Land Use & Development

Intermunicipal Development Plan (IDP)

An IDP is a statutory planning document which is prepared by neighbouring municipalities to ensure that development within two or more municipalities reflects the common interests of all the municipalities involved, and sets out a joint vision for future development and land use issues.

Intermunicipal Collaboration Framework (ICF)

ICF agreements are intended to provide for integrated and strategic planning and delivery of intermunicipal services, to serve as a means to allocate limited resources efficiently in the provision of local services and that all municipalities contribute funding for services that benefit their residents.

Land Use Bylaw (LUB)

Every municipality in Alberta is required to have a Land Use Bylaw as per the requirements in the Municipal Government Act. The Land Use Bylaw establishes rules and regulations for land development as well as the process of making decisions for development permit applications within the Town of Castor.

The Land Use Bylaw is a document created to regulate the use and development of land and buildings in the Town of Castor with the goal of achieving orderly and efficient development of land as well as:

• To divide the Town of Castor into land use districts;
• To prescribe and regulate for each land use district, the range of uses and the purpose for which land or buildings may be used;
• To establish a method of making decisions on applications for Development Permits including the issuing of Development Permits, Sign Permits and Demolition Permits;
• To prescribe the procedure to notify owners of land likely to be affected by the issuance of a Development Permit.

The Land Use Bylaw includes land use districts (zones) such as the R1 – Residential (Low Density) District, the C1 – Commercial (Central) District, or the I - Industrial District, in order to separate residential, commercial, and industrial land development and regulate specific land uses and buildings.

Each land use district (zone) has certain land uses that are permitted outright, others are conditional upon approval, and some are prohibited. Examples of land uses include a detached dwelling, merchandise sale, a restaurant or manufacturing.

A Land Use Bylaw is made up of text and maps; the text sets forth the regulations for each land use district (zone) and the maps show what land use district (zone) applies to each parcel of land.

The Town of Castor’s original Land Use Bylaw was adopted in March 1980 (No. 668). The bylaw has been amended several times over the years. The most current version of the Land Use Bylaw (No. 1006) is below and its amendments are available at www.castor.ca/bylaws under Land Use/Development.