Council has been asked to put on hold efforts that could add residential properties to the Mary Lake subdivision.

Lois Johnston of the Mary Lake Community Association made the request at Monday’s city council meeting.

She asked that the infill proposal for Mary Lake – one of eight neighbourhoods being considered for additional residential lots – be halted until a meeting can be held in October with residents.

Council voted in favour of exploring the possibility of adding the infill lots around town last month, launching a survey, which ended yesterday, to get feedback.

The areas up for consideration include the three sites on Fireweed Drive in Mary Lake, and four sites on Talus Drive in Whitehorse Copper, along with single sites on Salmon Trail in Cowley Creek, on Couch Road in Hidden Valley, on Finch Crescent in Logan, on Sandpiper Drive in Ingram, and on Wann Road in Porter Creek.

Along with the 500 responses that have come in to the survey, and the request of the Mary Lake Community Association, a petition is circulating with 159 supporters online.

They express opposition to the possibility of infill in country residential neighbourhoods.

The petition cites concerns around protecting groundwater, environmentally sensitive areas and wildlife habitats, greenbelts and recreational trails.

It also argues that increasing population densities in country residential areas isn’t consistent with the goals of the city’s sustainability plan for greenhouse gas reduction and promoting the use of city transit and active transportation.

Johnston made similar arguments specific to Mary Lake during her presentation last night.

She also argued that traffic and road safety issues could arise with additional development.

The association took issue too with the city’s process. It notes letters were mailed only to the closest residents to the sites being considered rather than the greater community.

As well, there were next to no details on what might be in store for the sites.

Residents, Johnston argued, were asked to respond to a survey before they could ask any questions about it.

Answering a number of questions from council after her presentation, Johnston said the association had asked for a meeting with city staff to discuss the potential plans. Officials were told by city staff that such meetings don’t typically happen at this point in the process.

“So we had our own meeting,” she said.

The process – which could see city staff come back with recommendations on the various sites and whether to move ahead with the next steps in the fall – has been far too rushed, she said.

As Mike Gau, the city’s director of development services, confirmed, the city’s approach was to go out to the public without a lot of information except for the potential locations for infill and gather feedback to determine how it might proceed.

That involves continuing looking at infill for particular sites, and if so, what zoning might be applied, and so on.

Along with seeking public input, work is underway to do hydrological studies and gather other information.

“It’s all collecting data right now,” Gau said.

He admitted there is a need to work on better communication with the public. He cited some misconceptions that came through in the survey responses, such as some arguing against multifamily development in country residential areas, which is not a possibility.

Mike Ellis is the city’s acting manager of planning and sustainability. During discussion later in the meeting, he said staff had gone out with public consultation first in an effort to make sure residents’ views were taken at the earliest possible stage.

The city will need to look at input: what particular studies have already been done and would be needed before the city could move forward with the possibility of infill in any of the areas.

Ellis also confirmed that the city hasn’t done a calculation on the number of residential lots that could go into each site.

Based on the minimum standard of one hectare of land per lot in areas like Mary Lake, however, it would be somewhere between 10 and 15 lots there.

The city, he said, is not at a point of doing lot layout, but rather information-gathering.

While Whistle Bend remains the city’s major focus for development in the coming years, he said the potential infill would allow the city to offer more variety for housing in the city, including residential sites, which remain in high demand.

The city’s Official Community Plan states the city won’t put in any new country residential neighbourhoods. However, as Ellis explained, there’s no prohibition on adding new lots to existing land in those areas.

Coun. Dan Boyd voiced his concern that country residential lots not be any smaller than the one-hectare minimum.

But Coun. Betty Irwin stated her support for higher density when it comes to development in the city, noting she would not define one-hectare lots as being higher-density.

“I’m a firm believer in density,” she said.

Ellis acknowledged that developing the sites would not contribute a large amount of lots for housing stock in the city.

But he added it would follow city policies that call for housing to be added in existing neighbourhoods where possible.

Meanwhile, Irwin asked for a council and senior management meeting to be held that would look at possibilities for the Range Road North area near Northland Trailer Park.

“There is a prime location for infill,” she said.

The area was highlighted for that in the neighbourhood plan developed about three years ago.

The Kwanlin Dün First Nation also has land in the area, with the city waiting until the First Nation had finalized its plans before deciding whether to pursue infill on city land.

Acting city manager Linda Rapp told Irwin she would look at setting up a council and senior management meeting on that in the near future.

Mayor Dan Curtis was absent from Monday’s meeting with Coun. Rob Fendrick serving as acting mayor.