Title
Range Road 23 Gravel Pit Access Road
Recommendation
That the Governance & Priorities Committee direct Administration to abandon, reclaim and barricade the Range Road 23 Gravel Pit access road.
Body
Purpose
At the January 17, 2012 Governance and Priorities Committee Meeting Range Road 23 local area residents requested Council support the abandonment and removal of the Range Road 23 Gravel Pit access road.
Summary
Range Road 23 Gravel Pit is located along the north side of the North Saskatchewan River within the NE 1/4 Sec 33-50-02-W5M.
Parkland County received Provincial approval to construct an access road and extract gravel from this location through a License of Occupation (LOC) and a Surface Material Lease (SML) issued in December 1984 and January 1985 respectively. With that approval Parkland County constructed an access road from the end of Range Road 23 to the North Saskatchewan River Shoreline (gravel deposit) and started to extract and produce roadway traffic gravel in 1985. The extraction, production and hauling of gravel continued up to 1991 with an additional small amount being removed in 2002 as part of the SML reclamation construction.
The LOC and SML both require Parkland County to reclaim the area by contouring the property, replacing the organic soil and establishing a growth of vegetation on all disturbed areas. The majority of this work on the SML (gravel stockpile and extraction area) has been completed however the reclamation work on the LOC (access road) has not commenced to date. Administration, under the direction of Council, has postponed the LOC reclamation as a result of the public interest in maintaining access to this area for outdoor recreation.
In an effort to better understand the concerns brought forward by the adjacent local residents and the desire by other residents to maintain access and use of this area; Council directed Administration to organize a town hall meeting and report on the activities and potential solutions relating to the recreational use of this area. This resulted in a number of meetings and ongoing discussions with Council regarding their support for the continued use of this area or the abandonment and removal of the access road.
Administration scheduled a town hall meeting in September of 2008. As a result of that meeting and on strength of public input, Administration recommended to not remove the access road.
On November 4, 2008 the Governance and Priorities Committee (GPC) passed a motion to revise the Administrative recommendation to remove the access road permanently. Subsequent to that motion, Council received a petition from local residents asking that the access road not be removed. On November 25, 2008 Council tabled their decision on removing the access road and instructed Administration to hold another town hall meeting to gather further input from local residents.
On December 16, 2008 GPC defeated a motion to direct Administration to take the necessary steps to close the road that leads to the RR 23 Pit, as per the current reclamation plan.
On April 8, 2009 County Administration hosted another meeting at Hanson's Corner Community Hall to discuss the future of the area and access road. The meeting was attended by approximately 55 local residents with additional representation from both Administration and Council. This meeting gathered a variety of opinions and options. There were a number of emotional discussions and opinions voiced at the meeting which ultimately illustrated no clear consensus on what action the County should take.
On April 21, 2009 GPC defeated another motion to support the closure of the RR 23 Pit to all vehicle traffic not including OHV's. During that same meeting GPC passed a motion that the committee support and continue to allow the vehicular traffic into the area with an increased enforcement presence during specific times of the year.
As a result of that information, on May 12, 2009 Council defeated another motion to support the closure of the RR 23 pit to all vehicle traffic, not including OHV's, and to direct Administration to increase the enforcement presence during specific times of the year. Upon defeating that motion, Council passed a motion to support the continued vehicular traffic into the RR 23 Pit area with an increased enforcement presence during specific times of the year.
On October 11, 2011 Council passed a motion that directed Administration to develop a Day Use Park concept plan for the RR 23 Pit area. Newspaper ads were published (Dec 15, 30 & Jan 6) requesting public input to help guide the future use of the area as a recreation resource. The advertisement also stated an open house will be convened in early 2012 enabling residents the opportunity to provide their opinions.
On January 17, 2012 a group of local residents presented a list of their concerns to GPC. The group requested that Council direct Administration to immediately reclaim the access road and, close and securely barricade the road. They also requested that Council work with local residents in designing a future plan that will meet the needs, safety and expectations of the community through a consultation process.
As Council is aware, Administration is in the midst of gathering public input to assist in the future planning of this area and therefore removing the access road prior to the completion of that plan is considered premature and counterproductive to the process.
Administrative Position
Administration recommends the completion of the current public information survey and Day Use Plan options prior to making any decision on the removal of the Range Rd. 23 Gravel Pit access road.
Strategic Plan/Policy/Legal/Staff Implications
N/A
Other
Removal of the Range Road 23 Gravel Pit access road will negatively impact and likely preclude a decision to use the area as a Parkland County operated Day Use Park.