BOWDEN – Town council has taken the first step toward a project that could result in redevelopment of the former Bowden Nurseries property and its annexation into the town.
Council gave first reading to a bylaw changing the Intermunicipal Development Plan (IDP) between the town and surrounding Red Deer County that covers that property.
Under the proposal, use of the property, located just north of town along Highway 2, would change.
Currently, a good chunk of the property is designated residential and a triangular portion in the southeast portion of the land is designated commercial.
If the proposed change is approved, that residential portion would be eliminated, replaced by commercial. So about two-thirds of the property would be designated for commercial use and about a third would remain available for industrial use.
A rectangular chunk of residential land would still exist directly to the west of the property.
A public hearing on the bylaw is slated for March 5, 7 p.m. in town council chambers. Red Deer County is also holding a public hearing on the proposed change to the IDP on March 6 at 1:30 p.m.
The bylaw still has to come back for second and third reading in order for the proposed change to be approved. The same applies in Red Deer County.
Red Deer County long range planner Ron Barr attended the Jan. 8 Bowden council meeting where the IDP alteration came up for first reading.
"If there are people who wish to come in and speak to it; if they wish to debate it, that is the time to do it,” he said.
During an interview later, Bowden chief administrative officer James Mason said under the IDP, "if this development goes ahead, the town and the county have already agreed years ago that the town will annex this property.”
Mason stressed even if the bylaw is approved, that doesn’t mean development will occur there right away – if at all. There are still many steps to follow.
"Like I say, it’s very overarching,” he said. "Because once this IDP goes through, there’s another thing, which is the local area structure plan, where they take that piece and they plan it down into smaller pieces, and then that has to be approved.
"And of course, it goes even farther than that. Once that’s been approved and somebody decides they’re actually going to build something on that property, that has to be approved. So it’s kind of death by legislation; I don’t know what you call it. But it’s how everything’s being done.”
In 2016, Sundre-area farmer Paul Leussink bought the site, along with 90 nearby acres, for an undisclosed price.
His plans for the area include creating a dog kennel and pet resort. He also wants to develop much of the 90 acres he purchased along Highway 2 into a highway-commercial zone that includes a full service truck stop and gas station.
The area formerly housed Alberta Nurseries and Seeds Ltd. which also went by other names dating back to 1922. The abandoned facility was trashed by vandals last September.
James Mason, chief administrative officer for the Town of Bowden
"It's kind of death by legislation; I don't know what you call it. But it's how everything's being done."
