Although some Mountain View County residents are preparing a petition against a proposed motorsports facility, municipal officials say that's not necessary.
Tracey Connatty, a planner with Mountain View County, said just one signature on any petition objecting to a proposed development in the county is enough to get the attention of municipal officials.
“Council allows the opportunity for all adjacent landowners to voice their concerns,” said Connatty.
“We don't regulate, like you have to have X number of signatures, that's not something we regulate. We want everybody to have the opportunity to identify to council that their concerns are whatever they are.”
Rocky Mountain Motorsports officials recently submitted an application for a direct control district re-designation under the municipality's land use bylaw to build a multi-million dollar motorsports facility in the county.
The proposed location is on the southeast corner where Highway 2 and Highway 581 intersect, just east of Carstairs.
But landowners adjacent to the property are already preparing a petition against the proposal.
Lou Nail, Shelly Beyak, David and Shirley Koosey, Trudy Reap and Susan Campbell own properties near the proposed location and are against the development for various reasons.
Those reasons include noise and smell coming from the facility, decrease in property value, and safety for drivers on highways 2 and 581.
They also expressed concerns with possible vandalism and theft, policing, fire, pollution, disturbing wildlife and people driving home drunk.
Rocky Mountain Motorsports president Dominic Young said noise studies have been conducted and he believes the facility will actually create safer roads.
The proposed facility would include a three- to five-kilometre track, an area for training schools, an area for the Calgary Police Service to train officers, storage space for vehicles and an area for businesses to set up shop.
He said the land is owned by a private individual and Rocky Mountain Motorsports is currently in negotiations to purchase it.
He said the facility will cost roughly $60 million to build and the organization has raised money through private equity.
Connatty said the parcel of land has been slated for commercial use in the county's Wessex area structure plan that was adopted in October; however, the southeast corner is not.
She said Rocky Mountain Motorsports officials have requested an amendment to the area structure plan for that section, which is part of the application.
The county's Municipal Development Plan has designated that area for future economic growth, she added.
The application is currently being circulated to various stakeholders and adjacent landowners for 30 days.
“And then after that 30 days, if there's questions or concerns or objection letters come in, we compile a package of all the documents and it goes back to the applicant,” she said.
“And then the applicant reviews it and replies to the county and then at that time we start looking at scheduling a public hearing.”
The application requires first, second and third readings from council and a public hearing is usually held after first reading is given.
Young opened up a temporary satellite office on 10th Avenue in Carstairs two days a week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays, for residents to express any concerns with the development during the application process.
"We want everybody to have the opportunity to identify to council that their concerns are whatever they are."Tracey Connatty,Mountain View County
