Golf course proposed at Grace Lake South
New nine-hole course to be surrounded by 85 high-end residential homes
Cody Punter
Northern News Services
Published Wednesday, April 16, 2014
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Plans for a new golf course got high marks but a city administration proposal for a new high-end residential development on the south side of Grace Lake met a lukewarm reception from city council Monday.
Plans for a new 85-lot residential subdivision on the south side of Grace Lake, which includes a golf course, were unveiled at a committee meeting at city hall Monday. City councillors are approaching the development with caution and have agreed to proceed with public consultations before firm plans are drawn up. - image courtesy of the City of Yellowknife
Council gung-ho for golf course
Northern News Services
Published Wednesday, April 16, 2014
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
A proposal to have a nine-hole golf course built on the south shore of Grace Lake received unanimous support from city council during a committee meeting on Monday.
"I've been hearing for well over a decade now that it would be great to have a golf course in town that actually has grass," said Coun. Phil Moon Son.
The proposal was put forward by Darwin Rudkevitch, owner of Arctic Farmers, which currently leases a large plot of land from the city in the area for the purpose of sod farming.
In order to build the course Rudkevitch is asking the city to lease him a larger portion of land surrounding his current plot. As the venture would be a long-term investment, he is also asking for a 30-year lease from the city.
Although it was included alongside plans to build a new subdivision called Grace Lake South, councillors said they would support the golf course even if the city decided not to go ahead with the development.
Council will vote on whether to proceed with plans for the golf course in two weeks.
Any plans to begin work on the golf course would still be subject to a development approval.
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Preliminary plans for the proposed 85-lot subdivision, which would be located across from the recently completed development on the north side of Grace Lake, were unveiled by administration during Monday's municipal services committee meeting.
Although every councillor was in favour of allowing Arctic Farmers to go ahead with plans to build an adjacent golf course "that actually has grass," they agreed that the city should undertake extensive public consultation before proceeding with detailed design plans for the so-called Grace Lake South residential development.
Among councillors' concerns was the fact that residents in the area would be relying on trucked water and sewage. Although this would make it cheaper for the city to develop the subdivision, councillors did not want to see residents incurring those costs.
"I can't see trucked water being sustainable for that much longer," said Coun. Phil Moon Son.
Some councillors were also worried that the lots, which are expected to sell for between $90,000 to $140,000, and would end up being valued at around $1 million each once houses were built on them.
"I look at the north side, those are expensive homes," said Coun. Linda Bussey.
Council also heard from longtime Grace Lake resident Eric Christensen, who showed up to the meeting to dissuade the city from moving ahead with project.
Christensen, who called the development "short-sighted," said there would be unforeseen environmental impacts of development in the area, which is frequented by outdoor enthusiasts.
He told councillors that if they were going to build more houses in the area they should consider expanding the existing development along the north shore of the lake rather than proceeding with plans to develop the south shore.
Although council was all in favour of the idea, Jeff Humble, director of planning and development, pointed out the remaining land on the north shore is subject to the Akaitcho Land Withdrawal as part of ongoing land claims.
Humble said there is a large market for the kinds of houses being proposed in Grace Lake, pointing to the recent sale of all but two lots on the north shore.
"The Grace Lake North development was probably the fastest selling subdivision we've had in 20 years," said Humble, adding that he was very confident the lots on the south side would "move very quickly."
Humble added Grace Lake South was the "most immediate" area that the city could develop in order to move closer to meeting its goal of adding 1,500 new houses to the market by 2021 as per its 2011 general plan.
During Monday's meeting, Humble revealed that the expansion of Niven Lake phase VIII would be too expensive for the city to undertake any time soon. Meanwhile, a proposed 640-unit residential development at Ptarmigan Road is unlikely to get underway in the next few years due to the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs' (MACA) reluctance to relinquish the land to the city before the cleanup of Con Mine is complete.
Humble added that the city has applied to purchase large plots of land from the territorial government but that MACA has repeatedly turned down its requests.
"It's not the city that is causing the delays," Humble told council.
Although councillors found the news about the state of the general plan unsettling, there was a consensus that the city needs to provide more options for homeowners.
Humble said the city was currently in the process of obtaining the rights for the lands from the GNWT.
Council will vote on whether to proceed with public consultations pertaining
to the Grace Lake South development in two weeks. If the project is approved, it is expected that construction could begin as early as the spring of 2015.
