MOUNTAIN VIEW COUNTY — County council has been given a presentation on the proposed Northern Lights RV Resort in the Water Valley-Winchell Lake rural district. The update came during the recent regularly scheduled council meeting.
Developer Richard Kimmitt is proposing a year-round membership RV campground with about 350 RV sites, tenting area, cabins/chalets, RV storage area, activities centre and day use areas.
The resort would be located on a 148.97-acre parcel at SW 15-29-5-5.
The facility would offer amenities including security, recreation centre, showers, toilets, laundry, playgrounds, swimming pools, snake bars, games, trails and water facilities such as splash parks and wading pools, he said.
The campground layout would include a central recreation area surrounded by serviced sites and a perimeter activity area for horseback riding, RV storage and day use.
Kimmitt said he plans to set up and monitor methods of attracting people to the area, oversee sales, implement policies to retain customer base, hire, train, motivate sales personnel, and lead sales.
He said he will also develop the contractual agreements, operating policies, and long-term plan for project sustainability.
The project development team will include Township Planning and Design Inc., Global Raymac Surveys, and Burloak Consulting and Marketing, he said.
Construction of roads, sites, power, water, buildings, activity centre, pools, and hot tubs will be done using local contractors wherever possible, he said.
The sales and construction phases are expected to take four or five years to complete, he said.
Coun. Peggy Johnson asked Kimmitt whether adjacent neighbours have been consulted about the proposed project. He said not yet.
Coun. Al Kemmere asked Kimmitt about point of access to the property. He said it would be via Rge. Rd. 292.
Coun. Greg Harris asked if a layout of the proposed facility is available. Kimmitt said not yet.
“We thought it was better to not come in with a rough sketch that was not properly and professionally done at this time,” he said.
Reeve Bruce Beattie said consultation with adjacent neighbours would be a necessary part of moving the project forward.
“We have policies in place that our residents expect us to follow,” said Beattie.
Administration has recommended that applicant concurrently apply to predesignate the lands to a P-PR Parks and Recreation District that is appropriate for the proposed development and proposed uses, and amend the area structure plan to identify the lands as commercial recreation.
In order to proceed with a developer-initiated area structure plan amendment, policy and procedure 6006 requires the developer to appear as a council delegation to seek consent to proceed with an area structure plan amendment that includes public engagement, council heard.
A servicing study, traffic impact assessment and stormwater management plan are recommenced to support the concept plan, council heard.
At the July 14 council meeting, councillors may consider whether the developer can proceed with the concurrent area structure plan amendment and redesignation application supported by a concept plan.
“We have deferred this item to July 14 and at that point we will have the discussion,” said Beattie.
Council received the delegation report as information.