INNISFAIL – Following years of preparation and then waiting for senior government approvals, the Town of Innisfail can finally begin industrial development on reclaimed sewage treatment plant and lagoon lands.
The news was briefly announced by Mayor Jean Barclay near the end of town council’s Agenda & Priorities Meeting on April 4.
“We’ve got the green light to go ahead on the industrial land development that we’ve been waiting on,” said Barclay. “That was really good news we’ve heard. It has been a long time.”
The senior government approval from the province is huge for the town as it has longed looked at the 60-acre property in the southwest corner of the town for industrial expansion, and more recently as the cornerstone for its long-term vision of the recently released Innisfail Economic Development Strategy & Tactical Plan, also known as Power of Place.
“It’s an important step for our economic development strategy when you see the focus is on manufacturing, energy and agri-business. This type of land in this zoning fits that perfectly. It’s a big step for us,” said Barclay.
“There has been a lot of work that has taken place on that land and not being able to move forward has been a huge barrier for us because we do have interested parties.
“Over the next while administration and council will be developing a vision for the industrial park. We’re just in the very early stages. It’s very exciting news for Innisfail.”
As the town was connecting into the South Red Deer Regional Wastewater System in 2015, reclamation began at the sewage treatment plant and lagoon lands south of 37 Street. It was a project, supported by provincial and federal grants, that cost more than $9 million, with millions more to be spent on redevelopment.
The town wanted to create an industrial park out of the reclaimed lands but there was a hitch of sorts with the joint funding contract it signed with the federal and provincial governments.
Todd Becker, the town’s chief administrative officer, said there were “limitations” on the contract in receiving federal and provincial dollars to remediate the lagoon lands, which prevented the town from moving forward with any development on the property for a period of five years following sign off.
He said the town had to meet certain environmental conditions to get formal sign off on that property.
However, there were delays getting approvals with the federal and former NDP provincial government, and in the early years of the UCP regime.
However, shortly after last October’s general municipal election Barclay met with Ric McIvor, the provincial minister of municipal affairs, at an Alberta Municipalities conference last November to discuss the problem.
“It was very positive,” said Barclay of the meeting.
Just over there months later in Innisfail, Barclay then had the chance, with support from Innisfail-Sylvan Lake MLA Devin Dreeshen, to meet with Premier Jason Kenney who was in town on March 2 to announce a four-year, $390-million broadband strategy.
“He was very interested. After that brief meeting we sent a letter to Premier Kenney and we got a response from him that he was reaching out to minister McIvor’s office and wanted to see this fixed,” said Barclay.
And then on March 30 the all-important and momentous call from the province’s municipal affairs ministry came in to the town – Innisfail no longer had to wait five years before sign off and it could begin industrial development immediately south of 37th Street.
“This is good news for the town of Innisfail and (we) definitely appreciate the work of the provincial government in their own areas of responsibility and their communications with the federal government to move forward with advancing this development,” said Becker, adding there were still issues to be sorted out.
“It’s still in the realms of discussions with the provincial and federal governments.”
As for the 60 acres of designated lands south of 37th Street, Meghan Jenkins, the town’s director of community services, said they have always been zoned industrial even during the many years it was functioning as the site of the town's sewage treatment plant and lagoon lands.
Jenkins said the town has prepared preliminary infrastructure concept plans for the future.
