Letter From Lessard Landing Resident

New slogan for the
County of Lac Ste. Anne

“We only want you to come for the weekend”

I know there has been much debate over the contentious RV issue within the County. But now the very way of life that many residents enjoy could be coming to an end with the proposed land use bylaw changes.

I can appreciate that people want a place to park their RV, away from the hustle and bustle of city life. After all, that is why I moved to the County. I can also appreciate that they consider themselves respectful neighbors, especially since they are only out for the weekend. But let me tell you exactly why the proposed changes threaten to destroy certain communities forever.

The new bylaws will allow up to 4 RV’s PER vacant lot within “specific” subdivisions. 4 RV’s per lot! Look around your neighborhood and consider what your life would be like if half the neighborhood had 4 RV’s on each lot and those houses were gone. Would it resemble more of a campground or a residential subdivision? What would this do for the resale value of your homes? Let’s take it a step further, what if they allowed 1 garage and 4 RV’s on each lot- with no house. What would your street look like if the population density went up 5-fold on each lot?

Now what if the neighboring lots decided to capitalize on this and rented out RV space to 4 families right next door to you. What would the noise sound like? What would the traffic look like? What if this meant that there was literally hundreds of RV’s in your neighborhood suddenly and there was nothing you could do about it. Would you still want to live there?

But the number of RV’s per lot doesn’t stop at 4…if you move them after 7 days, every month you can have an unlimited number on your property for the week. UNLIMITED! Want to rent out your lot to 50 families for parties or community events…go right ahead! How does the County plan to enforce the 7-day rule? They haven’t been successful at enforcing the 3-day rule on the last set of bylaws.

But even more importantly, what would this mean if you were a young family raising your children in what you thought was a residential subdivision. Would you want to continue having your children or grandchildren growing up in a campground? What if your property values went down and you now faced having to sell your home and not being able to buy another as a result? What if you couldn’t even sell your home because who would build their home or want to live in a campground? Young families who bought their first home are particularly vulnerable. How would you feel if you had to pay $3000/year in taxes while your “neighbors” could rent out to 4 families and only pay $1200/year in taxes? What would your roads look like with all the increased traffic?

How does allowing RV’s and garages on vacant land in RESIDENTIAL SUBDIVISIONS promote family values, a sense of community, or encourage people to want to live in the County? Would you want to live permanently in one of these “specific” subdivisions?

I implore everyone to consider not only how this potentially affects them, but how it affects their neighbors in other subdivisions as well. Stand a weekend in my shoes and maybe you will understand that this doesn’t have anything to do with malicious intent against RV owners. But I do believe if they were in our shoes and even if they only had a dozen RV’s parked on their street in Edmonton every weekend, they may be complaining to their city officials too.

I’m just the poor sucker who was scammed thinking that when the bylaws said you must build a house of a certain size and no RV’s without a house- that it meant something. Silly me, now I live in a campground and the County wants to make it worse. 

Please help us by telling Council that rezoning existing subdivisions to accommodate their lack of bylaw enforcement is wrong. That legalizing an activity so they don’t have to enforce it- is wrong.

Our community is at their limit with no representation in Council and nowhere left to turn. This may not affect your neighborhood today, but I can assure you- it may tomorrow. Please tell Council you support families in this County.

CALL ANY OR ALL COUNCILLORS TO DEMAND THE ANSWERS AND MAKE SURE THEY KNOW HOW YOU FEEL - ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

• Bill Hegy                                                                                                          Phone: (780) 284-3589
  Mayor, Councillor Division 2
  Onoway, Alberta, Canada
• Phone: (780) 937-5360
  Lorne Olsvik 
  Councillor Division 1
  Onoway, Alberta, Canada
• Phone: (780) 967-3073
  Wayne Borle 
  Councillor Division 3
  Gunn, Alberta, Canada
• Phone: (780) 786-4290
  Ross Bohnet 
  Councillor Division 6
  Mayerthorpe, Alberta, Canada
• Phone: (780) 785-2095
  Lloyd Giebelhaus 
  Deputy Mayor, Councillor Division 7
  Sangudo, Alberta, Canada

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