Calgary city council representatives on the Green Line working group said that critical issues need to be addressed before they bring the province’s current proposal back to councillors.

Mayor Jyoti Gondek, along with Couns. Andre Chabot and Peter Demong, who are on the Reimagined Green Line working group issued a joint statement Thursday afternoon saying that the current AECOM report doesn’t have a detailed constructability review or a structural analysis.

The city council members said this omission raises “serious questions” about the feasibility of an elevated line in the downtown.

“We only have one opportunity to get this right, and we must carefully consider the legacy this proposal would leave in the downtown core and Beltline community,” the statement read.

“We owe it to Calgarians today and for generations to come to make decisions that reflect collective insight and careful deliberation.”

Provincial officials said Thursday that the line would cross the Elbow River and climbs from there to a proposed Grand Central Station. They said that you’d have to have it elevated through that section to reduce the impact on traffic.  It stays elevated until it turns north at 2 Street SW, where it has to clear the CPKC tracks and other impediments.

At that point, they need 13.1 metres of clearance, or roughly 43 feet.

Still, it would require alteration or demolition of up to three Plus-15s along that route. The proposed elevated version would be single piers roughly 30 metres apart, still allowing for a single lane of road traffic going each way.

The statement from members of the working group also said they were concerned about the potential noise impact with an above-ground train. They said it had only been “superficially considered” in the AECOM report.

“The prospect of increased noise pollution is a serious issue that could affect the quality of life for our residents and the daily operations of our downtown businesses,” the statement read.

Provincial officials said that they’d need to model the potential noise in the area and that there are noise mitigation methods that could be employed to help.

Costs not included?

Earlier this week, the City of Calgary said that based on their review, the province hasn’t accounted for $1.3 billion in costs they believe should be included in the overall cost.

That would bring the project to $7.5 billion. That’s $300 million higher than the City’s projected cost for the downtown tunnel version to Lynnwood, with an extension down to the same Shepard location the province has laid out.

The Green Line matter has attracted the attention of some who are vying for the mayor’s job in the 2025 municipal election.

Mayoral candidate Brian Thiessen, who is a lawyer by trade, suggested Thursday that the City take legal action against the province. He said the city acted in good faith on the Premier and Transportation Minister’s word.

“Premier (Danielle) Smith and Minister (Devin) Dreeshen said in August that ‘we are good to go’ and a few weeks later changed their minds,” he said.

“That is unacceptable and the City must take legal action.”

As creatures of the province, it would be unusual for them to sue unless there were exigent circumstances or causing the City of Calgary irreparable damage.

Thiessen also said the City of Calgary should add the province as a third party to any potential lawsuits that arise from the proposed alignment.

“It’s time for Council to say we are done and pursue legal recourse not only for the promised $1.5 billion but also for any financial penalties arising from breaches of contracts already signed with construction firms,” he said.

The working group members said that the province’s alignment carries with it construction and technical risks, along with potential long-term impacts on communities and businesses. The province has said that this is still a City of Calgary-run project and that any cost overruns would be the City’s responsibility.

“We are not comfortable with the current level of uncertainty and risk associated with the proposed alignment and need to have real discussions with the province before bringing this proposal back to Council,” the members’ statement read.