BARRHEAD - The County of Barrhead must do more work to determine if the municipally-owned land next to the Neerlandia wastewater lagoon is suitable for a community baseball diamond.
And if that is the case, they are willing to work with Neerlandia County Softball and the province to see if the land can meet the regulatory obligations to become a public recreation space.
During their June 20 meeting, councillors instructed administration to work with Alberta Environment and Parks (AEP) and Alberta Transportation (AT) to clarify what is needed to create a variance between the land and the county's newly-upgraded Neerandia wastewater lagoon site and then report back to council.
The decision followed a request from Neerlandia County Softball to use the property to construct a baseball/softball diamond.
In a May 30 letter, the organization asked if community members could construct the diamond with the aid of the municipality, which would provide in-kind contributions, such as the heavy equipment work needed to prepare the site.
They noted that the community has a long history of baseball and softball activity, most of which would occur on the diamonds at Neerlandia Public Christian School.
However, they noted that to accommodate the construction of the new school, they lost the largest diamond, and those that remained are effectively smaller due to the addition of playground equipment and therefore are only suitable for the youngest age levels.
While the location could be better, the group said they could build a diamond of roughly 300 by 300 feet, large enough to accommodate softball and baseball.
The county purchased the property in 2021 to add a second cell to the lagoon. However, much of the property is still available, including a vacant yard site and water well.
Unfortunately, county manager Debbie Oyarzun said it is more complex than saying yes to the organization.
She noted that a section of the Municipal Government Act (MGA), specifically ‘subdivision and development’, states that a development authority shall not issue a development permit for a school, hospital, or residence within 300 metres of the working area of an operating wastewater treatment facility.
"When we expanded the lagoon, we did have to ask for a variance as part of our application because just across (Highway 769), there were two residents just inside the 300 metres," Oyarzun said.
She added that to get the final go-ahead from the province, the residents had to give their approval saying they were OK being within the 300-metre radius.
The baseball diamond, if constructed, would be within 40 metres of the wastewater treatment facility.
However, a recent change to the legislation allows a reduction of the 300-metre setback if an application for a variance includes a professional engineering report stating that there are "no nuisances or concerns or, if they exist, they must have a mitigation plan in place."
The question is, Oyarzun said, is a baseball diamond included in the types of developments not allowed in the 300-metre radius?
"(A ball diamond) doesn't quite fit (what is listed), so we have a grey area," she said.
Oyazun added administration staff found municipalities that have been able to vary the setback around wastewater facilities with additional mitigation measures, such as brick wall-type fencing along with berms and other barriers.
"Then they were allowed passive recreation, such as treed areas and open park space," she said. "(Staff also found an example) where a boat launch was allowed about 80 metres from a wastewater facility and a baseball diamond within 275 metres and residences across the road within 225 metres."
The other part of the equation that council needs to consider, Oyarzun added, is the type of nuisances at that site, with odour being at the top of the list.
"Noise would be another nuisance," she said. "Then there is the liability and the potential for drowning. But having said that, a six-foot-high chainlink fence surrounds our lagoon area, so that should act as some deterrence."
Councillors Bill Lane and Jared Stoik asked if other security measures existed, such as trespassing signs or barbed wire on top of the fencing.
"If someone hits a ball over the fence, they are going to go get it," Stoik said.
Public works manager Travis Wierenga said no, but they would be easy to add.
Oyarzun also said if AEP, who is the ultimate authority, granted the variance, they would also need to find a not-for-profit organization to enter into an agreement with, noting the Neerlandia County Softball is not an official organization.
Stoik noted that would not be an issue as most of the informal group are also members of the Neerlandia Sports Committee, a recognized society.
Council then discussed the orientation of the diamond and who would be responsible for doing what in a potential agreement between the not-for-profit and the municipality.
