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Vol. 12, No. 41, Tuesday August 8, 2017 www.LamontLeader.com
Lamont County purchases land to allow for rail-line connector and future development Michelle Pinon Editor
While Lamont County publicly announced Friday, August 4 that it had reached a deal to purchase 20 acres of land adjacent to Alberta Midland Railway Terminal (AMRT) near
Lamont, officials would not disclose the purchase price. Robyn Singleton, Chief Administrative Officer for Lamont County, told The Lamont Leader that the purchase price was not being disclosed at the wish of council and the landowner.
However, the legal land location of the landowner, was disclosed in its press release as: SW-36-55-20-W4. Singleton confirmed the landowners name, stating that it was in fact Robert Kottke. Kottke was one of about 25 people who had
MICHELLE PINON PHOTO
Lamont Countyʼs recent purchase of 20 acres of land adjacent to this railway terminal has averted the proposed closure of Range Road 201 north of Highway 15 just west of the Town of Lamont.
previously attended the public hearing on the proposed closure of Range Road 201 (Bylaw 775.17) that was held on April 25 in council chambers. At that time, Kottke’s lawyer Douglas Jenkins, spoke against the proposed road closure. Jenkins stated that Kottke was the most impacted than any of the other interested parties, and in his submission said: “It is obviously no coincidence that this coincides with the decision of Lamont County to seek the passing of a bylaw that, if approved and withstands court challenges, will result in the closure of Range Road 201 along the west boundary of the Kottke lands and AMRT rail link.” In the press release that was issued by Lamont County, it stated, “The purchase will facilitate a connection between the Canadian National and Canadian Pacific rail lines, in cooperation with AMRT. There are a number of conditions attached to the purchase and the top priority of the county was to get the deal done so that it can proceed with subdividing the property. Singleton said that would be “an internal county process” and once completed, would allow for the transfer to
be finalized. He went on to say that all of the adjacent landowners have been notified about the county’s intent to subdivide those 20 acres. “Once the purchase has been completed we would withdraw our application for the road closure bylaw,” noted Singleton. Even though the dollar amount of the purchase was not disclosed, Singleton said the funds for the purchase of those 20 acres would come from capital reserves. “Everything tells us there is potential for more development and he expects it will spark even more and larger developments in the future. The AMRT investment alone is pegged at $30 million. Singleton expects more tax revenue and spinoffs from AMRT as well as other rail related investments in the future. According to Jim Newman, Manager of Economic Development for Lamont County, the development of a rail line connector will “enhance economic opportunities for Lamont County to attract new industry interested in connections to both rail lines, and that (the railconnector) will be desirable for those industries that want access to the global market.”
Landowners adjacent to Range Road 201 may be relived to know Lamont County will not be closing the road in light of its recent land purchase. AMRT shareholders, invited guests, elected officials and administrators with Lamont County held an official ribbon cutting on Wednesday, July 26. At that time Lamont County Reeve Wayne Woldanski touted the $30 million rail logistics centre as a major boon to the economy and felt the project would kickstart other economic development activity in the area. Lamont County council August 8 agenda had listed under 6.4 Request for Decision: Road Closure Bylaw 775.17 from Planning and Community Services Director Stephen Hill.