3. THAT the Mayor and Corporate Officer be authorized to execute all documentation relating to this matter.

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1 COUNCIL REPORT Report No. EDP June 14, 2010 File No: /A Executive Committee To: Mayor and Council From: Ron Hintsche, Manager, Development Planning Subject: Agricultural Land Commission application for property located at 2663 Station Road Fraser Valley Aggregates Ltd., Inc. No (Gary Bailey) Bentley Aviation Ltd., Inc. No (Herb Feischl) First Effort Investments Ltd., Inc. no (Caroline Meyer, Wolfgang Meyer, Stephanie Meyer, Christopher Meyer) RECOMMENDATIONS 1. THAT Report No. EDP , dated June 14, 2010, from the Manager, Development Planning, regarding an Agricultural Land Commission application to exclude land from the Agricultural Land Reserve for property located at 2663 Station Road, be received; 2. THAT application /A be forwarded to the Agricultural Land Commission with endorsement for support, subject to the following compensation package to support the proposed ALR exclusion: (a) Providing a Letter of Credit in the amount of $625,000, to secure for the rehabilitation of the south 10.1 ha of the subject property to an Agricultural Capability Class suitable to establish agricultural activities, as determined by a professional agrologist; (b) Inclusion into the ALR, the 16.6 ha property, located at Bell Road, in the community of Dewdney; and (c) registration of a Section 219 right to farm covenant on title of the lands to be excluded; and 3. THAT the Mayor and Corporate Officer be authorized to execute all documentation relating to this matter. BACKGROUND Proposal: The applicant requests approval of an ALC application to exclude the north 8.0 ha of the subject property from the ALR for urban residential uses. The site location is shown in Figure 1, and the proposed ALR exclusion is shown in Figure 2. City Council must determine whether or not the application should be allowed to proceed to the ALC, and if forwarded, whether to provide additional comment. Applicant: Sanderson Planning Ltd.

2 Report No. EDP Page 2 of 5 Owners: Legal Description: OCP Designation: Zoning: Lot Area: Site Description: Fraser Valley Aggregates Ltd., Inc. No ; Bentley Aviation Ltd., Inc. No , and First Effort Investments Ltd., Inc. No Lot 1 Section 20 Township 13 NWD Plan LMP30537 Agricultural Agricultural One Zone (A1) 18.4 ha (45.5 acres) The subject property is occupied by one residence in the central portion, and several outbuildings in disrepair. The south portion of the property was previously mined for aggregates, and today remains a low depression with ponding in places. Surrounding Uses: N: Five rural residential parcels one (1) ha in area flanking the northeast boundary of site S: Simpson Road road allowance (unconstructed), and poultry farm beyond E: Poultry farm at south end, & auto parts recycling yard W: Township of Langley boundary, with vacant forested areas and Bertrand Creek, and a nursery operation ANALYSIS 1. The property is located within the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) and is designated Agricultural in the Official Community Plan (OCP). The Agricultural designation of the OCP means land that is reserved for farming and for agriindustrial uses that serve and support agriculture. 2. Current City policy as it relates to this application is based on the recommendations of the AAC s Position Paper on Enhancing the Agricultural Economy, which outlines a number of City-related initiatives to strengthen agriculture in Abbotsford. Under the theme, protecting the agricultural resource base, it is recommended that City decision-making be based on what is the net benefit to agriculture, rather than no net loss to agricultural. 3. Staff has had on-going discussions over the past five or more years with the ownership group regarding a partial ALR exclusion for the subject property. At issue is the current irregular ALR boundary in this location, punctuated by a narrow triangular finger that currently protrudes into the urban area of West Abbotsford and Aldergrove. The configuration of the current boundary is somewhat weak and vulnerable to conflicts between farm operations and adjacent urban land uses. In light of this, staff believes that a technical adjustment to the ALR boundary in this location is warranted. In keeping with current policy, however, it is critical that any application to exclude land must clearly demonstrate a net benefit to agricultural to increase the chances of an ALR exclusion being approved. 4. Shortly after the application was submitted, the applicant presented its businesscase for the proposed exclusion, which is outlined in the applicant s letter dated December 8, 2009, attached to this report as Appendix A. The applicant proposes to use the revenues derived from developing the north 8.0 ha towards

3 Report No. EDP Page 3 of 5 reclamation of the south 10.1 ha from its current state as a defunct gravel pit, so that it can be used for agricultural purposes. The business case argues that a minimum 8.0 ha is necessary for the proposal to be viable. 5. On January 20, 2010, the Abbotsford Agricultural Advisory Committee (AAC) considered the application and recommended that it be denied on the grounds that the subject property is viable for a number of non-soil agricultural uses, such as greenhouses and nurseries. 6. In response to the AACs recommendation, the proponent took the initiative to significantly enhance the benefits-compensation package over and above the proposal to rehabilitate the south 10.1 ha of the subject property. Specifically, the proponent proposes to include 16.6 ha of land into the ALR, located at Bell Road, in Dewdney. A summary of the amended proposal is outlined in the applicant s letter dated June 10, 2010, attached as Appendix B. The addition of the 16.6 ha Dewdney property into the ALR, represents more than twice the 8.0 ha of land proposed for removal on the Station Road property. In support of the proposed exchange, the applicant retained a professional agrologist (Brian French, P.Ag., C & F Land Resource Consultants Ltd.) to provide an agricultural capability and land use assessment of both the Station Road and Dewdney properties. The consultant s comparative analysis, attached as Appendix C, concludes that the Dewdney property is a superior site from both a soil and non-soil based agriculture perspective. A significant benefit that the Dewdney property has over the Station Road property, is its rural setting, which provides the potential for a much greater range of farming activities, including intensive livestock. The range of agricultural uses for the Station Road property, on the other hand, is much more constrained due to the potential conflicts with nearby urban development. Staff concurs with the findings of the applicant s agrologist report that the proposal to exclude 8.0 ha of the Station Road property from the ALR, in exchange for inclusion of the 16.6 ha Dewdney property into the ALR, is a net benefit to agricultural. While the land to be included into the ALR is not located in the City of Abbotsford, the proposed exchange will result in a net increase of 8.6 ha being added into the ALR if the subject ALC application is approved. In order to include land into the ALR, an ALC application must be submitted to the local government in which the subject property is located. The Bell Road property is located in Dewdney, which is the jurisdiction of the Dewdney-Alouette Regional District (DARD). It should be noted, therefore, that inclusion of the Bell Road lands hinges on the DARD agreeing to forward the application to the ALC for consideration. If the DARD does not agree to forward the application to the ALC, then the proposed inclusion may not occur. Hence, the applicant is encouraged to initiate an ALR inclusion application with the DARD as soon as possible, as the ALC s approval of the Station Road exclusion is not likely to be considered until it receives assurances that the DARD supports the proposal. 7. Because the subject property abuts lands within the Township of Langley, City staff referred the application to the Township for comment, and followed up with a meeting with Township staff on January 8, 2010 to discuss the proposal and the various issues that will need to be considered if the subject application is approved for urban development. The Township s Administrator subsequently provided a letter of support for this application, citing the Township s future intent

4 Report No. EDP Page 4 of 5 to update the Aldergrove Community Plan, which will involve its own ALC application for an ALR exclusion of lands adjacent to the City of Abbotsford boundary. A copy of the Township s February 4, 2010 letter is attached as Appendix D. 8. One cannot look at the subject ALR exclusion in isolation of other parcels in the area. If the subject application is approved, then it is likely that further requests from adjacent property owners to remove their lands from the ALR will occur. The following table is a summary of these adjacent properties that can be expected to seek exclusions from the ALR. Property Address Area Current Use No. (ha) Station Road 0.15 Single family residential Station Road 0.31 Single family residential Station Road 1.08 Rural residential Station Road 1.00 Rural residential Station Road 1.00 Rural residential Station Road 1.01 Rural residential Station Road 0.99 Rural residential Swensson Avenue 2.02 Rural residential Swensson Avenue 2.92 Auto wrecker Figure 3 shows a scenario of an adjusted ALR boundary that provides for the exclusion of the north 8.0 ha from the subject property, as well as the exclusion of the nine adjacent properties noted above. Separate applications will be required to deal with future ALR exclusions of these nine properties. The nine properties range in size from 0.15 ha to 2.92 ha. The combined area of these properties is ha. Council has already dealt with one ALR exclusion application from the owner of the property at 2815 Station Road. On October 2, 2009, Council agreed to forward the application to the ALC with an endorsement for support, on the basis that size and location limit agricultural productivity of the property. The same case can be made for the property at 2879 Station Road, which is only 0.15 ha. Five of the parcels are about 1.0 ha, and may be developed as hobby farms at best. The largest parcel at 2.92 ha is currently an auto wrecker and thus is not likely to be farmed in the foreseeable future. The second largest parcel is a reasonable sized parcel at 2.02 ha, which has the most potential of the nine properties to be farmed. However, its irregular triangular configuration, places some constraints in its ability to be farmed with respect to farm building setbacks, and field layout and management. 9. Does the ALR exclusion of the 8.0 ha of the subject property, and the probable future exclusion of the adjacent nine properties, present an overall net benefit to agriculture? Staff believes the applicant s proposed benefits-compensation package is a good trade-off. The proposed exclusion will result in a modified ALR boundary that is arguably more defensible than the current boundary, which today is vulnerable to urban-rural conflicts to the east and west. A Section 219 right to farm covenant should be registered on title of the lands being removed from the ALR, to ensure future owners are aware of potential nuisances associated with adjacent agricultural operations to the south.

5 Report No. EDP Page 5 of If this application is forwarded to, and receives the approval of the Agricultural Land Commission, applications to amend the OCP and to rezone the property will be necessary to permit a proposed urban residential use. The OCP/rezoning process will also trigger a detailed assessment of necessary site services to support any proposed urban development of the lands. Further, an application for an Agricultural Development Permit will be required to address design and landscape buffer requirements along the proposed urban - ALR interface. 11. There are a number of large trees located on the west side of the subject property that have historical significance. They were planted by a Swedish pioneer who originally owned the property, and have value to the family who still reside in the area. The applicant is advised that the trees must be assessed by a certified arborist with any development of the lands for urban residential purposes, and if deemed healthy, will need to be incorporated for retention in the development. FINANCIAL PLAN IMPLICATION None. COMMUNICATION PLAN In accordance with Section 16 of the provincial Agricultural Land Reserve Use, Subdivision and Procedure Regulation, notice of this ALR exclusion application was advertised in the November 26 and December 3, 2009 editions of the Abbotsford News. The applicant also provided written notice to adjacent property owners, prior to submitting this application to the City. If the application is forwarded to and subsequently supported by the ALC, the required OCP amendment and rezoning application will trigger a community consultation meeting in accordance with Section 879 of the Local Government Act. SUMMARY The proposed exclusion will result in a modified ALR boundary that is arguably more defensible than the current boundary, which today is vulnerable to urban-rural conflicts to the east and west. The applicant s proposal to rehabilitate the south 10.1 ha of the site with the revenues obtained from developing the north 8.0 ha for urban land uses, combined with the proposal to include the 16.6 ha Dewdney property into the ALR, is a reasonable compensation package, which in staff s opinion, results in an overall net benefit to agricultural. Staff recommends this application be forwarded to the ALC with an endorsement for support. Jay Teichroeb, General Manager Economic Development & Planning Services Ron Hintsche, MCIP Manager, Development Planning RH: