Bears have been seen out and about in Discovery Ridge and in Griffith Woods. Alberta BearSmart has provided an informative Bears and Residents brochure.

Send us the cutest or spookiest Halloween photo of yourself and/or your family for a chance to win a prize. Email your submission for the annual DRCA Halloween Photo Contest to drca_pres@discoveryridge.com by November 15, 2023. Entries will be placed in a draw for two movie tickets. Please note that the winning photo will be posted on the DRCA website and in our monthly newsletter.

With the recent passing of the Waste Bylaw amendment, the DRCA requested that bins in Discovery Ridge not be picked up before 9:00 am versus the current 7:00 am time to give residents more time to get the bins out to the curb in the mornings.

The City has now advised that, on a pilot basis, while the Wildlife Affected Area designation on Discovery Ridge is in effect, bins will not be collected before 9:00 am. This is effective immediately.

The City states, “We heard the DRCA’s and other resident’s concerns about the impact of not being able to put out carts the night before and want to support Discovery Ridge residents to reduce the potential for human/bear conflicts by following the Bear Smart residential waste best practices.” 
 
The DRCA will review this with the City near the end of the pilot to discuss permanent implementation pros and cons.

The City of Calgary has advised us of the following, effective September 29th, 2023.

To help The City respond more rapidly in future situations when public safety is at risk, amendments to the Waste Bylaw 4M2020 have been made.
Discovery Ridge has now been temporarily designated a “wildlife affected” area.

For details, please go to The City of Calgary: City Council Agenda & Minutes and search for 4M2020.
This is part of a comprehensive approach that starts with awareness and education to keep citizens and wildlife safe. For more tips, go to calgary.ca/bearsmart.

The City will be notifying Discovery Ridge residents via:

Questions and/or comments on this matter should be directed to 311.

Our Second Annual Community Food Drive will be held on October 21 from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm at Cornerstone Square. All donations will go to the Veteran’s Food Bank of Calgary. More information on this event is coming soon.

It’s time to renew your $25 annual membership with the community association! Existing memberships expired on August 31. Thank you to the households that have already renewed. If you have not purchased your 2023-2024 membership, please do so online at Buy/Renew Membership. All memberships purchased by October 15 will be entered into a draw for a Cineplex gift card.

You may not be aware of what the Discovery Ridge Community Association (DRCA) does for our community. Our activities include:

For only $25 per year, your membership is used to maintain our ice rinks and tennis courts, provide special events such as Music in the Park and the Stampede BBQ, produce our monthly Ridge Review newsletter, support our social media and website accounts, and give Discovery Ridge a voice in City of Calgary issues. For more details on what an annual membership can do for you, see our Membership page.

Our DRCA Board and volunteers put many hours into planning events and performing activities that benefit our entire community. Our events and activities are not possible without the collection of membership fees and resident involvement. Your community association is only as good as the membership it serves. If you have any suggestions for what you would like to see happen – whether it be events or groups – please come forward with your ideas and contribute to making this community a great place to live.

As previously communicated, the DRCA’s request to the City of Calgary from the onset was twofold:

With the recent passing of the Waste Bylaw amendment, the DRCA has now formally contacted the City again this week to request:

We understand the challenges both of the requests come with; however, we feel they are surmountable and reasonable for our community and its residents.

We continue to encourage residents to contact 311 if they have feedback, concerns, or suggestions on this matter. This is one of the primary sources the City uses to consider feedback.

Note: There were three (3) 311 contacts in the month of August regarding this matter. While FaceBook, etc., is a mechanism for conversation and thought sharing, comments on Facebook do not affect the City’s review or decision making process. If you’d like your voice heard, please contact 311.

The City of Calgary has advised us of the following.

Starting sometime after September 19, undesignated trails in Griffith Woods Park close to the boundary with Tsuut’ina Nation will be permanently closed and repaired. This is intended to encourage park users to stick to designated trails as well as restoring natural areas that have been damaged by frequent use.

In recent months Parks and Open Spaces have been working closely with our neighbours at the Nation who have observed an increase in trespassing onto Nation land. We continue to work closely with the Nation on their plans to install additional boundary fencing and signage in 2024.

A longer-term effort is also underway in Griffith Woods park to audit, replace, and add additional signage for all parks users. The locations of the trail closures can be found on the city’s New Tsuut’ina Nation Fence page.

The following information is from City of Calgary Transit.

After a successful pilot of On Demand transit service in Springbank Hill communities since October 2020, ridership in this area has increased to a level supporting fixed-route service. The introduction of fixed-route service will include three new routes, listed below. These new routes will be similar to but not exactly the same as routes that served the area before October 2020. Existing Routes 93 – Coach Hill/Westbrook Station, 98 – Cougar Ridge, 111 – Old Banff Coach Road, and 156 – Aspen Woods will remain unchanged. Please view the map of the new fixed-route service.

New fixed routes added:

The following stops will be permanently closed:

While crime rates are very low in Discovery Ridge, we are not immune. The Calgary Police Service(CPS) is encouraging all Calgarians to establish a 9:00 pm routine to help them secure their property before heading to bed. Property crime, including break and enters, car prowlings, and auto thefts, continues to affect citizens across the city. In many cases, simply locking up and taking the opportunity away from offenders is enough to stop the crime.

The 9 pm Routine is a campaign that began in Pasco County, Florida, and is now used by police agencies across North America to remind citizens to protect themselves and their property. The CPS is joining in on the routine and encourages Calgarians to do the same. “The routine is simple,” says Sgt. Matt Baker of the CPS Centralized Break and Enter Teams. “Every night before going to bed we want all citizens to get in the habit of double checking that their vehicles, property and residence are secure. Offenders will often go down a street checking vehicles and houses for doors left open. By simply locking your door you could avoid waking up to an intruder in your home.” The routine recommends:

For more information on safety and security in Discovery Ridge, visit the Safety and Security page on our community website.