Madeline Baker, Times Chronicle Staff
Owners of a property on Lakeshore Drive in Osoyoos are hoping to have their 0.2 hectare property released from land reserves held by the Agricultural Land Commission (ALC) to allow for subdivision and further development at the site.
The 0.2 hectare property at 3621 Lakeshore Drive is zoned as low-medium residential in the town’s Official Community Plan, has never been used for agricultural purposes, is bordered by single-family homes and one empty lot, and is serviced by the Town’s water and sewer systems, but still falls under the ALC’s reserve land.
According to the Town of Osoyoos’ growth management approach, which works in concert with the ALC to protect 288 hectares of mostly active agricultural land base, properties that have access to the town’s servicing infrastructure, like this one, are well suited to development rather than protection.
The property owner, who currently has their home on the property, plans to subdivide it into two smaller residential lots. This would, according to the Town of Osoyoos’ report to council, “open up potential for infill residential development within an already serviced area,” an important consideration given the housing shortage that plagues the town.
Normally it would be the Town staff’s responsibility to make an application to the ALC on behalf of the land owner, but as this property has no history of agricultural use and is not designated as agriculture by the OCP, the application instead fell to the council at their February 14 meeting, where it was accepted without discussion.
A Notice of Exclusion sign has been posted at the property since January 19. Now that the application has been accepted by the council, members of the public can learn more and weigh it in at a public hearing to be announced at a later date. All properties within a 60-metre radius of the property will receive notification of the hearing date by mail.