Abbotsford City Council voted in favour of removing land from the Agricultural Land Reserve Tuesday, despite opposition from farmers.
Mayor Henry Braun told On the Coast host Richard Zussman he voted in favour of freeing farmland for development because the city needs industrial land for new industry and jobs.
“One of the responsibilities … is to ensure there’s employment lands for the next 60,000 people that will move to Abbotsford,” Braun said, citing population projections in the 2016 official community plan.
The two affected areas of farmland total about 201 hectares. Braun said it is less than one per cent of the ALR-protected lands within the City of Abbotsford’s boundaries.
CBC News – Aug 2, 2017.
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