BATTLEFORD — Battleford town council has approved a discretionary use application for a new chemical sales and storage business.
Council voted in favour of the request at its recent meeting.
The building to be located at 502-22 St. in the Industrial Park will be a 6,000 sq. feet warehouse with agricultural chemicals for sale. The site will be adjacent to Highway 40.
Council approved the discretionary application, subject to any and all government regulations that need to be complied with.
There also needs to be sufficient municipal servicing at the site as required.
The applicant will also need to provide copies of all approvals he receives.
There will also be a fire department inspection of the site.
Yvonne Prusak, CEO of Northbound Planning Ltd., which serves as the town's planners, also participated in the discussions around the proposed site.
"According to our review everything seems to comply," she said.
Coun. Shelley Boutin-Gervais supported the initiative.
"Anything that needs to be complied with will be complied with. I feel pretty confident that [business co-owner Breagen] Mr. Jamieson will do that," she said.
Jamieson, of 1 Acre Solutions Ltd., discussed the company's plans. He said the facility will not be a manufacturing warehouse; all the product will be contained. Jamieson noted he will follow local fire suppression and proper ventilation requirements for the site.
"It is a warehouse, so it's not a full chem retail," he said. "I want to make sure that's clear. I want to make sure the residents don't have any concerns on that."
Jamieson added that traffic to the site will be very light.
He noted that about 70 per cent of the product he will bring in will go directly to farms.
"It's not a retail site; it's a storage facility," Jamieson added. "It's a great location. I want to bring this to the Battlefords because it is a very large agriculture hub for the Northwest."
During a public hearing, several area residents asked questions about the proposed business.
One resident supported the initiative, while three had concerns.
One resident inquired about the business' proximity to residential property.
Jamieson said he will comply with any requirements and restrictions to ensure the site is set back the proper distance from any residential property.
He said the warehouse will be set back 50 metres from area residential properties to comply with federally-regulated Agrichemical Warehousing Standards Association (AWSA) rules.
Following the council meeting, Deputy Mayor Doug Laing said that it was good that residents who attended the public hearing had a chance to discuss the proposal for full transparency.
"I think all of the questions that they had were answered. We do believe that the rules and guidelines that's he's [Jamieson's] asked to follow are being met," he said. "It's good news for the community, a new business. It's exciting."
