Despite a plea to put off the decision, Rocky View County council gave second reading to the Rocky View/Calgary Intermunicipal Development Plan (IDP), Nov. 1.
The move came after a public hearing, which was resumed after being postponed on Sept. 6, for legal review following concerns raised by a number of residents about the statutory document.
The Town of Chestermere raised concern about governance of land abutting its borders being under other municipalities’ jurisdiction, after the Town learned the Municipal Government Act prohibits more than one IDP on any given land.
“We do need to go with this today,” said Councillor Lois Habberfield. “I am very sympathetic to the concerns Chestermere raised… (but) this has been a long time coming. We need to get it signed on the dotted lines.”
The IDP has been more than three years in the making and will replace the existing intermunicipal agreement, which has been in place since 1998. The new document, which was considered by Calgary City council on Nov. 7, will govern about 103,400 acres along Rocky View and Calgary’s shared borders.
Chestermere’s staff had already begun work on separate IDPs with Rocky View and Calgary, when it discovered such a document would be prohibited should the County/City agreement be approved.
The Town suggested the three municipalities create a tri-party IDP on lands of shared interest, mainly located on Chestermere’s east borders.
“We implore Rocky View County council to defeat the IDP as proposed,” said Benazir Thaha, a Chestermere planner. “We believe a tri-party IDP is the best solution so we can have an equal footing going forward.”
Rocky View County planner, Richard Barss, raised concern about putting off the decision to create a three-party agreement. He said such a document would be very complicated and County staff would have wasted hundreds of hours.
“We would strongly suggest council not defeat (this),” he said. “That would undo… years of work.”
Instead, Barss suggested a preferred alternative, which included adding a new section to the IDP.
County council unanimously agreed, and directed staff to work with the Town of Chestermere to develop a coordinated planning process to ensure meaningful dialogue continues between the three municipalities.
Staff was told to report to council with options on proceeding with areas of mutual interest no later than July 2012.
Chestermere Mayor Patricia Matthews wasn’t pleased with the decision.
“We are extremely disappointed and extremely frustrated that our point didn’t get across today,” she said. “It means that we have an inability to properly plan our future in areas that the City of Calgary and the Municipality of Rocky View already have an IDP in place. It means those residents who are directly across from our borders… are at risk as well.”
The IDP will provide policy direction for future land use in the affected areas along the border between Rocky View and Calgary. It sets out how each jurisdiction will work together on a variety of joint interests including roads; treatment of entranceways; protection of environmental features and drainage courses; and evaluation of development.
It also includes procedures for conflict resolution between the two municipalities.
None of the legal concerns raised by Rocky View residents, which included a fear of a “City bias” and the document “fettering council decisions” were substantiated during the legal review, although several changes to the wording were suggested by the County’s legal representative.
“We are satisfied the proposed document is in alignment with all the mandatory requirements for an IDP following the legal review,” said Reeve Rolly Ashdown. “Our concerns were addressed and we look forward to seeing the outcome of the plan when it goes before City of Calgary council.”
