The city is planning to convert this LRT station parking lot into affordable housing

Cars are seen parked in the south parking lot at the Franklin LRT station in Calgary on Jan. 23, 2024.

The City of Calgary is drafting up preliminary plans to convert the Franklin LRT south parking lot into hundreds of affordable housing units, but some community members are expressing concerns over losing the busy space.

It’s estimated that between 200 and 300 units could fit inside the south Park and Ride lot where the city says vehicle utilization has sat at a rate of between 50 to 60 per cent, according to data from 2010.

As of Tuesday morning, however, nearly every single space inside the city-owned lot was filled when CTV News cameras shot footage of the area.

The north Franklin LRT lot could still be used to accommodate the overflow of cars if the project were to go forward. Between the two lots, there are more than 570 stalls.

Ward 9 Coun. Gian-Carlo Carra represents the areas and says that despite a loss of parking, projects like this are the “gold standard” for addressing the city’s housing crisis.

“We're finally doing it and I'm delighted that at the top of the list of ready-to-go, most least impactful to the surrounding neighbourhood, most positively impactful to the surrounding neighbourhood is the Franklin station in Albert Park Radisson Heights.,” he said.

“It's a park and ride that doesn't get used much, it’s close to a school, a major church, connection to pathways and everything very close to 17th Avenue.”

Carra added that this first-of-its-kind project could be just the beginning of high-density “mini downtowns” for surrounding neighbourhoods.

Some people who take the bus every day, however, don’t believe the area doesn’t get used.

“It’s going to be an inconvenience for sure because just looking at the parking lot right now, there’s probably 200 cars here alone,” said a man named Ralph who spoke with CTV News Tuesday morning.

“Is there even going to be enough room in the other north lot to accommodate this? That’s the question I’m sure people are worried about.”

Others like Keisha Hillborne who frequently used the area say the issue of parking costs for Calgarians who use that lot also comes into play.

“The parking fees downtown town are already very expensive, so having a free parking spot here is very convenient for those people and can make a big difference,” she said.

“I'm not really sure where would be a better place for affordable homes, that being said, I know the area needs it. Maybe we could work on affordable housing as a whole rather than just building more in spaces like this that are highly used.”

City aims to improve nearby park

David Couroux, the planning lead of transit-oriented development (TOD) with the City of Calgary says the transformation of the Franklin LRT south lot to affordable housing is part of an even bigger plan already in place.

The city says its goal is to invest resources into the entire corridor along Radcliffe Drive S.E., including green space and safety improvements to area roads, which would include better connections to Calgary’s 5A network.

The 5A Network is aimed toward building a network for people walking, wheeling and cycling by providing “year-round health and affordable travel options to Calgarians of all ages and abilities.”

Couroux notes that some advance planning was done to help allocate grant funding to move this project along, but work still needs to be done to decide how the land will be developed and by whom.

The city is working around the idea of developing it right down to the lot level, like what was done in East Village or Bridgeland or handing the project to a private developer.

Some density concerns still exist, however, when it comes to the nearby schools across the street from the Franklin LRT south parking lot.

Radisson Park School has a projected utilization rate of 82 per cent according to data from the Calgary Board of Education and Sir Wilfrid Laurier High School is even higher at 95 per cent.

Despite that, some people like David Gillard who takes public transit daily, say affordable housing should be a priority.

“I think we need more affordable housing more than parking in my opinion,” he said.

“I don’t particularly like the idea of getting rid of parking because it’s good the way it is, but affordable housing is at the forefront.”