High River has joined the MD of Foothills on the outside of the Calgary Regional Partnership (CRP) after town council voted to withdraw from the organization.
The move is now raising questions over whether or not the provincial government will step in and force the municipalities back into the partnership and even legislate a plan to guide growth in the Calgary region.
High River town council voted 4-2 on Monday to withdraw from the Calgary Regional Partnership.
High River Coun. Betty Hiebert said it’s a good move for the town.
“I have been dead against this from the very beginning,” she said.
In a letter to Municipal Affairs Minister Doug Griffiths and CRP chairman Truper McBride High River council expressed concerns over the growing size of the organization and salaries for CRP staff. Council also expressed its support for concerns raised by the MD of Foothills.
High River joins the MD of Foothills and Rocky View and Wheatland Counties, which abandoned the CRP in 2009 over concerns about loss of autonomy on development decisions, high densities required under the Calgary Metropolitan Plan (CMP) and the organization’s voting structure, which many argue gives the City of Calgary veto power.
Hiebert admitted the Province could now force High River into the CRP and legislate a regional plan.
The provincial government did just that when the former Alberta Capital Region Alliance in the Edmonton area fell apart in 2007. The Province then created and imposed the Capital Region Board and stipulated which municipalities would be a part of the plan.
However, rather than forcing a plan some municipalities in the Calgary region don’t support, Hiebert said she hopes the Province will listen to the concerns being raised by High River and the rural municipalities.
“This, as much as anything, is being referred to as a shot across the bow,” she said. “Pay attention here, there’s something wrong.”
High River Coun. Jamie Kinghorn, who voted for High River to remain in the CRP, said the Town could have worked to address its concerns as a member of the partnership.
“I understand and appreciate there’s some problems within the organization and some issues that need to be addressed,” he said. “However, I find it better and my experience tells me that when you’re within an organization you’re more effective of creating change.”
Kinghorn said decisions made by the City of Calgary will impact High River and the Town needs to be at the table.
McBride said High River’s decision was a surprise to the CRP membership.
“These were issues that were never raised at the board table and High River and Mayor (Emile) Blokland voted to support the business plan and the staffing model and all of the other financial pieces,” he said.
McBride said the CRP will continue on as it has without High River and the town is welcome to return in the future.
The provincial government recently called for mediation between the CRP and rural municipalities to try to resolve concerns over the plan and expects High River will be part of the process.
McBride said the CRP has long hoped municipalities would come together to collectively create a plan everyone can agree with.
If municipalities can’t come together to create an agreement on their own, he said he thinks the Province will step in.
“The minister (Municipal Affairs Minister Doug Griffiths) has said it will not be allowed to fail, that tells me that if we don’t come to an agreement then we will be given an agreement,” he said.
MD of Foothills Reeve Larry Spilak said High River’s decision shows the provincial government the towns and smaller municipalities within the CRP have serious concerns about the CMP.
“It’s good that these people come forward and take these positions because it’s the only way the minister is going to see really how effective this plan is and how many of the participants are not quite pleased with the way things are,” he said.
Spilak said he expects to see other municipalities following High River’s lead and choosing to leave the CRP in the coming weeks.
Okotoks Mayor Bill Robertson said the decision won’t affect the relationship between Okotoks and High River and the joint initiatives in place between the two municipalities.
Yet, he said he is disappointed High River chose to leave the partnership.
“It’s the Calgary Regional Partnership, personally I’d like everybody in the region to be on board,” said Robertson, who is also the CRP’s secretary-treasurer.
Robertson said its too early to say if the mediation will be successful in resolving outstanding disputes over the CRP and whether or not the Province will force municipalities into a regional plan.
“The mediation is just starting, so I’m hopeful they’ll be able to arrive at a consensus and come to a common ground,” he said.
