County council has given a tentative thumbs-up to a proposed development on the site of the Peas On Earth farm.
Council voted 4-2 this week in favour of changes to its municipal development and Sturgeon Valley area structure plans that would pave the way for the proposed Green Hennessy subdivision. Councillors Karen Shaw and Tom Flynn were opposed.
Council also voted 5-1 in favour of the subdivision's outline plan, with Shaw opposed. Mayor Don Rigney abstained from all three votes as he had not been part of the public hearing for the development.
A group of investors led by Bill Minnes of Bradwill Consultants wants to build about 57 homes, a health centre/spa and a day care on the land currently occupied by the Peas On Earth farm, which is located on Sturgeon Road across from Allin Ridge Estates. The owners of that farm have publicly supported the project, saying that it would give them more opportunities for agri-business.
Councillors have raised concerns about how this development would affect the neighbouring Crozier dairy and farm, which was established in 1898. The dairy occasionally spreads manure on its fields, and councillors worried that future residents would complain about the smell.
The Capital Region Board has approved the plan, said Collin Steffes, county planning and development manager, and any drainage or visual concerns could be addressed with berms and fences. Other issues, such as roads and the expansion of the Allin Ridge reservoir, could be worked out at the subdivision stage.
"The biggest thing is to avoid the complaints," he said, in reference to the dairy. This could be addressed by putting a caveat on all the lots in the area that would alert buyers to the presence of the farm and its associated dust, smells and noise, and forbid them from using their land in ways that interfere with its use.
Council did not elect to bring in such a caveat.
What about the farm?
Shaw noted that other properties in this region have similar caveats, and that hasn't stopped their residents from complaining about the dairy. "[Crozier Dairy's] ability to operate will be impeded by this development," she said. "Their future shouldn't be in peril because of an acreage subdivision."
Council should not proceed with this project without an understanding of its effects on the dairy, Flynn said.
"I don't think we're doing the right thing by allowing this to go forward."
This proposal is a good fit for the Sturgeon Valley, said Coun. Dave Kluthe, and council, which already has a moratorium on development in Cardiff, could have stopped this proposal long ago if it had a problem with it.
"Are we open for business in the county or not?"
Les Crozier, co-owner of Crozier Dairy Ltd., said he was resigned to the fact that growth pressures would force them to move out eventually, but would have preferred to have this proposal go ahead when his family was ready to go. This development would definitely need fences and berms to keep kids off their farm.
"There's dangerous equipment we use out there," he said, and they didn't want people running through the cornfield when they were, say, swathing.
But a berm won't stop the smell of manure, Crozier said, and he questioned whether the developers fully understood that risk. They aren't spreading manure near the proposed development now, but would likely do so in a few years.
Minnes said he was pleased by council's decision and would bring a subdivision application to council later this spring. If that's approved, site work could start as early as this fall.
