Land Use Bylaw Project: Miscellaneous Changes

A number of miscellaneous changes are planned as part of the Land Use Bylaw Project. We are planning numerous administrative, procedural, and general changes. Some of those proposed changes include:

Administrative and Procedure Changes

While we currently notify people by email in regards to their Decisions, Appeals, and Receipt notifications, the Land Use Bylaw does not actually list email as one of the ways the Town should be contacting people. In moving with the times, we would like to change the Bylaw to reflect the fact that almost everyone uses email these days and it is a safe and efficient way for people to communicate.

The Towns of High Level and Rainbow Lake, and Mackenzie County have created a Joint Subdivision and Development Appeal Board. This new Board will allow the municipalities to share and borrow Board members from across the region to ensure hearings for development appeals occur in a timely manner, in accordance with the Municipal Government Act. The inclusion of this Board is another one of the planned changes for the High Level Land Use Bylaw.

Over the winter, the Town is planning to review all Town land files for Real Property Reports, and develop an inventory to ensure our records on local properties are current. In the updated Land Use Bylaw, we are proposing that new construction of a vacant lot or new development on an existing lot would trigger the requirement for a new Real Property Report, which would include the current condition of a property with all improvements.

We are hoping to increase flexibility for residential building height and lot coverage – an increase of 10 per cent for building height and a relaxation of 10 per cent for lot coverage. We’re hopeful that these small changes will help to provide more development options.

General Changes

Drainage is an important issue and High Level is a community that has had its share of drainage issues in the past. To help with this, we are looking to incorporate our Municipal Engineering Standards for lot grading and drainage requirements into the updated Bylaw, which are relevant for all local developments.

We also know how dangerous fire can be as residents of the boreal forest. We are hoping to include FireSmarting requirements to our Land Use Bylaw for outdoor storage and materials in an effort to ensure fire safety in the community. 

Currently, chain link fences are allowed in some parts of High Level, but we are making some changes to the use of chain link fences in all Land Use Districts, including residential areas. They will be at the discretion of the Town and require a development permit. 

Currently, there is a large and complicated process for the development of small wind energy systems in the Town of High Level. With the new changes we are hoping to implement, they would no longer be permitted in Town. 

Finally, a small but convenient change to the Land Use Bylaw would include the use of Imperial Measurements alongside Metric to help local residents with clarity when it comes to measurements.

A complete list of all proposed changes to the Land Use Bylaw is available HERE.