Dear Editor,
Foothills County will be considering approval of the Highfield and Rowland Acres Area Structure Plan, a plan for a development east of Aldersyde with a population of 16,000, at a public hearing on May 28.
Many residents in the area will be voicing their concerns at the hearing. Isolated high density cluster subdivisions with little or no commercial infrastructure have no place in the county.
To be clear about future plans, council must develop a plan for the central district growth corridor which is acceptable to the residents of the county. The creation of a central district plan was earmarked by the County as a priority in 2013, but as yet no plan exists.
The plan should be sufficiently detailed so that cluster subdivisions, having populations half the size of Okotoks, are not dumped on the doorstep of existing acreage communities.
Council must also develop a framework of policies which prevent planning from being developer driven. To do this, council needs to enter into a new dialogue with residents of the county to determine the direction of future growth.
The residents must have a continuing say in the location and magnitude of development in the county, and not just at election time.
Doug Lord
Foothills County
