Plans for the Town of Stettler to annex six quarter sections from the County of Stettler will likely become effective New Year’s Day 2011, not retroactive to 2010.
Changes to the annexation were recommended by the Municipal Government Board following a public hearing March 3 in Stettler.
At its regular meeting March 16, council approved a recommendation from the committee-of-the-whole meeting of March 9 to change the effective date of the annexation agreement to Jan. 1, 2011.
“The MGB asked us about taxation, considering that we wouldn’t meet annexation for 2010 (taxes)” said town manager Rob Stoutenberg.
This was one of three recommendations as council responded to enquiries by the Municipal Government Board following a public hearing in Stettler on March 3.
Council also approved recommendations that:
• Municipal property taxes to be levied in 2010 by the County of Stettler upon the lands approved by the MGB for annexation into the Town of Stettler shall be shared equally between the town and the county.
• The town’s equal share of 2010 municipal property taxes owing from the county shall be netted against the infrastructure payment of $287,000 owing to the county (for simplified administrative purposes).
A final decision for the town’s application to annex county land could be handed down by this fall after few major concerns were raised at the public hearing.
Only concerns in the proposed western boundary on Highway 12 were voiced by two people who filed submissions, with regard to the area planned for highway commercial growth.
The 364 hectare- (900 acres) area that the town will annex to provide for more residential and commercial growth over the next 40 years includes:
• Four quarter sections to the west of the town along Highway 12, being Section 1-39-20-W4M.
• One quarter section west of Tower Road, being the SE 7-39-19-W4M around the Emerson subdivision.
• One quarter section to the south of the town along and to the east of Highway 56, being the SW 31-38-19- W4M.
Owners of just seven of the 43 affected properties either oppose the proposal or object with conditions, the town reports in its application to the MGB while 36 property owners either did not respond or support the annexation.
