After hearing from residents, investors and business owners, Foothills County has postponed its decision on rezoning land north of Okotoks for the relocation of High River Toyota.
Council held a public hearing Jan. 22 on an application from High River Toyota to have land at Highway 2A and 322 Avenue redesignated from country-residential to direct control district to accommodate a car dealership as the business looks to move from High River to the Okotoks area.
Toyota owners said the move has been coming for eight years and they were looking for the right piece of land to house their project, which would include a five-acre dealership parcel and a realigned service road (15 Street E.).
“We’ve had some challenges over the years with finding property that would be appropriate,” said Vaughn Thibault, dealer development manager with Toyota Canada. “We did find one piece of property (in Okotoks) at one point but because of water table issues the cost was going to be astronomical.
“This particular piece of property, the opportunity came forward to us and the location, the traffic flow through to Calgary is very strong.”
He said the reason for the proposed move out of High River was that most of the market for the dealership was concentrated around Okotoks and Calgary, and being on Highway 2A would situate the business in a central position for its clientele.
With both the Okotoks Honda and GM dealerships just south of the proposed property, he said there is proof auto sales lots work in the area.
He said the company has been trying to work with residents in the area, hearing concerns and putting policies and plans in place to alleviate those complaints.
The main reasons neighbours were speaking out included lighting, test driving, loss of views and increased traffic.
Toyota had planned to install traffic signals on Highway 2A even though Alberta Transportation identified they wouldn’t be necessary for several years, but it was informed by the government that upgrade would not be supported.
“Unfortunately, Alberta Transportation’s response was that they would not permit any signal before it is warranted at that intersection,” said Jack Moddle, an agent with B&A Planning Group who spoke on behalf of Toyota.
In addition, to help traffic flow, Toyota proposed rerouting 15 Street, having the access onto the service road moved to the west and creating an s-curve around the dealership lot before rejoining the existing road.
Ted Simper, the current landowner since 1986, said he thought the proposed dealership would be a “well-planned, well-built, attractive development.”
He said talks with Toyota had been going on for a few years, with serious consultations occurring for the past year and a half. During that time, he and his wife decided they would prefer to continue living in their home on the property, immediately west of where the lot would be.
“Frankly, we’re convinced they’re going to be good neighbours,” said Simper. “If they weren’t good neighbours we wouldn’t have any interest at all in living there, but we do.”
Grant Hill, who also lives in the area, spoke in favour of the development, saying he had weighed the pros and cons and the pros had come out on top.
“It’s a super spot, I think, for a dealership,” said Hill. “There’s low overhead there compared to other spots. There are other commercial ventures nearby, both to the north and to the south.”
A group of 33 landowners signed a letter of petition against the dealership, and were represented by Jay Brockhoff, whose family is immediately adjacent to the subject property.
He said they were concerned about the potential environmental impact due to a high water table and inevitable run-offs of debris, oils and chemicals from the lot, as well as a spike in the level of traffic in and out of 15 Street.
“The car dealership will put a strain on the existing infrastructure and have a negative impact on the overall community,” said Brockhoff. “Many residents like us enjoy running, walking, biking on those roads around the community will not be able to do it anymore.”
Residents in the area are not opposed to development on the land in general, he said, but don’t feel a car dealership works there.
“This does not fit in that community,” said Brockhoff. “It does not fit with the vet clinic, the farmer’s market, the school or the church, the storage facility. It’s completely different. They’re all dark at night.”
He said for him and his wife, Nicole, it’s about family and community, and maintaining the lifestyle they chose to raise their three children.
“We have invested in this acreage and we don’t really want to leave,” said Brockhoff. “If this dealership is approved, sadly we will be leaving. We will leave this community and we will move.”
His sentiments were echoed by Cory Hathaway, who now resides in the Copperfield community of Calgary but recently purchased a vacant lot in the area with the intent to build an acreage home for his young family.
“We were not aware this dealership was going in, this was a surprise to us,” said Hathaway. “We’re definitely rethinking our plans.”
Cathy Huth, who lives across Highway 2A from the property, said she’s in direct line of sight and would prefer not to look out on a tall glass structure and parking lot.
“I chose to purchase the property on the east side looking west primarily because of the beautiful mountain view of the area, and I don’t want to necessarily look at a car dealership,” said Huth.
Many residents spoke out against traffic concerns, citing current issues as well as potential dangers that could creep up due to the volume of visits to the dealership, which Toyota estimated to be approximately four trips per hour of business.
Right now, crossing Highway 2A at 332 Ave. is difficult, and many people travel south to 338 Ave., where there is no left-turn access from 15 Street, causing a number of drivers to turn right and then make a u-turn in order to turn onto the highway at the traffic lights.
Ken Marchant, an area resident who is also a retired police officer, said the traffic impact is being underestimated.
“In my opinion, the biggest issue if you’re not going to put lights at that 322 Ave. intersection we’re going to see fatalities like we did at the other intersection at 338 Ave.,” said Marchant.
Furthermore, he said though Toyota promised to be a good partner and neighbour to the community, he said it’s difficult to believe given the history in the area.
“We’ve already been stung by the other dealerships,” said Marchant. “All the promises that were made when they put in the GM dealership there, the test drives, the lighting. I’m sorry, but I’m sceptical.”
County council will continue its discussion and make a decision on the rezoning application at its regular meeting on Feb. 5.
