A new draft of the northeast St. Albert area structure plan (ASP) has been made public, more than two years after being initially released for feedback from residents and affected landowners.
ASPs are legally required planning documents that dictate how much and what kind of development will take place in a certain area. Normally, developers will produce an ASP, which is then presented to municipal councils for amendments and approval.
The NE St. Albert ASP covers a chunk of undeveloped land with a northern border of Township Road 544, which is the city limit; western borders of St. Albert Trail as well as Erin Ridge North; eastern border of the future alignment of 127th Street; and a southern border of the Sturgeon River.
In all, the NE St. Albert ASP covers nearly 300 hectares of land, including River Lot 37. The ASP is being developed by Invistec Consulting on behalf of local developer Landrex, which is one of at least eight different landowners that will be affected by the ASP.
In the fall of 2021, during a public engagement session hosted by Invistec, landowners and nearby residents shared their concerns with the initial concept plan — namely, the alignment of Neil Ross Road shown in graphics. As a result, according to the new draft published in December on the City of St. Albert's Cultivate the Conversation platform, Invistec met further with affected land owners and the city, and it was determined the proposed alignment in the initial draft was based on an old city plan. The new draft of the ASP contains an updated alignment in accordance with an update made to St. Albert's Municipal Development Plan in 2022.
Other than a new alignment of Neil Ross Road, the new draft of the NE St. Albert ASP is largely the same as the first draft, although a host of new supporting documentation and reports are now available, such as a traffic impact assessment and a new engineering design brief.
In an email, Invistec's manager of planning, Stephen Yu, said the new draft also includes some minor changes to the land-use concept to reflect feedback from adjacent land owners.
“NE St. Albert will set a new standard for neighbourhood design by incorporating a greater mix of non-residential land uses to help achieve a complete community in northeast St. Albert,” the new draft reads. “The plan area will provide residents the ability to live, shop, and work in the same neighbourhood, and is supported by a variety of housing choices, protects significant natural areas, and provides different employment opportunities for all residents.”
“NE St. Albert is anticipated to be developed over the next 25 years, with initial development likely occurring in the northwest portion of the plan area.”
Of the nearly 300 hectares of land covered under the ASP, the new draft shows some 17.5 per cent will be planned for employment areas; residential and mixed-use residential development will cover nearly 33 per cent; roadways cover 20 per cent of the area; and municipal reserve (school sites, public parks, and environmental reserve) represents 19.5 per of the developable area.
The remaining 10 per cent is planned for stormwater management ponds and public utility lots, the new draft shows. About 6.25 hectares of land will be environmental reserve (River Lot 37).
“NE St. Albert supports the city's desires by providing employment opportunities and goods and services throughout the neighbourhood in most of the policy areas,” the draft says. “These areas are also typically located along major transportation routes, amplifying their visibility and accessibility to both local and regional customers.”
An attached Technical Report produced by Invistec says given there are so many land owners being affected by the ASP, “obtaining owner's authorization and consensus from all landowners ... may not occur.”
In an email, city spokesperson Lindsay Chambers said Alberta's Municipal Government Act affords city council the authority to adopt an ASP without landowner support, although “it is not the preferred course of action.”
Likewise, Yu said landowners have had more than two years to provide feedback.
“While this is typical in preparing any [ASP], Invistec and the city have consulted with landowners and their consultants who reached out,” Yu said.
“As such, the land-use concept incorporates the feedback received to date.”
Residents had until Jan. 10 to ask questions about the new draft online.
“Feedback received by January 10, 2024 will be shared with [Invistec] to consider, and will be provided to council in advance of first reading,” the ASP's Cultivate the Conversation page says.
First reading for the ASP has not been scheduled yet.
