Area Structure Plans and Development Decisions

[cakadu]

When it comes to ASP - any decisions made are in the public domain - correct? By that I mean we as ratepayers have access to the ASP and any subsequent decisions/amendments do we not?

When development decisions are made are they also in the public domain?

What are your thoughts on Ag Service Boards and how councils deem their make up?

A friend of mine who lives in a muncipality where the councillors are the ASB is wondering how you would even begin to approach council to see about making changes.

In some respects it is kind of tough when the council is the ASB to my way of thinking because it would be difficult to separate what ratepayers want from an agricultural standpoint from what your responsibilities as councillors would be. I would think that there are times when the two are not in sync with one another.

[coppertop]

If the ratepayers in any jursidiction wish to see their council amend the make up of the ASB, all they need is a petition made up of 5% of the electorate, which means eligible voters. This petition would need to be presented to council at least a month before the annual organizational meeting to ensure there was adequate time to advertise for applications to the ASB from members of the community. In the old Municipal District and Improvement District model having the ASB made up of both council members and members of the public was mandatory, whereby the county system carried a provision for all members of council to be the ASB. Many counties used to have an Advisory Board to the ASB, which became quite cumbersome to say the least. When the ASB Act was amended the make up of the ASB was up to the particular jurisdiction, many of the Municipal Districts that eventually changed their name to County kept the Municipal District model, which in my opinion makes the best use of the talent in the community. All too many rural councillors are country residential or hamlet residents and don't have sufficient understanding of the agricultural industry to be the 'eyes and ears' of that industry on the ASB. In fact there are some jurisdictions that have changed the name of the ASB to RURAL SERVICES BOARD, they still manage to get their Provincial ASB grant though because they make the case that holding horticultural courses is agriculture etc.

All Area Structure Plans must be adopted by council and prior to doing so there must be a public hearing where members of the public, adjacent landowners etc., can voice their concerns or lend their support to the ASP.
When council hears concerns that they deem valid they may request that the developer amend the ASP with the requested changes in place prior to giving it second and third reading.

Any reputable developer will speak to any land owners, neighbours etc. that may be impacted in any way by a proposed development before even having the ASB prepared, this will allow for all concerns to be addressed if possible in the design.

Drawing on my municipal experience I can recall several times when ASP's caused enough concern from surrounding property owners that council didn't approve them, and the developer was advised to start from square one.

Once an ASP is adopted the design must be adhered to ( eg: where internal roads, street lighting, culverts, park reserves are located). Should the developer wish to make any changes they must seek an amendment to the ASP, triggering another public hearing.

Now, not all municiplities are strict when it comes to forcing developers to adhere to their ASP's but if any citizen complains about the approved plan not being followed the municipality is duty bound to ensure that any deviation from the plan is forbidden until approval is granted.

[jesweet]

We are currently in a position where we need to activate the community to request a separate ASB from the Council as decisions have been made without guidelines and an understanding of the implications of those decisions for the agriculture members of the community - ie major cottage and RV developments on a nearby lake with impact on current residents -can you advise?

[coppertop]

Your community should get started with a petition signed by as many property owners as possible requesting that your county amend the structure of the Agricultural Services Board to include members of the public and that it operate as a stand alone board not part of the county council meetings etc.

Of course any issues with respect to land use are made by council, not the ASB, but the ASB should be making recommendations based on the good of the agricultural industry within your county. The mandate of Agricultural Service Boards, and the ASB Act can be found on the AAFRD Website under Agricultural Service Boards

[cakadu]

If there is a committee to oversee/review ASP's, do they have to make their findingsrecommendations public?


What would the functions of an ASP committee be - in general terms of course as I suspect that each muncipality would have different Terms of Reference regarding committee roles and responsibilities.

[coppertop]

Linda, Council is mandated under the Municipal Government Act to approve Area Structure Plans. The Municipal Planning Commission approves any uses within the Area Structure Plans that are not discretionary.

The only role the Agricultural Service Board would play in Area Structure plans would be to make comments to council with respect to any impact on the agricultural industry by the ASP.
All decisions regarding Area Structure Plans must be done in a regularly scheduled meeting, however, discussions regarding legal matters with respect to any development must be done in 'Private', but any decisions arising from the Private discussion must be made in the public portion of the meeting.

[cakadu]

There is a separate committee that was struck about a year ago to deal with the Glennifer Lake ASP. There will be some real challenges there (at least one would hope there would be) as there were certain conditions set out in the original ASP. An example would be no permanent structures.

We are likely going to be faced with similar concerns that Sylvan Lake is/was facing in terms of all the development potential. Whether it is good or bad remains to be seen.

[coppertop]

Linda, I would suggest that you contact Municipal Affairs to see exactly what powers this separate committee would have . One contact there would be Bill Symonds.

There seems to be such an almighty rush to develop every inch of the province that is capable of being developed without any real concern for the impact on the environment, communities etc.

[cowman]

Linda: In our municipality the ASB consists of three council members and four members from the public. The fact is while many people might apply the ag fieldman picked four people he wanted on the ASB and asked them to apply, then basically told the chair of the ASB those were the people he wanted.
I wonder if people really think all these "committees" or boards really decide anything? The fact is the beuracracy basically has an agenda and council and boards for the most part go along with it...providing it doesn't create too many political ripples!
I find it kind of funny when council spends massive amounts of time and money coming up with policies, only to violate their own policy when it suits them! A case in point is the new transfer site? Ag B, not light industrial?...well until council got caught short...then all the Ag B BS went in the garbage can!
And now it is "Katie bar the door" as developers scramble to get in on the great bonanza! There really is no more "land use policy" in Red Deer county? If you have the "pull" you can get anything you desire! I wouldn't count on Glennifer being kept out of it?

[coppertop]

Unfortunately board appointments both municipal and provincial are often based on politics not who is best qualified for the position.

Red Deer County is under a lot of pressure from developers but the general public are the ones that elect their council and next year is municipal election year.

[cakadu]

Cowman, that change in the ASB only came into effect this past year. Prior to that, it was 2 public members and 3 council members. The Terms of Reference for the committee must have been changed to allow for more public input.

This last time around, the County had a very hard time finding people to apply for various committee positions so they ran the notice twice and extended the deadline for application. I'm not too sure how many applicants they would have had. I notice that they already have their call for applicants out.

[coppertop]

The ASB is not a decision making body and acts as an advisory body to council on agricultural matters, so even if the ASB makes a recommendation council is not bound to implement it.

In high growth areas such as Red Deer county I would think that individuals that are concerned about the future of agriculture and preservation of agricultural lands should take advantage of the opportunity and apply for appointment to the ASB.

Unfortunately many councils are involved in internal turmoil or are scrapping with their urban neighbours so not enough emphasis is put on recruiting qualified people to apply for positions on MPC, ASB etc.

In our community the Reeve is elected and also sits on the Subdivision and Development Appeal Board which certainly puts him in a precarious position. He continually gets calls from people who oppose development, then sits on the appeal side when the same people appeal a decision of the planning commission. Somehow, I don't think he is getting good advice from administration. I know if I were in his shoes I would not serve on the SDAB in the interest of transparency.

[cowman]

Linda: The four members at large were chosen by the Ag fieldman and the ASB chair. They actively went out and recruited them...in fact had to talk a couple of them into it!
Here is another small revelation: The current ASB will remain the same for at least another year, whether they advertize the postion or not. I have two relatives on this board, so get the inside scoop!
Right now they are allocating money to buy and equip a stock trailer to clean up livestock rollovers on the roads? You know when a liner is in an accident?
I believe the cost is around $60K...which sounds pretty high with a lot of fancy specialized equipment, but through a sponsorship program they hope to recoup most, if not all, of that cost. The fire department would operate it.

[coppertop]

It never ceases to amaze me to what lengths ASB's can go to be creative in getting specialized grant monies.

When I was first appointed to our ASB in 1992 we were given a two day orientation on what our role was, and what we as ASB's were expected to do for our agricultural community. I think many of the ASB's have strayed a long way from their original mandate.

There are some excellent Ag Fieldmen around, Tim Dietzler from the MD of Rockyview being one of them. He has his hands full trying to keep the agricultural industry on the radar screen in that municipality with all the other land use pressures around Calgary.
Keith Boras from Lacombe County is another excellent fieldman.
Many of the good Ag Fieldmen have left to work in the resource industry where their expertise in reclaimations is very much in demand.