One resident is leery of plans to expand the Fox Haven subdivision, city council was told.

City planner Zoe Morrison read a public hearing report at Monday evening's standing committee meeting. It said one letter received from a resident raised concerns over the proposal to build five new country residential lots within the original lease area of the Meadow Lakes Golf Course.

Golf course co-owner Jeff Leuhmann bought 20 hectares of land from the Yukon government for $454,000. He applied for a re-zoning that would permit him to build a residential subdivision in 2006, instead of expanding his golf course. Those plans have since been carried out.

The initial project was reviewed by the Yukon Environmental Socio-economic Assessment Board (YESAB).

An additional review for the five additional lots is not required, because they fall under the government sale agreement for which the YESAB review was warranted. YESAB confirmed it has not received a second proposal for review.

Public issues raised for city hall include concern this proposal for five lots is significantly different from the first proposal reviewed by YESAB, and the loss of trail connections and access to the Yukon River.

"In the initial YESAB review of the Fox Haven subdivision, the project as described as a residential subdivision development comprised of 27 residential lots with two parcels being reserved for tourism and visitor facilities, in the form of a hotel or chalets," said Morrison, reading from a prepared report.

"The proponent is now proposing to develop five residential lots in the place of the tourist facilities."

Leuhmann needs council's approval for him to change the land's designation from Outdoor Recreational to Residential Country under the Official Community Plan (OCP).

The OCP also dictates that the the city take every effort to maintain recreational trails.

"Council may require that the proponent incorporate trail corridors into the proposed development," said Morrison.

Leuhmann was present at the standing committee and approached the microphone to answer councillors' questions.

"There are three five-metre buffers that allow access to trails, and this will be a fourth," he said, referring to his proposal plan.

Council will be asked to bring the bylaw forward for second reading at a future council meeting.