Wind Walk’s nine-year road to approval should be a lesson about co-operation and collaboration when resolving disputes.
It’s been a long and costly process, but Okotoks council’s approval of Wind Walks’ Area Structure Plan is worth noting.
Wind Walk was first unveiled within the MD of Foothills in May 2008 by reality TV personality Mike Holmes as a cutting edge sustainable community.
The Town of Okotoks opposed the plan early on over legitimate concerns about potential impacts on water, roads and facilities inside the town used by residents paying property taxes to the MD. Once lines were drawn, it became a lengthy and expensive battle that went through mediation, Alberta’s Municipal Government Board and the courts, going as far as the steps of the Supreme Court all the while costing hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees.
Eventually, both sides were backed into a corner as the Town exhausted its appeals and Wind Walk’s developers weren’t able to secure a water source for the area.
It was a different story in recent years as the Town and developers worked together to reach common ground. Council’s approval is proof collaboration and co-operation can bring better results than a prolonged legal fight.
It’s a good lesson as the Town prepares to move forward with its own growth plans now that the Province has signed off on its annexation.
