Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Our primary goal and vision for River’s Edge stems from a deep love for our community and a desire to create a space where people can come together, celebrate, and make lasting memories. 

River’s Edge is 100% privately owned and operated; we are in no way affiliated with the RMWB but we are following all Municipal processes and procedures to ensure that this development adheres to bylaws and legislation. 

Our recent and current public engagement is voluntary; we are opening discussions with the community so we can best understand everyone’s wants, needs, and concerns, to determine if this project is feasible. It is important to us to learn how this may affect our neighbours, and if there is anything we can do to make this project better and more beneficial. 

Our aim at River’s Edge is to provide a beautiful community gathering space along the Clearwater River, offering both indoor and outdoor spaces for various events and activities. For weddings, corporate events, non-profit fundraising events, holidays, birthdays, family picnics, and staycations, River’s Edge will be a place for everyone to enjoy.
 

The facility would provide four, luxury, short-stay suites overlooking the Clearwater River, outdoor wedding options on a 2,000 square-foot deck overlooking the river, indoor event spaces, bouncy castle rentals, children’s play areas, and outdoor recreational opportunities such as day-use areas, fishing, trails, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing, public boat launch, float and canoe/kayak rentals, and temporary docks, pending all the appropriate approvals. We also plan to host community gatherings and BBQs.  

By creating a community gathering space, we hope to do our part to improve the quality of life for local residents, and also to attract and retain more people and families to the region, thereby helping Fort McMurray to thrive once again as a northern city.
 

This project would also help stimulate the local economy, where we currently have a leakage of 38.2% of spending leaving the region. Enabling residents to host their weddings and special events here, or to rest, relax, and enjoy a staycation, will help keep more money in our local economy, supporting local business.
 

River's Edge will be actively supporting and partnering with local businesses and non-profits. In fact, we’re very excited to announce that we will be collaborating with the United Way of Fort McMurray, in helping the 23 social profit organizations that provide vital services in our community. Some of these organizations include the Centre of Hope, Local Hero Foundation, Fort McMurray Search and Rescue, Pastew Place, and St. Aidan’s Society.

We anticipate that the development of River's Edge will benefit the Draper community specifically in a number of ways:  

• First, we have been in discussions with ATCO Gas and are hoping that this development will encourage the completion of natural gas servicing to the Draper community, as ATCO bases its servicing on potential total usage
• Second, this project will help to bring awareness to issues that Draper residents are experiencing, and we plan to be strong advocates in this regard.
• Third, by showcasing the natural beauty and recreational opportunities of the area, as well as the above-mentioned benefits, we believe the project could potentially help increase Draper property values.
• Draper Residents will also be invited to utilize River's Edge as a community hub and gathering place, with access to the boat launch, docks, trails, playground, and day-use areas. 

We will only be applying for a site-specific zoning consolidation (only for our property not the community as a whole). Our property currently has split zoning – roughly ½ is zoned Small Holdings and ½ Country Residential. We are applying to consolidate the zoning of the entire property to Small Holdings for ease of permitting. 

It’s our understanding that Dunvegan Gardens was shut down due to permitting issues. We are following all processes and doing our due diligence to mitigate any potential issues and doing fulsome community consultation. 

The property has been privately owned land for a very long time and there are currently no usable trails on the property. However, when we purchased the property, it was our intention to provide an outdoor area that residents and visitors could use - providing more options for outdoor activities and improving the quality of life for locals. To that end, we plan to set up a system of registration for those wishing to use our property for outdoor activities like quadding, snowmobiling, and hiking.