Solid Rock Baptist Church (SRBC) has started down the road of relocating from Calgary to Rocky View County (RVC), following council’s approval of a land redesignation application and a Master Site Development Plan (MSDP) during a regular meeting May 14.
According to planner Jessica Anderson, SRBC proposes to build a 9,900-square-foot church with associated parking on eight acres of land east of Calgary, on the south side of Township Road 230 and east of Range Road 285.
“Currently, [SRBC’s congregation is] between 100 and 200 [people],” said Robert Kelham of Kelham and Associates Inc., representing the church.
While Kelham acknowledged the majority of congregants attending SRBC’s current Calgary location live within the city, Anderson’s report noted many attendees reside in nearby communities including Indus, Langdon, Dalemead, Carseland, Conrich, Strathmore and Chestermere, and the new location would be centrally and conveniently located for all.
Development of the church is proposed to unfold in two phases, Anderson’s report indicated. The first phase will see construction of the church building, north parking lot, access and utilities, and phase two will comprise an expansion of the building along with construction of the south parking lot and a playground area.
“It’s proven these things can grown,” Kelham said. “There is absolutely no phase two being discussed at the moment, and at the minimum, it is many years down the road.”
During the public hearing, resident Nicholas Wynder expressed concerns regarding the impact increased traffic would have on Township Road 230, a gravel road. Similar concerns were identified in two letters received by RVC.
“I know it was mentioned the road’s in good condition, but it is frequently washboarded,” Wynder said. “My concern is with the roadway, and who’s going to bear the expense…if the road continues to need improvement after the development has taken place.”
According to staff’s report, the church is expected to generate 30 to 40 trips on Township Road 230, primarily on Sundays.
“The addition of the traffic from this development wouldn’t trigger the need for paving as per our servicing standards,” said Gurbir Nijjar, RVC's supervisor of Engineering.
Should residents feel increased traffic on the road requires a measure like calcium stabilization to be taken, Byron Riemann, executive director of Operations, said RVC’s service bundle offers 200 metres of dust suppression per resident per area, “depending on where they want that application to be installed.” If further measures were needed, he said, the County would either approach the church for a cost-sharing arrangement or approach council with a new initiative.
Deputy Reeve Al Schule, the area councillor, initially moved to refuse the church’s redesignation application, saying he was concerned the church would primarily benefit Calgary residents, not RVC residents. His motion was widely opposed and failed 6-3, with only Couns. Jerry Gautreau and Crystal Kissel voting in support.
“I hope we don’t start doing border checks,” said Coun. Kim McKylor. “If Calgary builds something I get to use, that is a partnership, and I don’t want to have my ID checked at the door…I think there is some regional co-operation and, I think, in comparison to other types of development, a church is far better [as a] neighbour.”
Council subsequently approved first reading of the redesignation bylaw by a unanimous vote, and granted second reading 8-1 – Gautreau voted in opposition. Council gave unanimous permission for third reading, which was then granted 8-1, with Gautreau again in opposition.
Council also voted unanimously to approve the church’s MSDP.
