Changing Official Community Plan Is Wrong Local Archaelogy Enthusiast Says
By Robert Thomas - Second In A Series
The potential loss of archaelogical and historical sites that the proposed new development down in the Wakamow Valley may well threaten has one local expert questioning why the City would even consider allowing the develoment to proceed.
Born on South Hill Gary Horsnall has spent “a good 40 years” studying the archaelogical significance and treasures the valley has been proven to hold as well as the potential new discoveries that exist there.
Horsnall, who worked at the former Wild Animal Park for ten years, said growing up on Warner Street was the start of his fascination wth the valley and the peoples who once lived, camped and in many cases are ultimately buried there.
He opposes the proposed River Pointe Park development for more than one reason, but it is the loss of the archaelogically sensitive area the development will forever take away is near and dear to his heart. Potential sites and discoveries forever hidden under fill equivalent to 55 Olympic sized swimming pools.
His opposition to the development is matched by the Wakamow Valley Authority which was featured in Part One of this series.
River Pointe Park is a proposed development to be located at 1155 7th Avenue SW and up until recently was the site of a former nursery.
In order for the proposed development to proceed Council must amend the Official Community Plan (OCP). At their September 21st meeting Council was asked by local developer Charles Vanden Broek to ammend the OCP to allow the development of 25.68 acres for upscale housing which proposes 29 single family units and 81 multi-family units in an area presently zoned as Long Term Community Service/Parks/River Valley Conservation.
Horsnall said he opposes the project just as he has opposed similar plans to make changes to the valley and its use on three prior ocassions.
During those times when changes wanted to be made to allow development he helped in providing reports to the City of Moose Jaw which ultimately led to a no development policy in the river valley.
The group hired a Conservation Biology student (Susanne Richard) to conduct a survey and provide them with a report.
“We formed a citizen committee. We provided comprehensive reports on the land and the history of it including the archaelogical significance,” he said. “It’s a paleontoiogical sensitive, an archaelogical sensitive, a flood plain and a flood zone.”
The river valley has been proven by studies conducted by archaeologists to hold numerous sites and when discovered the sites pointed to more sites within the area.
Sites which according to the work of archaeologist Kit Krozser point towards a diverse layer of artifacts running throughout the entire valley area.
A copy of her extensive research may be found by clicking here.
Horsnall pointed to the conclusions Kroszer found in her thesis which point to peoples living throughout the entire valley as proof the area is of archaelogical and paleontological significance.
Those studies included excavations at levels deeper than what were conducted by the consultant hired by the developer and found fragments of rare pottery originatiing before the birth of Christ found only in this area of North America as well as chert.
“The archaeological resources, especially for the Prairie/Plains Side-notched occupation at the Turn are considerably more extensive than the area originally excavated by the SMNH. Traces of human occupation were found all along the riverbank from the northeast end to the southwest end, and extending across the floodplain right to the valley slopes.”
Asked about the arachaelogical study conducted by Arrow Archaeology Limited, a consultant for the developer, Horsnall typified it as “insufficient” because it only explored as deep as a plow and did not excavate as deep as other studies have.
Despite the shallow dig the developer’s consultant had proven Krozser’s thesis that the entire valley has archaelogical significance, he said.
“I think they just scratched the surface they only went as deep as a plow but they proved Kit (Krozser’s) thesis that the valley has a layer of archaeological significance running throughout it,” he said. “They just proved Kit Krozser’s thesis. They did shallow excavations and they found a site.”
Part of the area proposed to be developed - MJ Independent file photo
As part of the September 21st presentation to Council the developer has offered to set up a small interpretive site as well as public trail to access it where copies of the artifacts found will be available to view. At that meeting it was revealed it is something the developer is not legally obligated to do.
In their report the archaeology consultant recommended the project to proceed but that the site identified, EcNj20, should be excavated if development were to ever happen in that area.
“We recommend conditional approval of this project subject to further investigation of EcNj20 prior to any land disturbance activity in the area. There are no plans or anticipated timing for development of the area...Any future development will consider the site and avoid it if possible and therefore a controlled excavation is not recommended at this time. ”
Horsnall pointed to other discoveries in the area which support the claims about the archaeological significance of the valley.
While employed by the Moose Jaw Wild Animal Park in an uplands adjacent the park on the surface they discovered a three inch stem point or spear point that dated back to 5000 to 6000 BC.
There are a significant number pf paleo sites he said near the air base which point to the probabiltiy the river valley, and the so far minorly explored private lands, as an area with the potential for an abundance of sites dating back thousands of years before the arrival of Europeans.
How Many Times???
A second major concern Horsnell has is the number of times ordinary citizens have had to make a stand to keep the river valley lands free of additional development and how every final solution to opponent’s concerns seems to be forgotten in favour of potential developers.
Starting with the proposed Wild Animal Park Redevelopment Plan in the 1998 - 2002 area until the now proposed RiverPointe Park Development Horsnall says he has had to come out as part of the community response to any development proposals.
He was a member of the citizen’s committee that held town halls and helped to finally defeat the Wild Animal Park proposal which would have seen upscale houses built on top of the hills and the river valley turned into a golf course/country club.
“I am not anti-develpment. I am anti-development down there (the river valley) 100 percent..the City asked for public consultation and overwhelmingly the people came out and said ‘leave it alone’,” Horsnell said.
The second time he fought river valley develppment was when the City proposed Plan Moose Jaw and the threat of development in the Wakamow Valley loomed once more.
“Again they asked the people what is your opinion and the people once again said leave the valley alone,” he said.
In the calls for allowing development a petition sprung up with 9600 signatures opposed to any development of the Wild Animal Park lands.
“This is something they keep coming back with every ten or 20 years it seems in hopes we have forgotten or gone away but we are still here and we come out fighting against it…I am getting sick and tired of digging it up to prove it is an archaelogical area.”
What Horsnall thought was the final iteration was the public input sought for the Official Community Plan and the resultant no development policy for the valley with restrictive zoning to keep the area free of development.
“Under the new plan the Official Community Plan was suppose to be the roadmap for the future…why didn’t the plan work? Why didn’t the development go elsewhere as it was suppose to? Why turn the Official Community Plan on its head to suit one developer?” he asked. “Who choses to change the Official Community Plan (at City Hall) to fit a developer’s needs?”
Timing is a big thing for Horsanall.
He questions how Administration could be working with the developer for 18 months but residents only hear about the development now.
With little time, given the COVID - 19 pandemic, to plan any sort of a proper community response. Especially on an issue most had been told and felt was permanently settled, he said.
“Why are we only hearing about this now? They want to have the public do the lip service for the development. Why don’t they follow what has been done before?” Horsnall said.
Public consultations are being called for by the City with the issue expected to come back to Council on October 19th.