They’ve said it before and they said it again when they gathered last week to talk about the wide-ranging issues affecting municipalities in Manitoba – they want the final say on land-use planning.
At the Association of Manitoba Municipalities’ annual convention in Brandon last week, municipalities passed a resolution that reinforces their position.
“Land-use planning issues should belong to municipalities without appeal,” said AMM president Stu Briese. “That’s the position we’ve taken all along.”
Decisions about land use have become more important in Manitoba as rural councils deal with the often-controversial issue of where to locate intensive livestock operations.
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Briese said equally important is municipalities’ ability to decide things such as where housing subdivisions should be located, which can help prevent conflicts between residential and agricultural developments.
Municipalities have control over land-use decisions, but they do not want those decisions overruled by higher levels of government.
Briese said decisions made by municipalities concerning land use should not be subject to appeal by individuals or by other levels of government.
The province is working on overhauling its land-use planning law. The review aims to streamline and update land-use planning in the province. The government has promised to release a report on draft proposals to amend the planning law before it is introduced.
Intergovernmental affairs minister MaryAnn Mihychuk told convention delegates that the province respects their ability to manage their own areas in terms of land use.
“Your ultimate decision is one we would respect.”
At the same time, however, Mihychuk said collaboration is needed, particularly within regions, since a project in one municipality can affect neighboring RMs.
“We want to be sensitive to regional needs, but recognize local control and respect it,” Mihychuk said.
