22 Glenview Road
Land Use Amendment &
Conceptual Scheme

Assisted Living for Seniors

O2 Planning & Design has submitted a land use amendment (rezoning) and supporting Conceptual Scheme application that will enable the development of an assisted living senior’s facility at 22 Glenview Road.

This project is currently open for public comments. Please review the information and share your comments with us.

Project Vision

People choose to live in Bearspaw because of its proximity to nature, sense of community, and rural escape from the hustle and bustle of nearby urban areas. As Bearspaw has developed and matured over the past decades, original community members have grown older and are now contemplating how much longer they will be able to remain in their country residential homes.

The proposed development at 22 Glenview Road seeks to address this lack of seniors’ housing options in and around Bearspaw. Providing a contextually appropriate assisted living development that respects the established character of the area by remaining low in height and screened with natural buffers allows the development to provide a much-needed form of housing that will enhance the overall quality of life for Bearspaw residents.

We have partnered with Garden Loft, an Albertan company creating prefabricated age-in-place homes and communities. The Garden Loft product a purpose-built home that allows seniors to age in place who would otherwise need to relocate or live in an urban seniors facility. Learn more about Garden Loft at https://www.gardenloft.ca/

The design vision is for an assisted living community with approximately 90 single-bedroom units and on-site facilities for daily needs, care and activities. Dwellings are connected by shared paths and open space. Communal amenities such as food service and other daily needs could also be open to the general public.

The design and architecture are modern and high quality, envisioned as the heart of the future full-service hamlet area. At the same time, the building height and massing are sensitive to the existing rural context, with high-quality landscaping, pathways and open space buffers around the site.

Surrounding Context

The site is located in close proximity to Highway 1A to the north but physically separated from the highway by a service road allowance. This separation provides ample setback between the highway and the project site while remaining easily accessible for visitors and staff coming from the nearby communities of Bearspaw, Cochrane, or Calgary.

South and west of the proposed development are existing low-density country residential developments, while the lands east of the site are primarily agricultural.

Land Use Redesignation

The district proposed for the site is a Special, Public Service District (S-PUB) land use. This S-PUB district will enable the proposed assisted living facility, while also:

Adopting building height and setback restrictions that limit building heights to 1 or 2 storeys;
Permitting development that meets the long-term objectives of the Glenbow Ranch ASP and County Plan;
Facilitating the ongoing economic diversification of Rocky View County;
Providing certainty to the public, Council, and County administration regarding the built form of future development; and
Providing a needed and desirable new use in the Glenbow Ranch and Bearspaw area.

Proposed Land Use: Special, Public Use (S-PUB)

Existing Land Use: Residential, Rural (R-RUR)

The proposed S-PUB district provides for the development of Institutional, Educational and Recreational uses and ensures that future development is still contextually sensitive to the built form throughout this part of Rocky View County. This is achieved by maintaining the spirit and intent of the R-RUR rules as much as possible.

Building Height: Maximum building height of 12.0 metres

Setbacks from Glenview Road: 45.0 metres

Setbacks from Neighbouring Lots: minimum 15.0 metres

R-RUR is applied to almost all non-agricultural residential lots outside of the County’s hamlets to provide for residential uses in a rural setting on parcels which can accommodate limited agricultural pursuits. Height and setback restrictions ensure that the project enables an appropriate built form for the rural context.

Building Height: Maximum building height of 12.0 metres

Setbacks from County Roads: 45.0 metres

Setbacks from Neighbouring Lot Lines: 15.0 metres

Conceptual Scheme

A Conceptual Scheme was required by the County to demonstrate how this portion of the hamlet could develop in the future, and ensure that the proposed development at 22 Glenview Road does not prevent others from accessing, servicing, subdividing or otherwise developing their lands. The Conceptual Scheme is intended to provide general direction for future growth and development, and does not commit neighbours to a certain development pattern or land use.

The Conceptual Scheme proposes an outline for the future hamlet is based on the Glenbow Ranch Area Structure Plan, approved by the County in 2017.

The Conceptual Scheme lays a framework for future development the lands within this area as described in the Area Structure Plan, including:

Assisted Living at 22 Glenview Road with on-site stormpond and services
Country Residential along Glenview Road
Hamlet Residential east of Glenview Road
Conservation Areas as outlined by the Glenbow Ranch ASP
A summary of the potential future development densities within each area
Division of land between Transfer Development Credit (TDC) build areas as described by the Glenbow Ranch ASP

Application Background

The site at 22 Glenview Road was the subject of a previous application for Land Use and a Master Site Development Plan (MSDP). This application was for an Seniors Assisted Living development and was refused by Rocky View Council in February 2022.

Our team has completely re-envisioned this site and we are engaging with our neighbours to share the new site vision and planning strategy. Below are the concerns we heard previously, and how the new application responds to each:

22 Glenview RoadLand Use Amendment &Conceptual Scheme