Staff
As part of its ongoing process to update its zoning bylaw, the town is giving residents the chance to request zoning changes to their property.
At last week’s council meeting, municipal planner Faye Flatt noted the town had its updated Official Plan completed and approved in December, 2012, and now is working on a comprehensive review of its zoning bylaw.
“We’re at the point now where we’d like to get the public involved,” said Flatt.
“This is an opportunity for anyone to come forward who may, for example, be thinking of changing their property, the zoning of their property, for future development . . . they can piggyback, or incorporate those changes into the new bylaw,” she explained.
Flatt said she is willing to sit down and have a one-on-one discussion with these property owners.
“It’s not a given that the proposal will be taken and the property will be changed,” she stressed. “But it will certainly be evaluated.
“And if it makes sense, it will be incorporated into the new bylaw.”
Flatt said there are 20-25 properties for which the town is proposing to change the zoning and for those properties, the owners will receive a letter outlining the proposed change.
Those who receive these letters also are invited to discuss this one-on-one with planning staff.
Coun. Ken Perry noted normally this is a fee when a property owner applies for a zoning change.
“In this instance, if you do it during the zoning bylaw update, is there still going to be a fee attached to an application?” he asked.
“No, there won’t,” replied Flatt.
“The standard fee is about $1,800 for a stand-alone application,” she noted.
“By incorporating it into the zoning bylaw update, into that process, they would be saving that.
“Like I said, it’s not a given that the property will be re-zoned but it will certainly be evaluated,” Flatt reiterated.
“One thing that I do want to mention is this would not apply to a site-specific zoning, where someone would like to add a new use to an existing zoning,” she added.
“It would be a blanket change only.”
For more information, contact the planning department at 274-5323 ext. 275 or by e-mail at fflatt@fort-frances.com, or drop by the Civic Centre.
