A couple wanting to continue their camp-out parties on an acreage south-west of Tofield have been denied their appeal of a county stop order.

Joe and Cindy Ancic now have two choices – appeal the local ruling to the provincial level or apply for a development permit and see where that goes. The Subdivision and Development Appeal Board ruled last Friday that the camp-outs on the Ancic acreage were of such a size that they were not considered residential in nature.

This put them beyond the scope of a residential use, requiring a development permit for what could fall under either a commercial or recreational use. The board did not state which of these categories the camp-outs would fall under; however, it did accept a connection between the camp-outs and the couple’s 4-Play Lifestyle club in Edmonton, making the camp-outs part of that business.

The county had argued that, since camp-out photos were on the 4-Play website and on the club’s list of events, they were connected to the swingers’ club business and so required a development permit.

Testimony at the appeal hearing on Aug. 13 was that between 60 to 80 persons attended some of these camp-outs in Beaver Creek Estates. Several neighbours made complaints about the noise, traffic and parking habits of those attending.

In its decision, the board stated that “the sole issue to be determined on this appeal is whether the stop order was properly issued.” On that point, the board concluded: “By holding camp-outs without a development permit, the appellants were in violation of the MGA (Municipal Government Act) and the LUB (Land Use Bylaw).”

As of last Friday, Joe Ancic had yet to read the decision having only received word from a friend that their appeal had been denied.

Acknowledging that “some mistakes” were made that gave the appearance campouts looked like an extension of the couple’s business, Ancic said he was not surprised at the ruling.

“It’s not a big deal for me,” he said, adding: “We made a mistake,” by advertising the campouts on the company website.

Ancic insists this was only a matter of appearances, however, and the two are actually unrelated. Company camp-outs were held in 2011 and 2012, he said, “but that was the only time and the pictures on the website were of that,” and not later private functions.

Ancic also said he accepts the fact that they can’t bring their business into a residential area. However, he took strong exception to the depiction of his dogs barking “all night” as was stated at the hearing.

Read more in the August 25 edition of the Mercury, on newsstands now!

Patricia Harcourt
Editor