Council for the MD of Pincher Creek No. 9 met on January 8, 2013 and again on January 22.
Deputy Reeve Rod Cyr was absent from the January 8 meeting and the January 22 meeting. Councillor Helen Cyr was also absent from the January 22 meeting.
Deputy Reeve Rod Cyr was absent from the January 8 meeting and the January 22 meeting. Councillor Helen Cyr was also absent from the January 22 meeting.
The January 22 meeting began with Public Hearings for two proposed bylaws. Reeve Bjorn Berg began by explaining the Public Hearing process to the 8 citizens present.
This bylaw proposes to close a roadway that is considered "no longer required for public travel". Development Officer Roland Milligan explained that an earlier version of the bylaw was rejected by Alberta Transportation over access concerns that were addressed in the rewritten bylaw.
Three citizens present chose to address council regarding the bylaw, in addition to their written submissions. Ken Gamache said that a piece of their land was on the other side of a creek in the area affected, and that new crossings would have to be constructed for access. "If this road allowance is sold we will have no access to that piece of land," he said. "If this land is going to be sold I would like the option to buy the road allowance adjoining it. That would preserve the two crossings for future generations." In his written submission he wrote in part "We have always allowed access to our neighbors and the public. We feel that this type of situation is not in the best interest of ourselves or our neighbors."
Louise Hale spoke on behalf of herself and her husband. "Our greatest issue...is mostly due to the landowners not being notified in advance," she said. Although the hearing was advertised in the Pincher Creek Echo, she expressed frustration that affected landowners were not contacted personally, an opinion that was seemingly shared by most of the other citizens in attendance. Landowner Barb Berndt also expressed disappointment in a letter that she had not received direct notice. Her husband addressed council on her behalf. "Without a map you see legal notices all the time in there (the Echo)," said Mr. Berndt. It meets the legality of law but in reality it's useless. The sale of this road allowance really concerns us here."
The public hearing was closed after the conclusion of public presentations.
Public Hearing for Bylaw 1233-12
Realtor Peter Hucik was present to address Council regarding Bylaw 1233-12, which concerns the property of his client, a Lundbreck structure most recently known to locals as the Alberta Rose Cafe. The structure is currently designated "Hamlet Commercial -HC", and has a dwelling area in the rear and a restaurant area in the front. The new owner wishes to have it designated "Hamlet Residential 2 -HR -2".
The property was subdivided in 2001 in order to separate it from the Lundbreck Hotel.
Unfortunately for the new owner, the process for redesignating the property revealed that an Alberta Environment Site Assessment in 1993 found levels of Benzene contamination in the soil that are higher than allowed for residential development.
Mr. Hucik said that a new study to see if the Benzene levels have dropped to acceptable levels will cost his client 10 to 15 thousand dollars. He said it could cost 20 to 30 thousand dollars to remediate the property. "The owners now have a $50,000 surprise," he said.
Appointments to Committees and Boards
Council approved the following appointments to Committees and Boards until the 2013 Organizational Meeting:
Subdivision and Appeal Board
Carol Brown
Randy Baker
Leonard McGlynn
Martha Paridean
Steve Maunsell
Agricultural Service Board
Dallis McGlynn
Tony Bruder
John Lawson
Susan Vogelaar
Municipal Planning Commission
Bev Garbutt
Dennis Olson
Agricultural Service Appeal Committee
Jacques Thouin
Dennis Olson
Bob Jenkins
Rip Rap rock request discussed
Gordon Carlson appeared before the MD of Pincher Creek No. 9 Council on November 6, 2012 requesting that Council provide him with 700 tons of rock to replace a similar amount he said the Municipal District had acquired from him in 1953. Mr. Carlson said there was a handshake agreement at that time indicating he would be supplied with the rock if he needed it in the future.
Mr. Carlson said he needed the rock to fortify the creekbank of the Pincher Creek, which runs through his property. MD Administration contacted an Approvals Engineer with Alberta Environment to provide information on the approval necessary for Mr. Carlson, as the project would require an approval under the Water Act and the Public Lands Act.
MD Council discussed the situation at the January 22 meeting. Councillor Garry Marchuk was in favour of helping Mr. Carlson with the approval process. CAO Wendy Kay said "We don't have any rock available ourselves right now. Councillor Terry Yagos warned of the danger inherent in setting a precedent. "There are a lot of other places where the MD has erosion problems," he said. Reeve Bjorn Berg said their might be complexities beyond the knowledge of the Council, including possible effects on fishery, stream flow, or flooding downstream. "All of that needs to be examined before doing anything," he said.
Gladstone Valley Road project kaput
Council approved a motion by Garry Marchuk to forward a letter to the residents within the Gladstone Valley to inform them that the Gladstone Valley Road Project will not be commencing at this time.
Boat Club Lease to be renewed
Council decided to inform Alberta Tourism Parks and Recreation that they have no objections to renewing the lease for the Canadian Wilderness Recreation Boat Club Society, which located north and east of Cowley.
Dead Stock Removal project
Director of Operations Leo Reedyk presented Council with a modified proposal for the Dead Stock Removal project. He suggested the MD pay $2000 maximum for 5 bins. "We would own the bins, for whatever use in the future including of course dead stock." Under this proposal the Waterton Biosphere Reserve would pay the dead stock removal costs. "We would own the bins and they would own the program. We would be able to ensure that any ongoing costs be on the Waterton Biosphere funding. Any further costs would be on the producers and not the MD."
Reedyk recommended the cost of the bins be covered by the Ag Services Board budget. He said the Ag Services board has $13,000 that came from the Province earmarked for the project.
The $2000 dollar price tag is based on a second prototype bin that was created by Boulder Metal Industries of Pincher Creek.
Council directed Administration to fine tune the wording of the proposal to include the source of funding.
Dust suppression requested
"This heavy traffic pulverizes and stirs up dust on the road. Each year we seem to be faced with a new and different operation to the west. Because the prevailing west wind causes massive amounts of dust to billow up each time a vehicle passes, we are faced with a dust problem."
"We note that there are a number of areas of the Christie Mines road that have had dust suppression applied that has been paid for by the M.D. - not necessarily those people who are adjacent to the area. I also note areas in other parts of the M.D. - at least 30 - where dust suppression has been applied at M.D. expense."
Reeve Berg suggested Council get some data on the road usage. The matter was tabled until a traffic count and an analysis of anticipated usage of the road is performed.
Landfill a sucker for refuse
Councillor Terry Yagos is also the Chair of the Crowsnest/Pincher Creek Landfill Association. He said the Landfill is continuing to do well. A truck mounted vacuum device was recently purchased and is being used to clean paper and other refuse from along the landfill fence where it regularly accumulates. He said the Landfill was working on increasing their recycling efforts, and that a recent meeting with the Pincher Creek Recycling operation was reassuring for the private enterprise. " We'll collect (recyclables) and give it to them. We want to encourage recycling, we don't want to interfere with them."
Excerpt from the Landfill Board November 21, 2012 meeting minutes:
The Landfill Association is eligible to apply for a grant under the Community Facility Enhancement Program. The funds would be used to construct a building for regional recycling collections, some of which could then be sent to existing recyclers within municipalities for processing and shipment.
Yagos said the Landfill is also looking into purchasing an incinerator, not immediately but looking to the future. He said that having one would help greatly with dead stock elimination, saving trucking fees and providing a disposal solution for a wider variety of livestock than the present plan can provide.
Town of Pincher Creek Director of Operations Al Roth attended the November 21 meeting and discussed the possibilities for collection and treatment of compostable materials. Roth suggested that curbside collection of compost in Pincher Creek could begin as early as 2015.
Burmis Lunbdbreck Corridor Plan
The Burmis Lundbreck Corridor Area Structure Plan (Bylaw 1228-12 passed third and final reading on January 8.
Related links:
Cowboys, Carnivores, and Dead Stock Removal
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