The High River annexation agreement application is back in the hands of the Annexation Negotiation Committee (ANC) for further discussion and revision, following a Foothills County resident’s concerns.
County Council voted to postpone a decision regarding the High River annexation agreement at the May 22 meeting, after finding the agreement did not protect the interests of all County residents in the annexation zone. The annexation zone outlined in the agreement is comprised of 249 acres of County land, with the largest zone being in the northeast corner between 112 Street and Highway 2, south of 498 Avenue East.
In postponing a decision, the committee will convene to discuss the provisions of the agreement with respect to permitted and discretionary uses after the lands are annexed into High River.
While other residents in the zone who spoke at the council meeting in May said they anxiously await being part of the Town for development reasons, the issue in the agreement that prompted putting the ball back in High River’s court came down to land-use bylaw conflicts.
Having moved to the Foothills County eight years ago from Calgary, Myles and Kyla Ewankow have pursued their passion of country living in the far corner of the largest zone in question.
“Our family has invested time and money, as well as much blood, sweat and tears into our property as it is today, with the sole intent of enjoying our country lifestyle and making our home a better way for us and our children,” said Miles Ewankow. “If we cannot use our land as designed, what is the purpose of even owning it?”
They have on their property two horses, 25 chickens, two roosters, three dogs, and two cats, and enjoy country-living hobbies such as BB guns and archery— which is permitted under Foothills County bylaws, but not High River.
Under High River’s land-use bylaws, the Ewankows said they would have to significantly change the functioning of their land, costing them an estimated additional $14,000 a year in horse-boarding costs and the loss of food source from their chickens’ eggs.
After the Ewankows brought their objections to High River council, the council looked at omitting the property from the annexation before deciding to proceed with the annexation as planned, making no offers to mitigate the family’s concerns.
While the zoning of the land part of the annexation zones will remain unchanged until the Town amends it, the existing bylaws would come into effect immediately, impacting the use of the land.
Deputy Reeve Delilah Miller, who is on the annexation committee, felt that it was reasonable for the County to request an amendment to the annexation agreement that would exempt the family from the Town’s bylaws that would impact the current operation of the land for as long as the family owned the land.
“(The annexation committee’s) goal is to try to have an uncontested annexation, it just saves both municipalities a lot of money in the end if we don’t have to defend ourselves in a court situation,” said Miller.
She also expressed frustration that, though the County reiterated to the Town the importance of working with landowners and making accommodations, that no mitigations had been made prior to this late-stage of the process. She said they were “now back to square one.”
Heather Hemingway, director of planning for the County, said at the meeting in May that she felt it was the Town’s responsibility to offer a solution, and said the Town should exempt the property from the their land-use bylaws.
“This is their agreement, and they’re well aware of the concerns of this landowner,” she said. “It’s the Town annexing our property, our landowners, and the Town drafts the annexation agreement (…) they could have suggested amendments to this when these landowners went before them, but they did none.”
The annexation agreement will be revisited following the next committeee meeting, said Khalid Mohammed, manager of planning and development services for the Town of High River. From there, any changes recommended by the committee will be brought to both the Town of High River and Foothills County councils for approval.
“At the same time, the Town is flexible and willing to collaborate with the County in ensuring that the proposed annexation does not negatively impact property owners,” said Mohammed.
The annexation agreement will move forward after consideration and direction from the next committee meeting scheduled for September 2019.
