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Future Growth Areas
for the City and County
In early 2007, after almost a year
and a half of stress and disputes, the city of Red Deer and Red Deer
County came to an agreement for future growth areas around the city and
which areas will ultimately be annexed by the city. The agreement is the
foundation of a new revised Intermunicipal Development Plan.
On the map to the right, the peach areas are to be annexed by the city
over the next 10 years in preparation for a city of 300,000, expected
over the next 50-75 years. The lighter areas within the peach represent
short term annexation. The dark pink growth areas
will remain under county jurisdiction. A 'no-development' agricultural
zone will be maintained between south Red Deer and Springbrook/Red Deer
Regional Airport.
In late 2005, Red Deer County
had proposed to the City that they annex a large area around the city for
long term
future development (left below). There was one condition -- that the
City not annex Gasoline Alley and the industrial areas south of the
city. For a variety of reasons, the city
declined.
In December of 2006, the City announced a 'Future
Directions Strategy - Red Deer at 300,000' that, as a result of public input and a
concern about urban development so close to the city, included the
annexation of Gasoline Alley in the south within 10 years. The proposed
strategy created difficult negotiations with
the County.
Many of the disputes between
the City of Red Deer and Red Deer County involving growth and annexation
were based on the 1999 Intermunicipal
Development Plan (below left) that had not been updated in spite of new directions
and future growth strategies initiated by both municipalities.
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On the map to the left, the shaded numbered areas represent areas that
the two municipalities had agreed to be
annexed by the City for short term growth. (Area 1 was annexed in 2004). The brown
represents long term growth areas to be annexed at certain population
thresholds. Over the past six years, growth has
occurred at a rate faster than expected and the city ran out of industrial
land several years before it was expected, resulting in a need for the
City to consider expanding in a new direction from the Intermunicipal Development Plan.
 In
2004, the City adopted an updated Growth Strategy (right) as a
result of the unexpected shortage of
serviced industrial land. The plan departed from the Intermunicipal
Development Plan by recommending that the best short term industrial
expansion would be best served by annexing west of Highway 2.
Profile of City of Red Deer
Profile of Red Deer County
City and County
Working Together for Growth
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