Community News

On behalf of the City of Calgary, the Community Cleanup Program led by Community Strategies and Waste and Recycling Services, would like to thank the Community Association event organizer, your volunteers, and the residents for a job well done at the Community Cleanup this year. 

Planning & Development Services is creating The Guide for Small-Scale Housing: Rowhouse, Townhouse and Front-Back Semi-detached Development and they want your feedback. When complete, the Guide will support the thoughtful design of rowhouses, townhouses, and front-back semi-detached homes in Calgary’s developed communities. This will help ensure new developments are well-designed and fit into your neighbourhood. 
 
Help them create a guide that supports better housing design and vibrant communities. Visit Calgary.ca/smallscaleguide to learn more and provide feedback by September 15.

It’s the time of year when bear activity tends to increase. 2025 is expected to be a very active season due to an abundant food supply. The City of Calgary has not yet activated the Wildlife Affected Area designation for Discovery Ridge; however, it’s a great time for residents to be reminded that we can do our part to help protect wildlife and our special community. Consider the best practice of storing your bins in your garage or other secured enclosure, if you do not already do so, and keep them secured until the morning of pick up.

For residents that are new to Discovery Ridge and may not be familiar with the Wildlife Affected Area designation, in the event the City of Calgary enacts the designation for Discovery Ridge, or any other community, the bylaw then requires residents to store their bins in their garage or other secure enclosure. Additionally, bins must not be placed out before 5am and must be returned to their secure location by 7pm on pickup days.

Thank you to everyone that has renewed the DRCA membership for 2026!  Your support is much appreciated!  You should have received a confirmation email. If you have not, please email membership@discoveryridge.com and we will sort it out.

For those who have not yet renewed, your DRCA membership expires as of September 1, 2025, and you will no longer receive member-only emails. These emails help you stay informed about the latest happenings in our community.

The Discovery Ridge Community Association depends on membership fees to operate the skating rinks, tennis courts, and the surrounding green space, and we work with all levels of government on issues that affect our community. We also organize our Stampede Roundup and Music in the Park events, both of which have been successful in the past and enjoyed by many community members!

To renew your membership for 2026, please visit  discoveryridge.com/membership to pay online. A membership costs only $25 per household. If you renew before October 20th, your name will be entered into a draw for a Cineplex gift card!

Thank you for your support!
Discovery Ridge Community Association

We are incredibly grateful for all of the support Music In The Park receives from our community! Without this remarkable group of individuals and businesses we would not have the outstanding event that we do.

As per the DRCA email sent out to all our members this week, the DRCA received this update from the City of Calgary today regarding the Hwy 8 Lower Junction Storm Pond / Discovery Ridge Blvd SW flooding situation:

Water Services has set up a temporary berm on site to prevent rain run-off water and pond discharge water from flowing back towards the houses. The pumps have been removed from the site as the berm will mitigate any water flowing back towards the properties and the forecasted rain is unlikely to cause flooding.

Residents will notice some water pooling near their houses next to the drywells. This is expected given that these are low points with already saturated soils and any rain run-off will accumulate in these low points – but this water will eventually evaporate. 

Additionally, The City has received approval from the Province to partly remove the beaver dams along the river. This work will start today (August 7) and will help lower the water level allowing the outfalls to discharge freely into the river rather than flowing back up the outfalls, which will also help reduce the risk of flooding. 

Water Services will continue to monitor the site daily.

As per the DRCA email that went out previously, many homes in Discovery Ridge have been subjected to excessive groundwater during recent rain events due to the dry pond installed for the ring road and drainage issues in the area below the pond. This has created great concern and real risk of flooding to several homes. To all of the residents who contacted 311, thank you! Please keep doing this when you observe any issues.

The DRCA has been in contact with the City of Calgary, through our Ward 6 office team, over the past few days. They have now secured this current update for us: 

The City’s Water Services team currently has a pump on-site that is diverting water from the ditch into the Elbow River to help prevent flooding to nearby homes. They are actively monitoring the situation to ensure the area remains protected.
 
Since the storm pond is provincially owned and operated by Carmacks, the City is coordinating with them to manage both the pond operations and the City’s responsibilities related to the ditch. Water Services will continue to provide field support during ongoing rain events and has initiated an investigation into the recent flooding caused by heavy rainfall. The goal of this work is to identify solutions that can help reduce the risk of future flooding in the area.
 
This investigation will take several months, as it involves complex engineering assessments and coordination with both Alberta Transportation and Alberta Environment regarding jurisdiction and required permits. As part of the evaluation, the City may reach out to local residents for input based on their observations.
 
Looking ahead, Water Services is expected to follow up with our office later in the fall. At that time, they will provide updates on the work completed, potential causes of the flooding, proposed mitigation strategies, and any relevant communications with provincial partners.

For this coming weekend, we are advised:
City of Calgary Water Services is planning to deploy a contractor (Stormtec) to the site today (Friday), and they are going to work a 24-hour shift over the weekend and potentially into next week as required (weather dependent) to lower the water level in the dry pond.
 
Through this time, during the day and overnight, residents may see workers or hear the hum of pumps, with some accompanying job site lighting to ensure safety while it’s dark. We have communicated these plans to 311, should there be any inquiries as a result of the activity on-site.

Helping hands are needed! Join the Stampede RoundUp volunteer team and make a big difference with just a little of your time. We just need a few hours of your time on Saturday, June 28. Here’s how you can help:

If you are available to help, please email Lillian at events@discoveryridge.com and let her know which area you would like to support.

Thank you so much!

Date May 31, 2025

Time 9:00 am – 2:00 pm

Location Westside King’s Church Enter the parking lot at 69th St and Springbank Blvd SW.

The Discovery Ridge Community Association, alongside the Signal Hill and Springbank Hill communities, are planning a community cleanup day where we will have multiple city garbage trucks in a parking lot to assist you in removing some unwanted items from your home. Think of things like old electronics, tires, wood, metal, mattresses, chairs, beds, landscaping, etc.

Unfortunately, we cannot accept organics, chemicals, contaminated materials, or hazardous items. Household hazardous waste can be dropped off at the Lincoln Park/Garrison Green Fire Station #20 at 2800 Peacekeepers Way SW.

For more information check out: https://www.calgary.ca/communities/community-cleanups.html.

Volunteers

This event isn’t possible without some amazing volunteers. Volunteers will:

Volunteers should bring:

These items will be available for volunteers:

Volunteers must be 16+. Volunteers are needed onsite on May 31 from 08:30 am to 03:00 pm for setup and cleanup. There will be a virtual info session on Wednesday, May 21 from 7:30-8:30 pm to provide an overview of the event and discuss safety.