Photo: The County of Stettler Municipal Planning Commission (MPC) approved a development permit for a furniture manufacturing facility at its July 16 meeting. Rural Alberta Report/Submitted

A new furniture-maker appears to be poised to join the local business community as the County of Stettler Municipal Planning Commission (MPC) approved a development permit at its July 16 meeting.

Readers should note the MPC is comprised of members of county council and chaired by Coun. James Nibourg.

Board members heard a presentation from Director of Planning and Development Craig Teal regarding a development permit application from Classic Furnishings for a property owned by Don-Syl Holdings Inc. located at lot R plan 3966MC with a proposed purpose of manufacturing furniture and displaying sheds, in effect a manufacturing, processing or assembly facility. The site was described as being close to the southeast boundary of the Town of Stettler.

“The subject property is located along 44th Ave. adjacent to the east boundary of the Town of Stettler,” stated a staff memo provided to the board. “The applicant is proposing to use the quonset for the manufacturing of furniture and display sheds in the front yard for viewing and sale.

“The surrounding properties are made up of commercial and residential uses. The applicant has received Alberta Transportation Roadside Development Permit #2025-0050116.” It was noted the area in question is zoned highway mixed-use, and during his presentation Teal noted several different land uses already exist in that area, including residential.

He noted the proposed use, manufacturing facility, is a discretionary use and therefore may be approved by the MPC.

“The applicant is proposing to manufacture the furniture in the quonset and deliver it to retailers,” stated the staff report. “The sheds are built somewhere else and delivered to the property to be displayed for sale. The traffic generated by this proposed development will not be uncharacteristic for the neighbourhood and the applicant estimates one customer a week and one commercial truck a week.

“There will be no alterations to the building or site to accommodate the business and it will operate within regular business hours. The applicants proposed development fits the surrounding land uses in the highway mixed use district.”

Teal stated this application was sent to the Town of Stettler for comment and the town sent back no objections; Teal stated county staff also recommended it be approved, but with a couple of extra conditions over and above the standards ones. First, staff recommend the hours of operation be limited due to the proximity of residences nearby. Second, staff recommend the development permit be time-based; that is, the permit expires and must be renewed after a set time, for example five years.

During discussion it was again noted the area has a mixture of uses and that, as is standard assessing practice, each property is assessed and taxed according to its use.

Board members also agreed they liked a time-limit on the permit and five years seemed fair. It was also noted the development permit stays with the property if the business changes hands.

It was further clarified that if someone decides to place a residence on the manufacturing facility site, they must apply for a separate development permit plus meet all other requirements.

Board members unanimously approved the development permit.