



City council has approved 18 projects under the Enmax Legacy Parks program, including the redevelopment of downtown's Century Gardens, upgrades at Confederation Park and flood repairs at Sandy Beach.





"This is a wonderful piece of funding ... It's a huge deal," said Ward 8 Coun. Evan Woolley. "We live in a city that has lots of parks space, fortunately, but there are still neighbourhoods that really need investment. This goes a long way toward building that investment."





The $75 million, which will be spent over a five-year period, represents the third round of funding doled out through the Enmax Legacy Parks program. Established in 2003, the program is a capital funding initiative through which any of Enmax's annual dividend to the city above $47.3 million goes into an account for new parks and park refurbishment.





In 2012, council extended the program by adding a further $75 million to the pot, but it has taken until now to decide how the money will be spent.





Some of the parks that will receive funding — such as Edworthy Park, Beaverdam Flats Regional Park and Prairie Winds Park — have been waiting on upgrades or repairs. Others — such as Haskayne Regional Park, Priddis Slough and a wetland regional park in the new northeast community of Cityscape — are in development stages.





Ward 7 Coun. Druh Farrell said it's rare for a city to have the opportunity to construct an entirely new park. She added the benefits of the Enmax Legacy Parks program are "incalculable."





Council has invested more than $135 million in Calgary parks through the program's first two phases. Some of the more prominent projects have included the revitalization of Central Memorial Park between 2008 and 2010, renovations to Devonian Gardens in 2012 and the addition of Poppy Plaza and the Landscape of Memory along Memorial Drive.





"When you look at the impact the Enmax Legacy Parks program has had over the last decade, it's transformed our city," Farrell said.





The complete list of projects that will be funded under phase 3 of the program includes: River Park/Sandy Beach/Britannia Slopes; Prairie Winds Park; Thomson Family Park; Bend in the Bow; Bowmont East Regional Park; Douglas Fir Trail; Confederation Park; Forest Lawn Creek Park; Northeast Regional Park (Cityscape); Beaverdam Flats Regional Park; Blakiston Park; Edworthy Park; Haskayne Regional Park; Priddis Slough; Bow to Bluff Park; Paskapoo Slopes Park; and Century Gardens.





The program also dedicates $3 million to a local open space acquisition fund.

A new $75-million injection into Calgary's parks system is expected to further enhance existing green spaces and help construct new ones in all four quadrants of the city.