MOUNTAIN VIEW COUNTY - A special Mountain View County council meeting is scheduled to take place this week to consider a development permit application for the construction of eight buildings containing 80 vehicle storage units at Rocky Mountain Motorsports east of Carstairs.
A number of nearby residents have voiced concerns about the proposed development, including regarding noise.
The $34 million car racing recreation and training track facility is located at the intersection of Highway 2 and Highway 581 on a 385.64-acre parcel. It opened in September 2022.
The special meeting was scheduled for June 12 (after the Albertan's press time), with council expected to hear from delegations from the applicant and nearby landowners.
During the meeting, council members could ask questions of administration and any of the delegations.
Council is the approving authority for development permits within the direct control district where the facility is located.
Five of the eight buildings would house the storage units, and the three additional buildings would include wash bays and washrooms, minor infrastructure and additional sound mitigation including berm and fencing, according to information posted on the county’s website.
The proposed $20,000,000 project would see building sizes vary from 55 square metres to 3,113 square metres.
The application was submitted to the county on Feb. 13 and deemed complete on March 6, with the circulation dates from March 8 to 29.
Additional information was submitted on April 14 regarding sour gas, on May 5 for other matters and on May 12 for revised drawings.
Council approved the development permit for the first phase of the facility in 2019. The track began operations last year.
Rocky Mountain Motorsports officials and county administrators met with nearby landowners on Jan. 9 two discuss sound issues, concerns and potential options.
As of last week, the county had received 10 letters of objection and one letter of support for the latest application.
The letters of objection include concerns about track noise and additional noise mitigation measures, limits on noise, enforcement and season variances, as well as tax and economic benefit to the county.
The comments specifically related to the garage storage vehicle units include sour gas setbacks and safety, building standards, emergency response and fire safety, concern for residential occupancy, and bulk fuel storage on site.
The proposed development permit could come with more than 40 conditions.
In a request for decision posted on the county’s website, administration said it had received a letter from a lawyer representing six landowners requesting a postponement of the June 12 special council meeting to complete a sound levels report.
“After consultation with the reeve, administration confirmed that the meeting will proceed on June 12,” said chief administrative office Jeff Holmes.
The complete application as well as related documents can be found on the county’s website.
The matter of the development permit application is also scheduled to come before council at the June 14 council meeting.
