A rezoning bylaw for a golf course in south Aldergrove was given first and second reading by Township council on Monday, almost 20 years after it had received tentative support by the council of the day.
Emerald Springs Farm Corp. has applied to rezone a 112 acre site at 673 272 St., from rural zone (which has a minimum lot size of 19.76 acres) to rural golf course zone.
The company has also applied for a development permit application and a primary liquor licence for the club house building. If endorsed, the licence will allow alcohol to be served from 9 a.m. to 1 a.m. daily.
The rezoning will permit the development of an 18-hole course and a 14,500 square foot clubhouse.
The proposal, development planner Teresa Hanson wrote in a report to council, complies with the Rural Plan which includes provisions for golf courses and designates them as mandatory Development Permit Areas.
These give council the opportunity to review the form, character and siting of a development.
Because the property is in the Agricultural Land Reserve, the proposal will require the approval of the Agricultural Land Commission, Hanson said, noting that conditional approval for an 18-hole course had been given in 1988.
Three years later, on Oct. 7, 1991, council gave consent for the pertinent bylaws to be brought forward for consideration. After that, the original plan died, and the bylaws abandoned.
The property lies across the street from Aldergrove Lake Park. To the west is a large dairy farm. Across 8 Avenue to the north is an undeveloped 27 acre site, east of which lies the Quarter Midget Race Track, the Jackman Wetlands and the decommissioned Jackman landfill site.
The old dump is being reclaimed as a passive park with trees and walking trails.
To the south of the proposed golf course lie a number of agricultural properties, beyond which is the Matsqui First Nations Reserve occupied by Pioneer Mobile Home Park.
Both the rezoning bylaw and development permit application require a public hearing which will be held on Monday, March 14 at 7 p.m.
