The Strathmore Bird Sanctuary Initiative has given its thoughts on the recent cancellation of the Eagle Heights development.
The development was cancelled by the Town of Strathmore on Thursday, Feb. 13 following a review of the file. Just a week before the cancellation, the initiative presented to town council asking them to cancel the project.
Simon Metke and Denis Manzer, founders of the group, said they were excited to hear the news, as the development would have been built upon a wetland that the two were trying to preserve.
"We just couldn't let this little forest and wetland get destroyed like that. That's really what started everything for us," said Manzer. "It was amazing to see the people of Strathmore really unite. It wasn't just the birders trying to oppose this. We had a lot of concerned citizens uniting altogether, so that was the greatest feeling."
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Although the Town of Strathmore has not stated what led to the review of the development, Metke believes that their presentation may have inspired them.
"Now the town and the developers don't have to deal with that mistake in a physical consequence. They could have gotten a heck of a lot more invested in this situation before they were stopped."
Manzer and Metke are now hoping to pursue their dreams of turning the area into an interpretive centre to educate students and residents about the importance of wetlands.
"We're going to hopefully get Strathmore to turn it into a nature reserve and add it into Gray's Park," said Manzer.
"There's a lot of room for collaboration from the community, birdwatching enthusiasts, landscapers, the schools, all figuring out how to maximize the place as an educational asset," added Metke.
Despite the two being against the Eagle Heights development, which would have brought 147 apartments to Strathmore, the group isn't opposed to other types of development."
"The potential of a developer coming and building something respectful here, especially for old folks, that would fit right into the context of what's going on already, and could easily still protect the forests," said Metke.
StrathmoreNow has reached out to the town for why they decided to cancel the development, and we will update the story once we hear back.