In mid-February of this year, PARCS heard from a cottage owner at the RV of Pelican Pointe, describing his concern about a development that was being proposed, to be located between that RV and 4 other communities in the area.
The development proposal called for a "glamping" campground with a potential population larger than the total population of all the neighbouring communities together.
The caller spoke of his concern regarding the added congestion, the effect on water and road safety, and the environment, pointing out that the south-east lakeshore was already struggling with a dense population (whereas the lakeshore in the north-east was very open).
On. Feb. 23, PARCS received another letter telling us that the RM had denied the developer's discretionary use aplication (under the RM's Zoning Bylaw).
We received a copy of their on-line petition put out by the Last Mountain Neighbours: Across the Fence for Common Sense.
The petition opposed the development, voicing the following concerns:
- The increase in the infrastructure load,
- The security and policing concerns,
- The safety and fire-hazard concerns,
- The environmental unheaval to the wetlands and native prairie grasslands,
- The destruction of the habitat of native flora and fauna,
- The negative impact to the riparian shoreline, and
- The threat to the 'living heritage' of the land.
Since then, PARCS has learned that the developer made a 2nd application to the RM, and it was again denied - resulting in a 6-month postponement before the developer (or any other developer, for that matter, can return to make further demands on this lakeshore property.
PARCS was interested to hear that the RM has been holding a series of meetings to review their Strategic Plan, so that Council will have a clear vision about this land area, should the RM be approached regarding future use of these common lands.
