Residents of the Takhini Hot Springs Road are still steamed over proposed developments in the area.

A petition signed by 11 residents of the neighbourhood was tabled in legislature Thursday.

The land owner’s plans to build condominiums at the Takhini Hot Springs have been a topic of back-and-forth discussions for about 15 years.

“Part of what prompted the current concern is that there was an application earlier this year to re-zone the lots,” Lake Laberge MLA Brad Cathers told the Star in an interview this morning.

A letter was sent out to residents last March, informing them that Takhini Hot Springs Ltd. had applied to have the development regulations changed on several parcels of land.

Around 2002, the Hot Springs Road Local Area Plan was formally approved by the Yukon government after residents of the area and the government discussed how a plan would help manage land use and resources in the neighbourhood.

In 2004, there were approved amendments to the development regulations.

“The heart of the problem and the issue is that the 2004 regulations ... should have been worded more specifically to accurately reflect (the) discussions,” said Cathers.

The 2004 regulations set out how parcels of land within the Hot Springs Road Development Area would be zoned.

For the lots zoned as Commercial Mixed-Use/Tourist Accommodation (CMT), a “maximum of two residences per lot are permitted.”

Area residents are opposed to any residential development higher than that, Cathers said.

Where the line gets blurred is in a “special provision” for the CMT lots that states that land owners “may be able” to transfer their residential development potential to a different lot – a point which Cathers called the “origin” of the problem.

This provision allows Takhini Hot Springs Ltd. to take lots meant to be undeveloped and have them designated for development.

Currently, the company has a total of 10 lots – with the regulation, the company would have the capacity of building twenty residences, two on each lot.

The question, for now, is what the company’s build plans are.

“My constituents don’t know what the plans are... They view this as expanding beyond the original plan,” Cathers said.

If the land gets developed the way the proprietor would like, the residents fear a change in residential density, quality of life and potentially increased traffic.

“There’s a lack of confidence on the part of the residents and a fear of the unknown,” Cathers said.

NDP MLA Jim Tredger, who tabled the petition in legislature, said the residents are seeking a sit-down with the government.

“They’re concerned that the policies outlined by the government haven’t followed the area plan,” Tredger said this morning.

“While they’ve asked the government to establish or call people together in an open forum, it hasn’t happened.”

Cathers indicated that Energy, Mines and Resources Minister Scott Kent is open to the idea of having a meeting between himself, Cathers and residents of the Hot Springs Road area to discuss their concerns and identify possible solutions.

“When things happen in your neighbourhood, if it’s done in a way that doesn’t involve you, or you don’t have a say, it’s concerning,” said Tredger.

But the proprietor of the land, Takhini Hot Springs Ltd., doesn’t see it that way.

“It should not be up to area residents to decide where we build our homes. That is the prerogative of the property owner,” Garry Umbrich, president of Takhini Hot Springs Ltd. said in a statement this morning.

Umbrich disagrees with the method the residents took in pursuit of action.

“We believe in open, honest and constructive dialogue,” Umbrich said.

“We cannot address area resident concerns if their approach is to have secretitve meetings and then sign petitions and present them to the legislature.”

A meeting date between government officials and concerned residents has not been set yet.

“It is not reasonable to request power over where your neighbour builds his or her house. If they have concerns, the appropriate thing is to come and talk to us. Our door is always open,” Umbrich said.

He pointed to the instance of the cell tower that Bell Mobility operates on the hot springs lands to provide cell services to area residents.

“Our neighbour had concerns about a cell tower next door to her residence, and so when she brought those concerns forward, we worked with the cell tower engineers, and found a different spot on the property, over 300 metres away from her property.

“That is an example of constructive dialogue with our neighbours, and that is what I hope we can someday achieve with all our neighbours.”

There are about 400 people residing in the Takhini Hot Springs Road area.

Though only 11 residents signed the petition, Cathers said a previous petition garnered about 100 signatures.

Umbrich was not available for an interview, as he is currently out of the country until mid-December.