Emails show Parks Canada managers not on board with Waterton visitor centre

Parks Canada staff have concerns about where a new visitor centre will be built in Waterton Lakes National Park, according to emails obtained by a community group through a freedom of information request.

Members of “Save the Waterton Field” spoke about the emails Friday. The group has questioned the choice of location for the visitor centre – in the middle of the village – for some time.

The group made two requests. The first time, parts of the documents were redacted. After a second request, Fromm received an unedited version.

In one email, visitor experience manager Locke Marshall writes to co-workers, saying his staff have come to him with concerns, including that “the Visitors Centre should be outside the community.”

Another email from project manager Jim Lambe to Supt. Ifan Thomas says the location of the centre “impacts adjacent cottage leaseholders” and will “increase parking and impact traffic circulation.”

Another email from asset manager Allen Nelson to the superintendent raises concern over the site-selection study, saying it involved “questionable assumptions and misrepresentations.”

“They are very valid concerns that they were expressing and they’re the same concerns that our group has,” Fromm said.

Further, Fromm insists proper consultations did not happen.

“They had chosen to do public consultation after the location was chosen,” she said.

Watch below from April 2017: A number of local residents within Waterton Lakes National Park are concerned about the potential landing spot of the park’s upcoming Visitor Reception Centre.

1:54 Location of proposed Waterton Lakes Visitor Centre causing friction among residents

In a written response to Global News, Parks Canada said “a range of stakeholders and leaseholders” was engaged and an open house was held in June 2016 before a final decision was made on the location.

As to why the Freedom of information requests differed, Parks Canada stated the following:

“At the time of the initial request last year, the information was determined to be eligible for exclusion under the Access to Information Act. Given the time and discussion that has since occurred on the issue, including the sharing of information at the public open house, the determination was made that the information could now be released as part of the second ATIP request.”

Parks Canada declined to explain any further.

“We do understand that it is an extremely sensitive thing that we released, but we felt like it was our duty to put it out there and let the public know what really went on behind the scenes,” Fromm said.

Fromm says she plans to take the emails to the federal government, in hopes stopping the project.

According to Parks Canada, construction of the new visitor centre will begin in 2018 with an expected opening in 2020.