Open house to address encroaching property in Cold Lake

Cold Lake city hall will be hosting a series of open houses to inform the public on the issue of encroachment which has been seen as an issue for the city in recent years.

Encroachment is defined as the intrusion by one party into another’s property, and in Cold Lake’s case, this could be instances where fences or sheds extend onto city-owned or crown property, or the storage of personal vehicles on public property.

“It’s surprising, it’s throughout Cold Lake, so you may have a backyard where you’ve had your camper there for many years, or your boat parked on a municipal reserve, so we’re gonna have a discussion with everybody,” said Mayor Craig Copeland on The Morning After.

The open houses will be on Wednesday at 10am, 2pm, and 7pm as well as Thursday at 7pm, and will serve to inform the public and gather feedback on how city officials should address encroachment concerns moving forward.

Although there will not be a formal presentation, city staff will be on hand to provide information and answer any questions that residents may have.

Encroachment has been noted as prevalent on the city’s northside in the past, where property is either private or crown land.

“Everybody talks about the lakefront, and that’s where people have built a fire pit, or a patio, or a path down to the shore, but it’s still public property they’re doing these things on,” said Copeland. “That’s why we want to have a broad strokes conversation with residents, so everybody’s included.

We’ve got some ideas that we’re going to be presenting, but we really are there to listen to the residents and see what they have to say.”

There are a limited amount of seats for the open house due to AHS social distancing regulations, so anyone looking to attend the event is asked to call 780-594-4494 or send an email to planning@coldlake.com to RVSP a spot.