All Discovery Ridge residents owe it to themselves and their community to purchase a DRCA membership.
Click to purchase or renew your DRCA membership today!
Why? What’s in it for me as resident?
For the nominal fee of $25 per year, your membership pays for things such as:
- Special Events (Stampede BBQ, Music in the Park, seasonal events, etc.)
- Support for the Recreation Facility (the means to manage and maintain the ice rinks and tennis courts)
- Communication Channels (the Ridge Review newsletter, website, Facebook, members-only email notices, mail-outs)
- Priority access to tennis registrations and other occasional member-only privileges
- Collective Voice – the City of Calgary takes note of what percentage of residents are members of the community association when the association lobbies for community-related concerns such as traffic, zoning, residential developments surrounding our community, etc. In recent years, the DRCA has realized that without a critical mass of active members, it will be increasingly difficult to effectively represent community concerns with City Council.
Are these benefits worth 7 cents a day?
Current members believe they are. Our dedicated community volunteers believe they are. We think you will appreciate the benefits too. Please help to support the DRCA and join today.
How does a DRCA membership REALLY benefit the community?
- When Discovery Ridge became a community, the DRCA worked hard to fundraise and develop our recreation facility and establish a myriad of events for residents to enjoy. The average family of four who uses our beautiful facilities and attends community events would pay approximately $1000 each year if they used similar facilities and attended similar events in other Calgary communities. This does not even include the value of the work that the board of directors puts in each year as the collective voice of Discovery Ridge.
- Renters are part of our community too. The DRCA does not represent only homeowners; it represents all residents. Discovery Ridge is governed by a board that values fiscal responsibility and works tirelessly to provide a strong voice for all residents no matter how long they live in the community.
- Smaller households who do not use our recreational facilities or attend family events will appreciate that our board of directors is in regular communication with city and provincial officials to share feedback and commentary from our residents. Additionally, our senior board members and supporting committees have worked with and will continue to work with Alberta Transportation and the officials at the South West Calgary Ring Road (SWCRR) Project to ensure that our community is not adversely affected by the ring road development and that the overall scope of the SWCRR is fiscally responsible.
What does “collective voice” really mean?
From both the City of Calgary and the Province of Alberta’s viewpoints, the community association represents Discovery Ridge collectively. Our representative voice is far weaker than it should be for such a fabulous community as Discovery Ridge. We are often asked to provide our membership statistics through endeavors such as Traffic Calming Study applications and CFEP Grant applications. With less than half of Discovery Ridge households (626 of 1650) holding memberships, this statistic weakens our “voice” greatly compared to other communities in our area. Communities surrounding Discovery Ridge typically have 70% membership rates. We feel we are sitting in the queue year after year for our requests to be acted upon because we lack the higher community representation (membership levels) that other communities have. We have to wait for community concerns to be addressed simply because our residents have not purchased their $25 annual memberships. Other communities do it, so Discovery Ridge can too. Our goal is to have at least 70% of Discovery Ridge households with a current community membership.
If you have not already done so, please purchase or renew your DRCA membership online today. The membership year runs from September 1st – August 31st.
OR if you prefer, you can download a Membership Form and mail the completed form along with your cheque to:
Discovery Ridge Community Association
160 Discovery Ridge Blvd.
Calgary, AB T3H 4Y3
If you have any further questions, please contact our Membership Committee via email at membership@discoveryridge.com.