City of Cranbrook council Monday night discussed the concerns raised about road access by the residents of Wildstone at the public rezoning hearing held on October 20.

“Mayor and council heard the concerns from the residents at Wildstone about road access loud and clear,” said Mayor Wayne Price. “Council has directed staff to plan for and facilitate the creation of a secondary road connection to the private portion of Wildstone Drive.”

The need for multiple access points to the Wildstone development since its inception have been included in both the Official Community Plan and the Wildstone Neighbourhood Plan. However, since the original vision for Wildstone was set, there have been changes in both land ownership and development plans for the remaining vacant parcels in Wildstone.

No specific timeline has been set as to when this second road access is to be dedicated or completed, as it will depend on future development.

The city has several ways to secure public road dedication for new roads, with the most common being through the subdivision approval process where the approving officer approves the layout of new development lots and roadways.

Other options could include buying or negotiating for the road right-of-way, expropriating the land, or using new authority tied to building permit applications. These approaches would still require substantial taxpayer funding for any purchase or expropriation of land to build the road.

The city recognizes the need for future access roads to the Wildstone community as shown in the OCP Road Network.

Using the Subdivision & Development Servicing Bylaw and provincial legislation, the Approving Officer can require road dedication and construction as part of any new development, with new development driving the need and creation of secondary road access.

City of Cranbrook

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