County of Grande Prairie and City of Grande Prairie Intermunicipal Development Plan

Intermunicipal Development Plan

The purpose of the Intermunicipal Development Plan (IDP) is to develop policies and relationships for the mutual benefit of the County of Grande Prairie and the City of Grande Prairie, and to provide for coordination in areas of mutual concern, which may include:

• Residential, commercial, industrial/business parkland use and development;
• Environmental management;
• Public and institutional uses (parks, leisure, open space and trails);
• Transportation, servicing infrastructure, and utilities; and,
• Any additional considerations required by legislation.

In addition, the project is an opportunity for both municipalities to work together to identify a shared vision for the lands surrounding the City of Grande Prairie and to establish processes that allow for the reasonable use of the lands and address areas of concern for both municipalities.

The IDP is a statutory document that envisions the future, meaning that it is intended to guide land use changes that may occur in the IDP area. It does not require any landowners within its area to change the use of their land, until they desire to explore other land use opportunities.

As a joint document between the City and County, it also helps to reduce potential conflicts between the municipalities and provides methods for them to effectively coordinate and collaborate.

Project History

The project initially began in September 2019 and progressed into 2020. During this period the overall vision of and direction for the IDP area were developed through a number of engagement events with the public, community members, and City and County councils.

The project was put on hold in mid 2020, both due to the outbreak of Covid-19 and to allow the municipalities time to develop an Intermunicipal Collaboration Framework. In May 2023, the IDP project was re-initiated. Since then, based on the work and engagement efforts conducted in 2019 and 2020, the project team completed the first drafts of the document, which were presented to the Joint Steering Committee for review. The document was revised to address their feedback.

A Public Hearing was held on October 15th, where both Councils heard a presentation on the updated IDP and the public had the opportunity to speak either in support of or opposition to the plan. Both Councils have adopted the Intermunicipal Development Plan as Bylaws.