Thoughts on Canmore council decision

Editor:

I'd like to thank council for its decision-making process last week regarding the rezoning proposal adjacent to Peaks of Grassi. Perhaps because I am not an immediate neighbour of the Peaks area and feel no direct impact from the decision, my thanks are less for the decision itself than for how the decision was made.

One of the most challenging issues any council may face is weighing the community's interest against the interests of a landowner. The portion of the Municipal Government Act that addresses planning matters (Section 17) explicitly provides councils with the authority to infringe on the rights of individuals “to the extent that is necessary for the overall greater public interest.”

However, what constitutes “greater public interest” will necessarily be subjective and rely on the intimate and extensive knowledge and community experiences individual councillors bring to bear on a particular decision.

This proposal generated strong feelings with considerable uncertainty and anxiety for many participants over several months. That may always be the price to be paid for a democratic process.

In this case, I believe council should be commended for raising and openly debating the difficult and subjective issue of community interest during their Feb. 3 meeting.

Canmore is periodically criticized for being a difficult place for developers to obtain approvals. I would suggest that such “difficulty” is a result of the Town's high standards – standards that go beyond black and white regulations and include broader subjective policies that address the long-term welfare of the whole community.

Council will continue to be faced with complex and difficult decisions that will affect the Town for generations – why would we lower such standards?

Steve de Keijzer,

Canmore