About 30 Ponoka County residents attended the final open house last night to provide feedback on the West of Highway 2 Area Structure Plan, a document that will set future land uses between Highway 604 to just north of Highway 53.

Most of the land will stay agricultural or remain in its natural state.

But industrial use could also be in the future for areas west of the Morningside overpass, the Matejka overpass and at the intersection of Highways 2 and 53.

Bob Riddett, a planner contracted by the county to draft the ASP, said the impetus for the work was an application to the county for a concrete fabricating plant located about a mile north of Highway 604.

There was opposition to that development from several of the residents who came to council chambers that night.

James Reed was one of them.

“We’re farmers. All around us are acreage people – they’ve been there for 20 years. We all get along fine. Nobody wants that industrial area down there when there’s an industrial area north of (Highway) 53. It’s already taking good farm land,” Reed said.

“Now we want a new guy come in, mess it up, build a cement plant, go industrial use – we’re just not interested in it. That’s why we’re all here.”

Some of the other concerns raised by residents were traffic and noise arising from industrial use next to residences.

“We can deal with some of the issues by buffering and by separation of industrial from existing residences,” Riddett said.

Last night was the second of two open houses. Riddett said he’s awaiting results of a traffic impact assessment by an engineer and then Alberta Transportation. After that, final revisions will be made before presenting the plan to council for consideration.