(File photo/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Angela Brown

Not in budget

Council opposed to funding costly sound barrier for Country Estates

Mar 22, 2022 | 2:44 PM

After a lengthy discussion, Battleford town council were unanimous in giving a thumbs down to a request from Battleford West Properties Ltd. to help fund a proposed sound barrier wall for Country Estates residential subdivision where it runs along a portion of Highway 40.

Country Estates developer Dean Kupchanko submitted the request proposing a six-foot high sound-barrier wall be built, likely a textured/coloured cement block along Highway 40 for about 310 lineal feet for the project. The total cost would be about $45,000 so the developer asked for the town to cover half for its share at $22,500.

Town CAO Ash Alam said in his report the project was not included in the town’s 2022 budget, so if approved funding would have to be used from reserves. Alam added that the initiative was also not in the town’s plans.

“Country Estate is next to Highway 40 and people are concerned about the level of highway traffic noise,” Alam said. “The town has a ‘no compression brake’ zone along Highway 40 but no-one takes notice of it and it’s pretty much impossible to enforce.”

Alam said this issue has been an ongoing problem with Telegraph Heights, according to the email received from Kupchanko.

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Administration recommended council assess the needs of the proposed sound barrier wall, and approve the project as a cost-shared initiative.

None of council ended up supporting the proposal from the developer, largely because it wasn’t budgeted.

Coun. Alexis Christensen was the first to speak out.

“I think there needs to be some better planning,” she said. “That’s a pretty clear highway there. I would like to see more of a plan for development… We should see a three- or five-year plan, especially if they are planning to develop and gain revenue in the process. So I’m at this point against it.”

Coun. Judy Pruden was also opposed, adding that traffic noise has to be expected by residents in the area.

“We are in the midst of highways and railways,” she said. “We can hear the trains running at night. We can hear the trucks coming in from every direction, and there is noise. The sound barrier is something that the rest of the town isn’t paying for.”

Coun. Shelley Boutin-Gervais agreed, adding that proponents need to use some foresight rather than hope to have a new costly feature added to a project after the fact.

“We don’t have those sound barriers anywhere else against any of our other highways,” she added. “I’m not in favour of it either.”

Mayor Ames Leslie summed up the request as a “pretty big ask.”

“It’s not fair to ask this council to approve funds, especially something that is close to the one per cent of our taxation or half a per cent of our taxation,” he said. “I am not in favour of this.”

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Angela.Brown@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @battlefordsnow