Concerns about wildlife protection, trail preservation and First Nations consultation dominated an almost five-hour public hearing Monday (March 6) on the McKee Neighbourhood Plan (MNP).
More than 50 speakers addressed city council with their opposition or support of the plan.
The MNP, if approved, will be used by council in making decisions about a 1,900-acre area (769 hectares) of McKee Peak on Sumas Mountain in terms of allowable uses, building forms and densities.
Mayor Ross Siemens told the packed auditorium that the project has been more than four years in the making and will help council consider development – including low-density housing – and environmental protection in the future.
“This is the city initiating a neighbourhood plan that will guide future development. There’s no development application made by anybody in this process at this time,” he said.
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“This is an overall concept plan that will guide future applications if they do come forward.”
Speakers from local First Nations expressed concerns that there had been a lack of consultation with them.
“For traditional-to-territorial developments to take place, First Nations need to have a collaborative decision-making role going forward, and that’s not happening here,” said Richard Hall, a lawyer and the director of governance and natural resources with Sumas First Nation.
Sasha Tuttle with the Sto:lo Research and Resource Management Centre said consultation is particularly important as it relates to the cultural, ecological and social concerns surrounding the development of the McKee neighbourhood.
She said the area is home to several at-risk species, including the western painted turtle, the phantom orchid and the red-legged frog, and “there has not been enough consideration” for how they will be impacted.
Tuttle said the area is also “chock-full” of Indigenous cultural sites, including the Thunderbird Caves, which has already experienced vandalism.
More people and traffic on McKee Peak could lead to “irreversible damage” to these historically significant areas, she said.
Also speaking at the public hearing were professional biologists and representatives of local environmental groups.
Emma Bryce of the Fraser Valley Conservancy, which owns an eight-acre property called Three Creeks on McKee Peak, said the area is “one of the last ecological gems” in Abbotsford and a “biodiversity hot spot” that needs to be protected.
She also said, as permeable surfaces are replaced with roads and housing, there is an increased likelihood of landslides and ground instability that could lead to flooding in lower lying areas.
Natashia Cox, a biologist who works with the Fraser Valley Watershed Coalition, said she is concerned that, with less water permeating into the soil, there will be an increased risk of forest fires on the mountain.
Wendy DeDalt of the Abbotsford Mission Nature Club was among several speakers who urged council to send the plan back to staff for further work.
“McKee Peak is not the place for wishful planning, loopholes and irreversible loss of extensive quality habitat and forest cover. It can’t happen here,” she said.
Representatives of the Fraser Valley Mountain Bikers Association, the Abbotsford Trail Development Society and the Abbotsford Trail Running Club spoke about the importance of working with trail users to preserve and maintain existing trails and to develop more.
They asked that the city consider creating a $2 million Trail Endowment Fund for those purposes.
Gavin Dew with the Abbotsford Tech District – a proposal of Auguston Town Development – said they are committed to working with the city to “preserve, enhance and maintain the trails.”
He said Auguston’s mid-1990s master development agreement included a $1.17 million contribution exclusively for the city to develop trails on their lands. Dew said no trails have been built with those funds, and they would love to see some of the money become the “cornerstone capital” for a trail preservation fund.
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Representatives from Polygon Homes – the developer for the former Cooper Farm property on McMillan Road – spoke in favour of the McKee Neighbourhood Plan, saying it will create much-needed housing in Abbotsford, while ensuring the area remains a recreational hub and that the trails are respected.
At the conclusion of all the speakers, staff addressed questions from council, including in relation to the comments that First Nations had not been consulted. Senior planner Mitch Comb said city staff met with local First Nations at the beginning of the process and with Sumas First Nation last spring, but many of those people are no longer there.
Comb also addressed concerns about the potential for flooding in low-lying areas. He said 12 community detention pond facilities are included as part of the neighbourhood plan. He said these catchment areas will control the flow and release of water even better than it is currently handled.
“We feel comfortable that we can handle that volume and make sure that there is not flooding in the lowlands,” Comb said.
He also said city staff had conversations with environmental groups where they “took into account their input and worked towards looking at an environmental strategy that meets the legislation that’s established through our senior levels of government.”
“I feel confident in the work that’s been completed,” Comb said.
The matter is slated to come back before council on March 27 for a vote on the pertinent bylaw, which, if adopted, would see the OCP amended to include the McKee Neighbourhood Plan.
vikki.hopes@abbynews.com
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