OLDS — The Town of Olds' council has passed a bylaw rezoning a 145 acre chunk of land in the far southeast of town from urban reserve to light industrial.
The council made that decision during a meeting last month after holding a public hearing on the proposed bylaw.
The northern border of that land is just south of 68th St. and the Highway 2A roundabout. It stretches south to Township Road 324.
The purpose of the rezoning is to allow for further development of the southeast industrial area. Council was told it was being done at the request of the property owner.
The bylaw received first reading on March 24.
Notice of the hearing was advertised on the town website, in the April 8 and 15 issues of the Albertan and circulated to 12 neighbouring property owners.
Leading up to the public hearing, the planning department received no correspondence, either for or against regarding the rezoning.
However, Bev Randers, who owns farmland adjacent to the land question did speak up. (She did so during a public hearing on another rezoning plan but council allowed her to speak on this matter anyway).
Randers said she had concerns about what the zoning change and subsequent development might mean for wetlands preservation.
“I'm not sure what the plan is, and I can follow up on that later, just that (people in) the town of Olds love wetlands. People love to walk and to be engaged in nature,” she said.
“I can look at what your plan is for helping people engage with nature, with already occurring wetlands. But I guess really, industrial zoning and nature and walking for people probably don't go together very well.
“I am an old timer. My dad learned how to swim in those wetlands, that's just west of what you already talked about.”
Chief administrative officer Brent Williams said when the area structure plan was created for that land, likely a decade or more ago, “Alberta environment made us do all the wetland assessments, so we do have those in place.
“But in terms of the recreation version of wetlands, probably not something we would pursue.”
He said planning and infrastructure manager James Crozier, who was also in the gallery, could perhaps provide Randers with more information on the matter.
Randers said she was also concerned about light pollution that would be created, fearing it could be a problem for migratory birds.
“And so as people do develop things, I'd like for people to be mindful of really trying to turn down the lights if you can, because I live six miles west, and the lights are almost blinding me from midtown,” she said.
In the end, council passed second and third readings for the bylaw, making the zoning change law.
