It was not just one, but two applications from Chilliwack farmland owners, that came before council Tuesday to subdivide large parcels within the Agricultural Land Reserve into two lots.
Both were forwarded to the Agricultural Land Commission "without support" by Chilliwack council, in part because there was no appetite to set precedent in this way in the ALR.
The discussion went back and forth at the council table, as to whether to forward the subdivision applications to the ALC "without support" or "without comment."
The first applicant was for 43501 South Sumas and the second, at 47982 Yale Road, and both parcels were more than 10 hectares.
"I'm concerned about the message that that will be sent if we allow more land titles to be created by subdividing in the ALR," said Coun. Chris Kloot, who also chairs the Agricultural Advisory Committee.
This kind of application can lead to undermining the integrity of the ALR, he said.
There was some discussion about attaching the "without comment" versus "without support" but in the end, council decided it needed to make a definitive statement.
Coun. Sam Waddington said he was of the "same mind" as Coun. Kloot and the rest of council, although he knows family succession is a big issue in the ag community.
"I'm not comfortable voting for these types of situation that set precedent," said Waddington.
Council can't simply take this type of action because the current owners pledge to continue family farming down the line.
"It comes down to what are the rights of separate title of land in the ALR," he said.
The smaller the parcel, the more valuable the land.
"We have a finite resource that we are managing in terms of ag land, and we need to be making decisions for 100 years from now, not 10," said Coun. Waddington.
Coun. Lum commented on how members of the Agricultural Advisory Committee can have a tough go of it on occasion.
"It's tough at times when you have to make decisions about your neighbours."
The AAC had supported the proposed subdivisions, and said they would be of benefit to agriculture, and supported succession planning. Also, an agricultural impact assessment study submitted by Statlu Environmental Consulting as part of the application for the application on South Sumas found that the subdivision will have minimal impact on agricultural capability due to the existing farming operations and the large parcel sizes.