A public hearing will be held on the owners of Spallumcheen’s Motoplex Speedway’s application to change the official community land use designation of the property and to rezone it for industrial purposes.
Okanagan Aggregates Ltd. has applied to change the land-use designation of the nearly 13-hectare property on the west side of Highway 97 — about a kilometre past the Westside Road intersection — from commercial to general industrial.
It’s also looking to rezone the property from comprehensive commercial — automotive vehicle racetrack and transportation facility to general industrial.
Once an extremely popular venue hosting evening and afternoon auto racing events, as well as concerts, the speedway has essentially sat silent for the past four years due to legal action and noise opposition from a neighbouring community across the highway.
If successful with its application, Okanagan Aggregates Ltd. proposes to develop the property for industrial use and is considering three potential options: retain the property as a single industrial lot, define leasable areas within the existing lot or apply to subdivide the property. There is also the possibility of selling the property.
The township unanimously gave first reading to the application but second reading of the bylaw amendments are being withheld until the applicant provides a report regarding water supply, stormwater management and aquifer protection.
“There are a number of conditions that they need to address regarding the aquifer, stormwater drainage, sewer disposal,” Mayor Christine Fraser said. “The facility is over a vulnerable aquifer and we want to make sure that there are only clean uses being proposed. We also want to ensure that they will not be having any impact on any neighbouring water supplies.”
Fraser said council is “excited for the potential opportunity to provide industrial lands for businesses in our area.”
Some conditions have to be met by the applicant before the hearing, which will likely be held in May.
That also gives the township time to figure out logistics on holding such a meeting in the wake of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
READ MORE: Spallumcheen racetrack owners apply for property rezoning
READ MORE: Fight to save Spallumcheen’s Motoplex Speedway revs up
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