Little by little, then all at once: That’s how a great city falls apart
How does a great city fall apart? Bit by bit, then all at once.
Calgary is a great city. Not like New York, Paris or London, of course. People don’t flock here to visit an array of world-famous sights or immerse themselves in art or history. Instead, they come seeking a new life for themselves.
When it comes to discovering a great place to live, this city on the Bow has proven an irresistible magnet for all types of newcomers over the years. It still holds such allure today, even as cracks start to show.
But how long before the wheels fall off? How long before the current chaos surrounding City Hall does permanent damage to Calgary’s reputation? No amount of multimillion-dollar rebranding campaigns can hide the fact things are heading downhill at an ever-increasing pace.
She was just getting warmed up. “Calgarians are saying, Now what? What’s next? People ask, How much more can we deal with? I think everyone is mentally exhausted. Chaos brings on mental exhaustion. What are we actually doing that Calgarians want us to do?”
The initial civic smokescreen that this was somehow a one-off event that was impossible to predict is now shown for the idiocy it always was. Today we’re worried about stressing the entire central system in case of more pipeline ruptures, though any suggestion we should at least delay the rezoning malarkey as that will inevitably increase water flow through those same pipes is simply shrugged off by the mayor.
The original plan for this transit line was to run it from the far north to the deep south — 44 kilometres of track with 24 stations for $4.6 billion, to be shared equally by three levels of government. That pipedream was kyboshed long ago. Subsequently, we were told to welcome a slimmed-down Phase 1, costing $5.5 billion and covering a 20-kilometre route from Eau Claire to Shepard with 13 stations.
But don’t get too excited at the prospect of jumping aboard one of those trains any time soon. Rumours are now flying that the line will be slimmed down yet again, running only from Eau Claire to Ogden at a head-shaking cost of $8 billion. We should find out within weeks.
Oh, and don’t expect the province to kick in any more money. Premier Danielle Smith has already said no: the opportunity to lay this looming fiscal disaster at the feet of newbie NDP leader Naheed Nenshi — who pushed the Green Line when he was mayor of Calgary — must be mouthwatering.
So, little by little, then all at once: That’s how a great city falls apart.