What has been over a decade in the making took a major step forward this week with the approval of infrastructure borrowing to open the door to the future Horse Creek Sports Park and high school site.
Council approved borrowing $10.83 million toward the $11.43-million project that will provide the necessary infrastructure, design, and planning to support both desperately needed facilities in Cochrane. The town had unsuccessfully applied for a provincial grant to cover $5.7 million of the cost.
The funds will be borrowed over 20 years at a projected interest rate of 4.29 per cent and will not be supported by off-site levies. The town will make semiannual payments of $406,035, totalling $812,070 annually. The borrowing notches the town's self-imposed debt limit to 68 per cent, leaving another $37.7 million before reaching the cap.
It ends the back-and-forth on the footprint of the sports park, meets a final condition of the town to acquire the land from Rocky View Schools, and, upon completion, will provide a shovel-ready site for a future high school.
The roots were planted when Rocky View Schools purchased the land in 2014. It unsuccessfully sought the creation of a public services district for the land when it was within Rocky View County. Cochrane completed annexation of the land on July 1, 2019.
Oddly enough, “sticker shock” was expressed by some councillors, even though the cost falls in line with what was projected in advance of the 2025 budget deliberations.
At one point, Councillor Morgan Nagel was tempted to vote against the borrowing until he received more information on projected costs for the sports park project, but eventually voted in favour.
The park will be completed in phases, and upon completion of detailed design work, the anticipated budget for the first phase will be brought forward during this fall’s budget deliberations.
Councillor Marni Fedeyko voted against the borrowing. While not opposed to the project, she declined to vote in favour of any town borrowing until council receives an update on the off-site levy bylaw, for which a tentative timeline was presented later in the meeting.
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Councillor Tara McFadden, who represents council on the parks and rec committee, called it a big win to be able to fulfill the town’s responsibility to service the high school site and take steps to meet recreational needs in the community. It was McFadden who spearheaded the creation of the town committee back in 2018 to involve the public in setting the course for parks and recreation development in the community.
“Our outdoor field sports have been calling and demanding recreation for a long time,” said McFadden. “This allows us to move on to the next phase of what Horse Creek Sports Park is going to be.”
“Recreation is expensive, it’s going to get more expensive, but it adds value in so many tangible and intangible ways to our community. I certainly wouldn’t want us to back away from our investment and education commitment on this site in any way, shape or form.”
Sports Park to be completed in phases
Town council approved the refined concept plan for Phase One of the sports park. It will include six diamonds, multi-use courts, outdoor rinks, flex lawn space, and a clubhouse.
“This comprehensive layout is designed to serve a broad range of users and accommodate both organized sports and informal play,” explained Michelle Delorme, the town’s parks and active living director.
Pending budgetary approval, Delorme said they hope to initially develop quad baseball diamonds, parking, pathway connections, and washrooms in 2026.
“We know that the immediate community need was for ball and making sure access is created around the park, but as soon as the parks and rec master plan is completed, we’ll be able to continue to build out the rest of the park.”
The quad diamonds will all be 350 metres. A premier diamond and a 400-metre ball diamond will be included in future stages of Phase One, specifically for baseball—not softball or slo-pitch.