Summary#

Council defeated the motion to approve the land-use change at 1020 – 68 Avenue NE in Deerfoot Business Centre. The proposed change would have amended the Land Use Bylaw, replacing the Industrial – General (I-G) district with a Direct Control district that allowed school uses. The stated goal was to accommodate those uses; the school itself was not approved.

• The proposal covered about 4.49 hectares (11.1 acres) and would have allowed discretionary “School – Private” and “School Authority – School” uses, subject to guidelines.
• The motion to give the proposed bylaw three readings failed 2–12. Councillors Ward, Yule, Pantazopoulos, Jamieson, Clark, Atkinson, Kelly, Chabot, Schmidt, Wyness and McLean, and Mayor Farkas, voted against.
• The land-use change did not pass. The existing I-G district remains in place.

What it means for you#

• Landowner and applicant: The proposed Direct Control district was not approved. The applicant cannot rely on this decision to establish the proposed school uses. No development permit application had been submitted.
• Nearby businesses: The land-use district remains Industrial – General; this decision does not change the site’s designation.
• Public: The applicant had described an intent to build a Kindergarten-to-Grade 12 charter school. The Council decision did not approve that school or a building.

Money#

City staff reported no anticipated financial impact to the City; the materials give no cost estimate.

• The materials do not provide figures for the applicant’s costs or any future project costs.

What is unclear#

• The materials do not explain what school design, traffic or operating plans might have been considered at a later development-permit stage.
• The applicant said it planned to contact nearby businesses during that stage, but the proposed land-use change did not pass.

Case for#

• The applicant’s stated intent was to build a Kindergarten-to-Grade 12 charter school that would serve community needs. Allowing school uses on the site could have made that location available for the proposed school.

Case against#

• City staff said school uses in this industrial and logistics area could affect industrial operations and conflict with the City’s industrial-land policies.
• City staff said changing the land use could weaken the supply of strategically located industrial land and increase transportation costs or inefficiencies for businesses that depend on goods movement.
• A neighbouring business’s written submission questioned why a private school proposal here might be treated differently from an earlier proposal nearby, and asked for more information about what had changed.