City boundaries are going to look very different once the annexation comes into play.
On Wednesday, Jan. 24, residents of the City of Cold Lake and MD of Bonnyville learned first-hand about the annexation agreement between the two municipalities.
According to Craig Copeland, mayor of the City of Cold Lake, this was a necessary step before submitting their annexation application to the Municipal Government Board (MGB).
“This file has been going on for a few years,” he said, adding residents can expect at least another year before any big changes.
Once the application has been approved and the land has been handed over to the city, Cold Lake's boundaries will take more of a rectangular shape.
However, Copeland stressed that's not the only purpose of the annexation.
Cosmetics are important to the city, but having control of their drainage corridor is also vital.
“Another part of the annexation that's really important is having control of the drainage corridors. Even though the lake is up in the north, a lot of water actually goes from north to south in Cold Lake… the annexation will allow us to make sure a lot of those drainage corridors are there,” Copeland explained.
With both councils in attendance, along with city staff, and representatives of ISL Engineering, residents had the opportunity to ask questions and learn more about the process, what's to come, and how it will impact their property.
Copeland said the turnout was a clear indication that residents wanted to learn more, whether they owned land in the annexation area or not.
Raymond Gillis is a Cold Lake resident. He attended the open house to learn about the agreement and how it will impact his community.
“I'm interested in the future of the city and its boundaries. I'm interested in what's being planned for the land that's going to be annexed; whether it's commercial or residential areas. It's mainly out of interest,” he said. “I also think it's important for citizens to get involved in what's happening in the community and to provide feedback so the correct decisions are made.”
Pat and Denis Laurin also attended the event with that goal in mind.
They live within the city's current boundaries, and were interested in finding out further details on the annexation.
“We just want to see where the city is going and see what they have planned,” Pat said.
Denis believes the annexation is necessary for the city, and is happy to see it coming together.
“At least we have a plan and are just not doing it willy-nilly and throwing up buildings here and there,” Pat added.
One item in particular residents were showing interest in, was how taxes were going to look.
“The big thing is if you own a quarter section that's in the annexation, your property tax isn't going to change. The idea is that it will be the lower of the two, between the city or the MD. I'm pretty confident the MD taxes will be cheaper, so it won't impact these residents,” Copeland explained. “When they sell the land, or want to develop it themselves, then that of course will trigger a change in everything. That's when it will all come to head.”
MD resident Josh Crick wanted to get a better understanding of the agreement and why it's happening at all.
Although he lives east of Ardmore and won't be physically impacted by the annexation, he believes the lands changing hands will have some affect on where he lives.
“It affects us. I'm part of the MD of Bonnyville,” Crick stated. “I'm just wondering what they're doing giving a bunch of land to the City of Cold Lake, or if it's high revenue land. I'm not really sure.”
The MD of Bonnyville also had councillors on-hand to discuss residents concerns and answer questions.
“We felt it was important to be here, because originally a lot of these people were our residents. A lot of them had concerns and possibly some hesitation with the annexation going on,” expressed MD of Bonnyville Reeve Greg Sawchuk. “Anytime we can get out there and engage with the community, I think we're doing a better job.”
Now, the city files their application with the MGB.
“Eventually, it goes to the board and people from both the city and MD will be involved,” Copeland said. “The whole process usually takes about a year. Because the MD is in agreement with it, I think overall it should go along very nicely. Hopefully a year from now, we will have a positive outcome.”
