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County development clears capital board

A new 240-lot subdivision in the Sturgeon Valley moved a step closer to reality last week with a strings-attached approval from the Capital Region Board.

A new 240-lot subdivision in the Sturgeon Valley moved a step closer to reality last week with a strings-attached approval from the Capital Region Board.

The board approved the proposed plan in a near unanimous vote, but with the condition that Edmonton, Sturgeon County and St. Albert come to an agreement on a proposed alignment for a new road through the county running from Anthony Henday Drive to Highway 2 north of St. Albert.

The new road would be an extension of 127 Street, leaving Edmonton and veering east into the Sturgeon Valley near the boundary with St. Albert, before exiting onto Hwy. 2.

The proposed Sturgeon Heights development is located on the west side of Range Road 251, just north of St. Albert.

Sturgeon County Mayor Don Rigney said he is pleased with the end result, despite the time it took to arrive there.

"It is a time consuming process, but I am happy we were able to get it approved."

The board's regulations require municipalities not to pass third reading on certain proposed developments, including ones near significant transportation routes or municipal boundaries, before they receive board approval.

In this case, the county will have to sort out the alignment with St. Albert and Edmonton before giving developers the final go ahead.

Keith Ferguson, the landowner and developer of the project, said he realizes the board's concerns but hasn't seen any proposed alignment that would use his property.

"I understand clearly that there is a process. There are bigger issues beyond this development that the board has to consider."

Rigney said he is optimistic the three municipalities should resolve the issue quickly.

"We accepted this is a compromise and we will work forward to make sure we can get this done."

St. Albert Mayor Nolan Crouse said sorting out the alignment is something the county will have to lead.

"If they have money budgeted and people lined up then it won't be a long process."

He said the road is vitally important to the whole area and has to be planned right.

"It is a real critical road. It is the east side of St. Albert, the whole eastern bypass; it can't just come to a dead end somewhere."

Resolving this issue could pave the way for other developers in the valley, including the proposed Quail Ridge development with which the road could intersect.

Jodie Wacko, director of land development for Beaverbrook, the developer behind Quail Ridge, said he is hopeful about what the Sturgeon Heights decision could mean for his project, but he isn't sure what to expect from the Capital Region Board.

"I am going to keep my emotions in check until we have an approval, because it is such an interesting animal to work with."

He said to accommodate concerns about River Lot 56, railway crossings and the easiest possible crossing of the Sturgeon River, there is only one logical place for 127 Street, so he hopes the issue will be resolved quickly.

Water line

The lone dissenting voice at the board Thursday was from the Town of Morinville, which is concerned about the impact the new project will have on the regional water line.

Morinville contends it owns the water line with other municipalities having a right to capacity, but Sturgeon and Legal believe their rights include ownership in the line, not simply the water in it.

Morinville Mayor Lloyd Bertschi said the county is already overusing its share of the water and he objected to more development using it under those circumstances.

"There is a lot of capacity in that line. The problem is that Sturgeon County has 23 per cent of the capacity in that line and they are there."

Rigney said the board was not the appropriate area to air that dispute and Morinville's move was inappropriate.

"If they start bringing our local laundry here to wash then we are really in trouble. It will grind to a halt."

He said that dispute is making its way through the Alberta Utilities Commission and belongs there.

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