Kneehill council looks to combine parcels of land near Horseshoe Canyon

Written by Stu Salkeld

Kneehill county council agreed to direct their administration to pursue combining several pieces of public property at the south end of Horseshoe Canyon, during their regular meeting Apr. 14.

All councillors were present for the meeting although Coun. Glen Keiver and Coun. Debbie Penner attended the meeting electronically.

Council approved a motion for administration to pursue the road closure and consolidation of a portion of Township Road 28-4, which is an undeveloped road allowance adjacent to the south end of Horseshoe Canyon (more specifically the SW-27-28- 21-W4), and Road Plan 834 LK into descriptive plan 091 0342, Block 1, Lot 2.

Barb Hazelton, manager of Planning and Development, provided councillors with a brief on staff’s plan to combine several fragments of land into one title.

“Currently Kneehill County holds a 3.56-acre title to an area directly south of Horseshoe Canyon that has been fragmented by road plan,” stated Hazelton in her report to council.

“This parcel contains portions of the parking lot and a small portion of the canyon itself. The existing outhouses are on the boundary of the road allowance. The portion of the undeveloped township road runs through the parking lot, the turn around, a portion of the canyon and some of the enhanced trail down to the base.

“In 2007, Highway #9 was realigned and Alberta Transportation gifted us this parcel. 

Outhouses were added in 2008 and the parking lot was paved in 2010.

“Since we do not own the roads, we do not actually own some of the infrastructures that has been developed over time on the site.

“Closing these roads and consolidating them into the existing plan would enable the land to be utilized more efficiently and the outhouses could be moved or new ones constructed more feasibly.

“Currently they are not in compliance with the setback requirements in the Land Use bylaw.

“Consolidating these additional lands would bring the parcel size to approximately 7.5-acres,” said Hazelton.

Cost for the plan of survey is $2,860 plus tax.

Hazelton stated the price quote was the lowest of three submitted to the county and the project could come in even lower than that.

 

Stu Salkeld, Local Journalism Initiative reporter

ECA Review

About the author

Stu Salkeld

Stu Salkeld, who has upwards of 28 years of experience in the Alberta community newspaper industry, is now covering councils and other news in the Stettler region and has experience working in the area as well.

He has joined the ECA Review as a Local Journalism Initiative Journalist.

Stu earned his two-year diploma in print journalism from SAIT in Calgary from 1993 to ’95 and was raised in Oyen, Alta., one of the communities within the ECA Review’s coverage area.