Transportation minister to meet with officials
Shannon LeClair – Times Reporter
Strathmore resident and business owner Hal Lust has been speaking to both county and town council on behalf of residents about Highway 1. The proposed realignment and bypass is a hot button topic and county council saw their chambers fill with concerned residents, just as the town offices filled two weeks ago.
Unlike Airdrie or Brooks, Strathmore does not have an industrial economy to be able to thrive off of, said Lust.
“For years I’ve heard about the value of good farmland and that we should not destroy it. It seems they are not taking their own advice,” said Lust. Many farms in the county will be affected by the realignment, rendering some parcels of land useless.
“The new alignment isn’t finalized, its still in the planning stages, its about planning for future growth. I’m guessing the alignment is still 50 years out, maybe even a hundred,” said Minister of Transportation, Luke Ouellette in a phone interview.
“I hadn’t realized until just recently people were upset. I don’t know exactly what my department guys are saying but I have agreed with Arno (Doerkson) to meet with the town and the county.” Ouellette also said, bypasses are built when it is time to put in an interchange. He said he will meet with town and county officials within the next three to four weeks.
Lust is sending out 6,000 petitions to residents of Strathmore and all rural areas affected.
“The most important thing is to follow the instructions and then get them mailed off. Without public response, they will do whatever they want. We need a united front,” said Lust. “We need a 25 per cent return rate or we’re doomed.”
County council let residents know they have been on top of the issue since they first learned about it. The proposed realignment will see the highway moving four miles south of Strathmore, possibly negetively affecting the economy. Further east the realignment will cut through farmland, fracturing it.
“We have a corridor and people are used to it and if they have to expand it, why not do it there,” said Reeve Ben Armstrong. “Or if they have to, they could go over top.”
“Yeah we could divide the town in half, make it free flow through town with a couple overpasses over it. Then there would be two service roads, with an overpass at each end, and then nobody would have to come in to town anyway,” said Ouellette.
Debbie Shelley, Chief Executive Officer for the Global Training Centre, GTC, just found out about the proposal a few days ago. She was upset no one had informed her company and was looking to council for answers.
“This current proposal runs through our property, and it will wipe our business off the map,” said Shelley. The GTC was just recently approved for an expansion with no notification of the realignment/bypass. Shelley was upset about the possibility of the company expanding, only to go out of business in 10 to 15 years, and was looking for a confirmation of support from the county.
“Trying to plan out for 100 years is just not possible. It’s a necessity that we do this as a combined effort,” said Councillor Ken Sauve. Lust hopes to be at Heritage Days handing out petitions and said he will be sending out 500 every two weeks until the entire county and town has received them.
“I think bypasses always raised concerns, but most of the places after the bypass is built, have said sometimes it even does better for the businesses. Also on any of our bypasses we plan way, way ahead, so we’re still probably a good 20 years out on the bypass there,” said Ouellette. “We’re not here to try to disrupt anybody, we’re here to try to make life better for everyone.”