meet with you and discuss this issue further. I hope you’ll appreciate that we hung in this long hoping your party would win the election. We believe in all the things Premier Kenney speaks of. At the end of the day though we have a responsibility to run our business wisely. The time for action is now,” O’Connor ended his letter..Dave Naylor is the News Editor of the Western Standard.dnaylor@westernstandardonline.com.Twitter: Nobby7694
