Airdrie and Rocky View to host open houses

The City of Airdrie, along with the County of Rocky View, will be hosting Airdrie annexation open houses, Sept. 9, at the Airdrie’s Town and Country Centre and Sept. 15, at the Balzac Community Hall, from 5 to 8 p.m.

Interested and affected residents are encouraged to attend to ask questions and provide feedback to the Airdrie annexation process, which will potentially include more than 11,000 acres of land to the west, north and east of Airdrie’s current city limits.

“The first two sessions are just the kick-off to the public input process,” said Naren Garg, Airdrie senior city planner. “We are hoping to provide the annexation negotiation team a forum to interact with interested parties, including businesses and potentially affected landowners.”

According to Garg, administrative representative planners and senior leadership from the City and Rocky View County will be in attendance.

Some new information regarding potential changes to the annexation boundaries will be available.

Future public input will likely be garnered through additional, more focused meetings dealing with landowners’ individual concerns, according to Garg.

“Overall in the next few months, we envision more detailed and focused public input,” said Garg. “The outcomes of the process will be reported back to the public.”

Garg said small changes to the boundaries are likely, as the team strives to ensure continuity in land ownership.

“We are trying to be as accommodating as possible,” said Garg.

Linda Ratzlaff, Rocky View County manager of policy and land use, agreed.

“What we have been trying to do over the years is work annexation…so the public sees there is some commonality, that the municipalities are working together to the common interest of the residents,” said Ratzlaff.

Ratzlaff encourages affected landowners to attend the open houses.

“This is the best place to start airing your concern so that the grassroots right here at home can hear you, and then make decisions that are again in the best interests of both municipalities and taking into account the affected residents concerns,” she said.

The first two meetings of the Annexation Negotiation Team, which consists of staff and elected members of Rocky View County and Airdrie, were held on July 26 and 29 to begin the annexation process, which the City estimates will be effective in late 2011 or early 2012.

Most of the areas proposed for annexation will eventually become residential, commercial and industrial developments, although firm plans are not in place. Airdrie began the annexation process in early 2010.

Negotiations will include taxation, assessment and service delivery. When they are complete, an application will be submitted to the Province’s Municipal Government Board for consideration, which could take anywhere from six to 18 months.

For more information on the annexation process, contact Garg at 403-948-8800 (ext. 8774), or visit www.airdrie.ca/annexation