Open house held of municipal development plan

One of the maps put on display was this future land use concept map. Note the sections where the committee is proposing residential expansion on the north western and eastern edges of High Prairie.

Mac Olsen
South Peace News

An open house was held for the municipal development plan (MDP) in the council chamber on March 25. Diagrams of the adopted and proposed land use concepts were on display. However, only a few people stopped by, talking to the committee members or dropping off the questionnaire related to the MDP. Mike Daubert is a member at large and the committee chairperson, and he explained the process being followed. “We’re still in an information gathering mode,” says Daubert. “We have questionnaires available in the Town office and on the website. Now, we’re looking at some potential revision ideas, and I’m hoping to gather more public input to help us and guide us along the way.” He says the most important issue for the committee is to create a document that shows a good footprint as to where they want to see the town grow and develop. David Klippenstein, a manager of planning for community infrastructure for UMA Engineering Ltd. in Edmonton, has been helping with the review. They’ve been looking at things like the population capacity within town boundaries and how much land is available for residential development. They’ve also been forecasting what High Prairie would be like with a population of 5,000 and 10,000 people. “Within the existing town boundaries, we could accommodate a population of 6-7,000,” says Klippenstein. “There’s enough industrial land, we think, for a population of 5,000. But that ebbs and flows. That can spike very quickly, so we have to be prepared there. It’s a case of looking at supply and demand not just for land, but land that can be readily serviced and put on the market at a relatively reasonable cost.” He praises the Town of High Prairie for having a municipal development plan, commenting it is a worthwhile process and provides foresight for the future. Tom Butler attended the open house, and says he would like to see industrial development kept, as much as possible, to either the north side of Highway 2 or the south side, and separate from the residential areas. Butler has some concerns about industrial development on the former Kryzalka property, the quarter section of land west of High Prairie the municipality has annexed. “I would have some concerns that, if you do develop some nice residential homes behind or around it, it’s going to be overtaken by some industrial area,” says Butler. “Then you’ve always got the noise, pollution … and whatever. So I have some concerns, but it could be developed (in a way) that would satisfy everybody who’s in the vicinity.” Hector Renaud, who was in the construction business in Windsor, Ontario for many years before moving to High Prairie, has concerns and some praise regarding the municipal development plan. For instance, he is glad it calls for a major expansion of parkland at the northern boundary, as well as a green zone along the riverbanks. But he is also concerned about industrial lands abutting or being across from residential properties. “I am not sure who really wants to live with that in their immediate front or back yards. As a developer, it would turn me off from developing that land,” says Renaud. He also says that, with all the residential expansion lands owned by very few people, it won’t allow too many outside developers to come into town. “What if the planners decide that your land is a great place for a park or mobile homes? If you don’t show up and see what is planned for your land, to make sure that your land is zoned for what you see the future use to be, you just might end up with a park or mobile homes,” says Renaud. He also suggests additional river crossings would assist greatly in the future response times of emergency responders and the overall traffic flow in the future High Prairie. The final open house for the municipal development plan will be held in the council chamber on May 21.

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