“It’s with regret that this matter has come to expropriation. After an unsuccessful attempt at mediation and a fair offer to purchase, we have been left with expropriation as our only option,” Mayor Maureen Miller told Lakeland Today.
“Unfortunately, without full and unfettered access to that identified water way, we have no control over the flood water that accumulates from melting snow and rain every spring . I’m sure we are all aware of how much higher the water table is now than 10 years ago.”
The Town, together with Alberta Environment and Parks, have long been at odds with landowner Don Belland over the watercourse that carries spring runoff and stormwater from the municipality to Upper Therien Lake.
In May 2019, Belland failed to convince the Environmental Appeals Board the watercourse was not naturally occurring, but rather the municipality was diverting water through his property, impeding his ability to farm his land.
Things came to a head when Belland subsequently defied a ministerial order to remove the dirt and debris he had used to block the flow of the watercourse , and to restore it to its natural elevation. In November, the Town, armed with a directive from Alberta Environment, crossed onto Belland’s land and used heavy equipment to restore the watercourse.
Since that time, the Town has been unsuccessful in reaching an agreement with Belland, going so far as to make an offer to purchase the property and/or install crossings at two points with culverts to allow Belland to more easily access his land, which is split by the watercourse.
“As much as the word ‘expropriation’ has an unpleasant ring to it, the process actually protects both parties with the courts assuring the landowner receives fair market value and that the Town doesn’t pay more than it’s worth. We are hopeful the process goes as smoothly as possible,” Miller said.
Last resort for Town
Town CAO Kim Heyman inherited the issue of the watercourse when she joined the Town in early 2018. She quickly came to realize the extent of the issue early on when that spring the blocked waterway created a backlog of water at the southeast corner of the golf course and threatened to spill over 53 street into residential property. Pumps and above ground pipe had to be brought in to divert water along the walking trail.
Heyman said the blocked watercourse cost the municipality an estimated $200,000 to mitigate flooding during spring thaws in 2018 and 2019. Legal fees, together with construction costs to repair the waterway last fall, have only added to the tab.
“This is a last resort for the Town. We have tried mediation. We’ve tried dealing just on a real estate perspective. We made him an offer – completely ignored. Mediation, he told us to stay off his land. We went to the Alberta Appeals Board and they designated that a watercourse, which means it doesn’t belong to him,” she said.
The town is seeking outright ownership of what amounts to 6.97 acres of land along the watercourse. Additionally, it is proposing an access easement to approximately 11.1 acres, some of which is currently underwater where the watercourse flows into the lake. There’s a further proposed 10 metre easement along either side of the watercourse amounting to 4.48 acres.
Heyman said it’s essential to understand the watercourse is a key component in the Town and County of St. Paul’s Stormwater Management Plan.
“Without access to the waterway, we have no way of getting flood water out of town, not without spending millions and millions of dollars. We would have to borrow and go into debt.”
Heyman said the offer to build two crossings over the waterway to improve Belland’s access to his farmland remains. She is hopeful Belland “will come to the table but in the end, if he doesn’t, a court can rule to make the decision” on expropriation.
There was little discussion from town council members prior to them giving Heyman unanimous support to begin the expropriation process during the June 22 council meeting.
“We’ve been through the appeal process, so there really wasn’t much left to discuss. They either pass it and we go forward or they don’t pass it and the whole process grinds to a halt.”
Because the land falls within the County of St. Paul, the Town requires county council’s approval to proceed, which it received June 30. The Stormwater Management Plan a joint venture between the two municipalities, Heyman said their support was essential to moving forward with the plan.
Belland could not be reached for comment.
