BARRHEAD- The County of Barrhead will soon have another campground.
Councillors approved an application by Barry Hennessey for a mixed-use, semi-service campground during their June 15 Municipal Planning Commission meeting.
The campground would have eight powered campsites, six cabins, a lodge and a small retail or ice cream shack. The campground also plans to have several tree houses available for rent.
Potable water and a septic dumping station will also be available on site.
The property is zoned as an Agricultural District and under the Land-use Bylaw campgrounds are permitted as a discretionary use.
Development officer Jenny Bruns noted the developer plans to place several garbage/recycling receptacles on-site, with their contents picked up regularly and disposed of at the Barrhead and District Landfill.
She added the development also fits in with the goals of the county's municipal development plan in that it recognizes the importance of recreational areas and historic resources in promoting the municipality to visitors and residents as a "viable place to live, work and play".
Access to the property is via Range Road 43 A off of Highway 33.
"I like it because it is next to a highway and no other residences are on that road, so dust control isn't an issue," Bruns said.
Coun. Walter Preugschas added he was pleased to see the applicant be able to make use of what would have been marginally productive agricultural land.
Reeve Doug Drozd asked if Alberta Transportation had any concerns due to the proximity of its accesses to Highway 33.
Bruns said no, noting the existing access has already been approved.
"It will be referred to Alberta Transportation for comment, but I don't expect anything will come from it," she said. "When we approved [Riverbank Resort] there were no issues."
Like Hennessey's development, Riverbank's access is off of Highway 33.
However, she said if Alberta Transportation put any restrictions or conditions that potentially impacted the municipality, they would add it as a condition of approval.
As such, Bruns said, it would be the responsibility of the developer to meet.
Drozd asked if construction of the campground would be done in phases.
"To some degree," Bruns said. "When I asked him if the application was his full build-out, he said yes."
However, she noted that Hennessey told her, more than likely, construction of the campsites, cabins, treehouses and the lodge would take place over time, with the pace largely dictated by demand.
"He has some room for RVs already," Bruns said, adding the construction of the lodge might be delayed due to the high price of lumber. "He is investigating getting a sawmill, so the campground will be very much self-built."
Barry Kerton, TownandCountryToday.com
