Ask your Division 8 Candidates:

Editor's Note: To hear more from your Division 8 candidates, the potential councillors are scheduled to participate in an all candidates forum Nov. 13 at 6:30 p.m. at the Bearspaw Lifestyle Centre's Banquet Hall.

According to the Travel Alberta website, the creation of the Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park “saved a vast expanse of scenic grassland valley from urban sprawl.” Conversely, under the Glenbow ASP, this same area will house 10,000 residents, double the population of Bearspaw.

While the venture of having a developer take on the cost for an ASP sounds ideal in that it conveys no cost to the taxpayer up front, it raises a number of concerns in terms of who is on the hook should something go wrong? As well, it doesn't consider further costs like roads, drainage, or recreation facilities. Given its magnitude, it sets the stage for future annexation by Cochrane or the potential for it to become its own city with all its start up costs fronted by the County.

Developing an area that is environmentally sensitive should be the last place we look to, not the first. It paves some of the most beautiful scenery in the County for whose benefit? We already have infrastructure in the east that is vastly under utilized. Why then, would we build in an area that has to start from scratch, poses a potential environmental risk and isn't even identified by the County Plan as an area for growth?

The Glenbow Ranch Area Structure Plan (GRASP) is entering Phase 3 of its development: Exploring Options and Trade-Offs. I am very concerned about the potential trade-offs connected to any development near the Glenbow Park. The intent is to plan for a residential community adjacent to the Park. The GRASP must align with County Plan policies and intent. The residential community would be based on “conservation design principles.” The GRASP may lay the groundwork for a new Hamlet in Bearspaw, which will consist of a “mix of housing options suitable for a range of households and all stages of life.”

This feature may be attractive to Bearspaw residents but there is a huge trade-off. The plan will require transfer of development credits (TDC). So, credits from sensitive land can be used on more suitable lands. This credit transfer increases a receiving area's development potential by allowing more development than zoning regulations would otherwise allow. That is, higher density in a smaller portion of land. Essentially, 100 per cent of development will occur in 43 per cent (3,294 acres) of developable land in the area adjacent to Glenbow Ranch. This is a convenient way of bypassing current County Plan policies and intent.

I have attended every workshop and presentation the County has held on this recently. I have input my support for preserving the natural vistas in the park and that the conservation focus has been integrated into the early drafts. For the process to be genuine, the input received from landowners and adjacent community needs to be reflected in the outcomes. Clearly, there will be a diversity of opinions and ideas and honestly shaping outcomes based on the consensus positions of local residents and landowners is an important key to the best results.

I have heard some who are not in the Glenbow Park ASP say, “What about us?” The existing Bearspaw Area Structure Plan is 20 years old and outdated. Currently, it is scheduled to be updated at the beginning of 2017. I believe your Councillor should be proactively communicating with the community to explore ideas, alternatives and what outcomes residents like so we are better prepared when the official process begins in 2017.

Spectacular outcomes are possible that will protect value and enhance our community. The real challenge may be that it will require building mutual respect, trust and collaboration within a framework that balances community interests with landowner initiatives.