Strathmore doubles its size

http://www.strathmorestandard.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2575585

Kirsten Mundy

Standard Editor
The verdict was received by the end of April and the feelings about it are quite strong, but some aren't celebrating what the province thought Strathmore should annex, or how.
On April 30, at about 3 p.m. the town received confirmation that the Municipal Government Board (MGB) had released their verdict, and the result was very much in favour of Strathmore's requests.

"We are very, very excited about it," said Mayor George Lattery. "This is what we have strived for. It's been a long process but now that we have it, this is something that's going to last."
The 18.5 quarter sections of land being annexed should last about 50 years, based on the town's argument presented to the MGB last year about their 50-year plan. By doubling the size of Strathmore, the town should be able to handle a population of up to 50,000 people.
Seeing that much land change hands isn't what Wheatland County was hoping would happen when the verdict was released. Reeve Ben Armstrong explained that when developing their arguments and requests the county only followed the advice of Municipal Affairs and the Minister.
"We thought we were doing what they told us all the way through," said Armstrong. "It doesn't seem like they (the MGB) took anything we said or did into consideration."
That may seem true to those who read the document. It states a couple times that requests made by Wheatland County were outside the normal practice, and normal practice is exactly what the MGB ruled in favour of for every one of those requests.
"They've made their decision and we're going to have to live by it. We're not happy with it," said Reeve Armstrong. "We just have a few concerns when the government talks about conserving and protecting agricultural land, and it doesn't seem like that took much of that into consideration."
One of the more significant requests made by the county was to have a full 10-years worth of taxes forwarded to them. This would allow them to continue planning into the future, and means they wouldn't suffer financially because of the annexation. That request was denied though, in favour of the more historically common five-year declining compensation.

"100 per cent goes back to the county the first year, and every year it drops for five years, and at the end of the five years the county doesn't get any taxes," said Town CAO Dwight Stanford.

Those tax dollars will change significantly if land is developed, and that is what Mayor Lattery is hoping will start to happen right away.
"This council has been planning for this all along," said Mayor Lattery. "We are planning for the future. We've resolved the regional water line, we've resolved the waste water treatment, and now we've resolved the annexation. All those are done. There are many positives that are going to come out of this now. With the annexation being done, I'm sure the developers will be coming in."
Those developers will likely be responsible for some road development as well, which will gradually increase the area the town is expected to maintain. With the annexation, the town is equipped to plow and grade whatever roads require work for the coming year.
The cost of that work isn't in the 2010 budget, but Stanford said it shouldn't amount to be very much, and to accommodate that work the town might be over budget.
They will also be inheriting other responsibilities with this land, up to and including the fire service. Stanford said they are equipped for this expansion, but other changes may happen in the future.
As for an IDP, another request Wheatland County made that wasn't ruled in favour of, Mayor Lattery said the town will be working with the county to start one for the area. Because it will encompass such a large land base, it won't likely be completed before the election set for October.

Article ID# 2575585