McKee Peak construction looms

Abbotsford council has given the green light to the first major development in the McKee Peak area since the city adopted a sprawling new plan two years ago.

That plan will guide the construction of thousands of homes on the southwestern slopes of Sumas Mountain. The new developments will push Abbotsford’s residential neighbourhoods to the east and represent a departure from the last decade of home-building, which has broadly been focused in established areas.

As The Current wrote in 2023, the McKee Peak plan is a legacy of old promises to developers who control much of the land on the mountain. It has also generated concern and opposition from trail groups and a nearby First Nation. After procedural errors, threats of lawyers, and opposition from Sumas First Nation, council unanimously adopted the plan in June of 2023. But it has taken two years for developers to submit the first proposal to develope a major chunk of land in the area.

On Monday, council approved Morning Star Homes’ application to build 300 homes on 24 hectares of land immediately south of Ledgeview Golf Course. Of the homes, around two-thirds will be townhomes, with the rest detached houses.

You can see the staff report here, and maps pertaining to the development here.

The site includes the trailhead for a sprawling series of trails in the area. When the McKee Peak plan was adopted, the future of the area’s trails sparked significant concerns. Almost all the trails are located on private land and tolerated by property owners. The city said that permitting development would also bring land transfers that would legitimize and preserve many of the trails and prevent a situation in which a property owner decided to ban cyclists and hikers from its land.

The project approved by council Monday will see one hectare transferred to the city and become parkland. that will include land for the Ledgeview trail network’s trailhead. Another three hectares will become city-owned properties that can host a trail that bisects the property from the northeast to the southwest. City staff say one trail will have to be “relocated” to the west to make room for future homes.

In their report to council, staff says the region’s broader trail network will be designed following a future study. The city has recently launched a survey intended to lay the groundwork for a citywide trail strategy.

As the first development, Morningstar and its partners (which include Retire West Communities, and Polygon Development) have been required to line up a site for a future elementary school. The city was told a site has been identified to the south of the properties. The details and specifics of a school site acquisition would be handled by the school district and developer. Funding for school construction is allocated by, and dependent on, the provincial government. Until that school is complete, students living in the development would be slated to attend Prince Charles Elementary, Clayburn Middle School, or Robert Bateman Secondary School.

A high school site will need to be lined up after another 1,800 homes are build in the area.

Staff recommended the project be approved as it generally aligned with the McKee Peak plan. Although the project didn’t set aside enough parkland to meet city policies, council was told that land transfers during the development of adjacent properties were expected to compensate for the shortfall. As it had done for the McKee Peak plan, council unanimously approved the project.