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10.1
REQUEST FOR DECISION
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Project Charter and Budget Request re: MDP Amendment for Growth Areas
Presented by: Craig Walker, Intermediate Planner, Katie Mahoney, Planning Manager, and Kristina Peter, Planning and Development Director, Planning and Development Department
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RECOMMENDED MOTION(S)
recommendation
PM-26-002
That $600,000 be allocated from the Capital reserve to update the Municipal Development Plan Flourish and the 2026 base budget be increased by $120,000 to fund a permanent FTE to support the ongoing planning requirements with project initiation to begin in 2026.
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PURPOSE OF REPORT
The purpose of this report is to respond to the December 3, 2024, Council Motion 2024-019 by providing Council with a Project Charter and associated budget which will encompass the necessary steps to update Flourish which will permit growth in the newly annexed land, including recognizing the catchment areas applicable to the northeast servicing project charter as “Areas for Growth” instead of “Future Areas for Growth”.
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
On December 3, 2024, the St. Albert Council directed Administration to develop a project charter to update Flourish in response to growth within the newly annexed lands. This reflects Council’s recent approval of the Northeast St. Albert Area Structure Plan (NEASP). The NEASP envisions diverse developments, including residential neighborhoods, employment areas, mixed-use nodes, schools, and natural spaces-such as a large area bordering the Sturgeon River. Upon full build-out, the NEASP is expected to accommodate approximately 10,599 residents and create around 850 new jobs. In the long term, the plan proposes extending 127 Street from its current terminus near Anthony Henday Drive, as well as potentially establishing a trail and/or wildlife corridor linking the Sturgeon River to Carrot Creek.
The proposed NEASP marks a significant departure from the City’s vision of predominantly westward growth, as outlined in the Municipal Development Plan (MDP), Flourish. Supporting this growth will require an estimated upfront infrastructure investment of more than $70 million. While the City of St. Albert has the capacity to accommodate 20 years of residential and employment growth within the MDP’s Priority Areas, adopting the NEASP necessitates revisiting and creating a new growth strategy for the City. The adoption of the NEASP, the consideration of annexation lands, and the policy directive to comprehensively review and update Flourish every five years collectively justify this motion.
Since Council directed Administration to develop this project plan, several key changes have emerged, impacting Flourish and the City’s planning framework. In January 2025, the Provincial government defunded the Edmonton Metropolitan Regional Board (EMRB) and the Calgary Metropolitan Region Board, leading to the dissolution of the EMRB. This decision has significantly affected the planning framework underpinning Flourish. This budget request includes funding to support anticipated Intermunicipal Development Plan (IDP) work that will be required as a result of the de-funding of the EMRB. Furthermore, Municipal Affairs has announced anticipated amendments to the Municipal Government Act (MGA), particularly regarding Part 17 (Planning and Development), scheduled for 2025. These legislative changes are expected to address regulatory processes, intermunicipal planning, and potentially municipal reserve and off-site levy policies.
Given these substantial changes to both Flourish’s growth strategy and the legislative landscape shaped by Municipal Affairs, Administration recommends a comprehensive review and update of Flourish’s growth strategy and policies. The attached project charter recommends the start date in 2026. This timeline would allow for the completion of several key initiatives, the seamless integration of new staff into the team, provide increased opportunity to assess the impacts, and sufficient time for Municipal Affairs to implement their legislative changes.
STAKEHOLDER COMMUNICATIONS OR ENGAGEMENT
Not applicable for this discussion.
IMPACTS OF RECOMMENDATION(S)
Financial:
If approved, the funding will be incorporated as part of the proposed 2026-2028 budget.
Compliance & Legal:
None at this time.
Program or Service:
None at this time.
Organizational:
To facilitate this update, the Planning Branch requires additional resources while continuing to support service level delivery and other key priority projects. Although Administration considered adding a temporary position, the ongoing impacts of the Municipal Development Plan (MDP) rewrite and the incorporation of the NEASP lands necessitate permanent and experienced planning staff. It is anticipated that the development and implementation of the MDP amendment will extend beyond the 3-5-year time horizon, requiring permanent staffing resources.
Over the years, the Planning Branch has led several corporate priority projects, such as the Sturgeon County Annexation, the MDP rewrite, and the St. Albert West ASP. These projects included temporary planning staff funded within the project budgets. However, since the completion of these tasks, those temporary staffing supports have disappeared, while new corporate priority projects continue to arise (e.g., LUB rewrite, DARP). Unfortunately, these new project budgets did not allocate funds for temporary staffing. The combination of changes to the growth strategy, the incorporation of the NEASP lands, the focused attention needed in the Lakeview Business District, the anticipated increase in intermunicipal planning projects due to the dissolution of the EMRB, the MGA legislative changes, and the impacts on the current planning workload necessitate permanent staff resourcing.
The Planning Branch is also responsible for facilitating and implementing the Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) Project. This initiative will require both permanent and temporary staffing to support its development. It is anticipated that program development, which unlocks the associated funding, will take approximately three years. However, staffing support for implementation is expected to be necessary beyond the 3-year HAF contract.
Given the staffing request and the added corporate priority projects, an assessment of the Planning Branch and a review of its organizational structure are essential. This evaluation will be conducted in 2025 to ensure that resources are appropriately allocated, the reporting structure is optimized and balanced across the department, and to ensure the ongoing success of the Department.
Risks:
Proceeding immediately in 2025 could result in Administration moving forward without clear guidance from the Province regarding anticipated changes to the Municipal Government Act. Additionally, it is expected that several projects will impact existing Council priority initiatives and strain staffing resources. Administration is currently managing several major projects through the HAF project with strict deadlines, which directly affect either land developer requests or project timelines that determine funding allocations from other levels of government.
An organizational review is essential to ensure that these Council priority projects are delivered in a timely manner and that the Manager of Planning’s responsibilities and scope of work remain realistic, thereby fostering success.
ALIGNMENT TO PRIORITIES IN COUNCIL’S STRATEGIC PLAN
N/A
ALIGNMENT TO LEVELS OF SERVICE DELIVERY
N/A
ALIGNMENT TO COUNCIL DIRECTION OR MANDATORY STATUTORY PROVISION
On December 3, 2024, Council passed the following motion:
CM-24-019
That Administration develop a Project Charter, evaluate the organizational impact for this strategic direction, and include a budget request for Council’s consideration by April 1, 2025, so that the MDP will permit growth in the newly annexed land, including recognizing the catchment areas applicable to the northeast servicing project charter as “Areas for Growth” instead of “Future Areas for Growth”.
Anticipated changes to the Municipal Government Act in 2025, resulting from actions by the Province of Alberta that have changed Growth Management Boards from mandatory to voluntary, have significant implications for intermunicipal governance and potentially for the City of St. Albert’s future growth strategy. Consequently, the Municipal Development Plan (MDP) Update will ensure that the City’s long-term vision and goals align with the revised Municipal Government Act. This motion also supports the MDP policy, which mandates a comprehensive review of the Municipal Development Plan every five years.
IMPACTS of ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED
If Council does not wish to support this recommendation, the following alternatives could be considered:
Alternative 1: Provide funding to begin the work immediately instead of in 2026:
1. That $600,000 be allocated from the Capital reserve to update the Municipal Development Plan Flourish.
2. That the 2025 base budget be increased by $120,000 to fund a permanent FTE to support the ongoing planning requirements.
3. That $100,000 be utilized from the Stabilization Fund to fund a temporary FTE for a planner.
Financial:
Advancing this project in 2025 will require additional staffing resources, due to competing priority projects. This will require the addition of a temporary Planner for the timespan of the project.
Compliance & Legal
Currently, the NEASP does not align to the Municipal Development Plan, which is contrary to section 638 of the MGA. If the Municipal Development Plan (MDP) rewrite is not funded, this would lead to growth within the City being misaligned with approved Area Structure Plans and contrary to Council’s direction. This misalignment would result in inconsistencies in decision-making, difficulties in prioritizing organizational resources (e.g., staffing and projects undertaken to support growth in non-priority areas), and the creation of an uncertain planning environment for the land development industry.
Additionally, the MDP includes policy directives referencing the Edmonton Metropolitan Regional Board (EMRB) and the mandated five-year update. Failing to act would also be inconsistent with these established policy directions.
Program or Service
None at this time.
Risks
It is crucial that the Municipal Development Plan (MDP) be rewritten to address the issues outlined above. It is important for the City to have a current Municipal Development Plan (MDP) document that is reflective of the applicable legislative and policy context, as well as current trends. This helps inform Council decisions and provides clarity for all parties involved in community development, including land developers, builders, and the public. This misalignment would lead to a challenging Planning and Development environment for Council, Administration, the land development community, and the public.
Alternative 2: Do nothing.
Financial:
None at this time.
Compliance & Legal
Not funding the Municipal Development Plan (MDP) rewrite would lead to growth within the City being misaligned with approved Area Structure Plans and contrary to Council’s direction. This misalignment would result in inconsistencies in decision-making, difficulties in prioritizing organizational resources (e.g., staffing and projects undertaken to support growth in non-priority areas), and the creation of an uncertain planning environment for the land development industry. Furthermore, the MDP would remain misaligned with other statutory plans, which is contrary to section 638 of the MGA.
Additionally, the MDP includes policy directives referencing the Edmonton Metropolitan Regional Board (EMRB) and the mandated five-year update. Failing to act would also be inconsistent with these established policy directions.
Program or Service
None at this time.
Risks
It is crucial that the Municipal Development Plan (MDP) be rewritten to address the issues outlined above. Failure to proceed with the MDP rewrite would result in City staff continuing to evaluate planning proposals and draft recommendations that are misaligned with past Council decisions and provincial legislation. This misalignment would lead to a challenging Planning and Development environment for Council, Administration, the land development community, and the public.
Attachments:
Attachment 1 : Project Charter - MDP Update
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Report Date: April 1, 2025
Author(s): Craig Walker and Kristina Peter
Department: Planning and Development
Department Director: Kristina Peter
Managing Director: Adryan Slaght
Chief Administrative Officer: Bill Fletcher