Project Description

How to meet fast-rising demand for recreation opportunities, and a desire for interaction with the native Bison, while preserving the park ecology and the Park’s unique role in conservation?

“AECOM landscape architects were awarded a Standing Offer by Parks Canada Agency (Parks) in 2015.  Under that Offer, a project to set strategic options for Elk Island National Park in Alberta was undertaken.

Elk Island is one of Canada’s oldest national parks and home to species plains bison – a free-roaming herd that has never been crossbred with cattle.  Since the herds at Elk Island are also disease-free they are the source for all conservation projects across Canada and the United States.  Elk Island is a key location for the continuing program against this species’ extinction. Managing the recovery herds for plains bison has been an Elk Island priority for decades and an outstanding victory for conservation. However, the park’s buildings, facilities, and infrastructure were developed in the 1970s, so its age was starting to show.

Recent rapidly rising demand for park usage by day-use picnickers and international tourists has led to a need to balance human activity with the need to preserve the herd – while enabling real appreciation for the bison.  Interaction with the bison is a big draw and has been cited as a valuable experience by park goers. But how to upgrade and achieve such balance?  “Design in a National Park should target an authenticity that grounds the visitor in the experience of the place, avoiding a commercialized Wonderland-style theme park.” said AECOM’s Geoffrey Katz, project landscape architect.

AECOM produced a report focused on architectural, constructed landscape, and servicing options for the Park.  These options aim to reinforce the bison story as a signature for the Park, modernizing features and amenities, and improving the aesthetic of buildings and public spaces.  Conversations during the project between AECOM staff and Parks staff were practical and creative; they validated existing opportunities, and opened new possibilities.  The report supports Elk Island National Park as it sets priorities for improvements and assists the Park as it evaluates costs for current and future work. “

(AECOM internal newsletter, winter 2017)