High Plains Industrial Park in east Balzac received Rocky View County council’s stamp of approval for stage three of expansion, July 30.
The expansion will include 15 industrial lots and a municipal reserve on the 1,274 acres of land that is being developed in phases over the next 15 to 20 years.
“What we’re looking at is really what we believe to be a seamless integration of the first two stages,” said applicant Ken Venner of Calgary-based Brown and Associates Planning Group in his presentation to council.
Stage one includes the Target Distribution Centre, BURNCO and Sunterra Beef. Council approved the rezoning for 10 industrial lots included in stage two, ranging in size from 2.5 acres to 100 acres, in September last year, which are currently being marketed for sale.
“You can expect to see more transport-oriented warehouses of a distribution nature in this area – businesses with a large land requirement and good access to the regional road network,” Venner said.
Venner told council a highlight of the development’s proposal is a self-contained water management strategy on the site, located at the intersection of Highway 566 and Range Road 291.
He said a solution for dealing with stormwater was both a “unique challenge and a unique opportunity” for the developers because of the site’s location in east Balzac, which is included in the non-contributing basin of the Nosecreek Watershed.
“We’ve come up with a comprehensive strategy to capture all stormwater, retain it on site, treat it and have the ability to use it for non-potable, industrial consumptive uses at a lower cost,” he said, adding that potable water will be provided on a looped system from infrastructure established in stage one and two.
Stage three will also include extending internal roads and infrastructure at the developer’s cost.
Area Councillor Lois Habberfield said she was concerned about the possibility of a future drought and not enough stormwater in the retention ponds to continue servicing the lots, the responsibility to provide treated water would fall on the County’s shoulders.
“Lower cost of treated water is attractive for developers who may expect that low cost rate to be there forever and a day, but I want to make sure future lot owners understand that, long after the developer is gone, if there’s a lack of water, the County won’t be providing them water for free,” said Habberfield.
General Manager of Infrastructure and Operations Byron Riemann said, in the event of a drought and lot owners becoming high-service users, the new water and waste water bylaw approved by council July 23 would apply.
According to Venner, the High Plains Industrial Park will generate about $4.8 million on repayment for water and wastewater infrastructure, about $7.7 million in transportation levies and $1.2 million in municipal reserve.
“The servicing costs might be argued but this is clearly an attractive situation for the County in line with the corporate strategy to balance the residential and non-residential assessment base,” said Venner.
At full build-out, the project is expected to provide about $1.15 million in annual revenue to the County.
Council unanimously approved the stage three conceptual scheme.
