Rocky View County  (RVC) Council has taken a page from the provincial UCP government's playbook by adopting a new Land Use Bylaw that they say will cut red tape in the county by streamlining and clarifying how land can be used and developed.  

“Our old Land Use Bylaw was created in 1998, and underwent numerous piecemeal amendments over the years. It became outdated, hard to understand, easy to misinterpret, and challenging to implement and enforce,” says Reeve Greg Boehlke.

The new RVC Land Use Bylaw sees a 70 percent reduction in the number of pages, and also includes a 35 percent reduction in the number of Land Use Districts.

“It has taken nearly four years of careful effort, but we have redrafted and consolidated the Bylaw to reduce confusion and cut out pointless red tape regulations. Just as importantly, we’ve maintained appropriate controls over land use to ensure well-planned development in Rocky View County,” Reeve Boehlke says.

The new bylaw reflects modern development approaches and better aligns with Provincial regulations.

Each parcel of land in RVC has a Land Use District, sometimes referred to as zoning. The different district designations regulate the size and use of land and buildings, the development standards, and the permitted as well as discretionary uses for the property.

The new Land Use Bylaw does not change how a property owner currently uses their land. However, any landowner who wants to develop on their property or make changes to the use of the property will have to follow any new or updated regulations that may apply for their new Land Use District.

The comparison to the Alberta government is due to their attempting to cut unnecessary red tape by one-third to reduce costs, speed up approvals and, they say, to make life better for Albertans.  The government has even put in place an Associate Minister of Red Tape Reduction in Grant Hunter.

The newRVC  Land Use Bylaw goes into effect September 8th, 2020.

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