Annexation

Annexation is the legal process associated with changing a municipal boundary, when land located in the neighbouring area is transferred to the jurisdiction of a city to accommodate growth. Properties within an annexation area will then experience a change in jurisdiction from one municipality to another. Annexation does not change ownership rights and is not necessarily undertaken to facilitate immediate development, but rather to secure lands for future growth.

The City of Spruce Grove follows processes set out by the Municipal Government Act and the Provincial Land and Property Rights Tribunal.

Town of Stony Plain proposed annexation (Phase 2)

On Feb. 26, 2024, Spruce Grove City Council took a significant step forward in its strategic growth plans and passed a motion to initiate the second phase of its annexation plans. Approximately 32 hectares (79 acres) of land is being proposed for annexation from the Town of Stony Plain, which includes Boundary Road/Grove Drive to Highway 16A. The proposed area of annexation is subject to change during the consultation process.

From 2016 to 2024, the population in the northwest sector of Spruce Grove has increased by 43 per cent, from 4,082 to 7,153 residents. A further 3,647 residents are expected by 2030. The extension of Grove Drive through Boundary Road to Highway 16A is an important transportation linkage for the city, that will provide crucial secondary road access to support local neighbourhood and commercial growth.

A map of the proposed annexation area and materials from the May 22, 2024 public open house are available online.

Completed Parkland County annexation (Phase 1)

On Dec. 9, 2020, the Province of Alberta issued an Order-in-Council approving the annexation of approximately eight quarter sections of land from Parkland County to the City of Spruce Grove. The annexation came into effect on Jan. 1, 2021.

The approved annexation was consistent with the memorandum of agreement ratified by both Parkland County Council and the Spruce Grove City Council on April 23, 2019, to facilitate the annexation process between the neighbouring municipalities. Approximately eight quarter sections of land located south and southeast of the current Spruce Grove municipal boundary were approved to be annexed by the City of Spruce Grove.

Annexation FAQs

The City of Spruce Grove has a policy that it will maintain a 25-year supply of lands for future residential, commercial and industrial growth. The City commissioned its own internal land consumption analysis report in 2013, which concluded that its land supply had fallen below this level. The City then commissioned a Growth Study to verify the analysis. The Growth Study, concluded in 2016, verified the City’s lands supply had diminished to less than 25 years.

The City of Spruce Grove and Parkland County have identified eight (8) quarter sections as the annexation area to accommodate for the City’s short-term (30-year) growth requirements. Long-term land planning, as well as future economic development and sustainability, will be topics addressed in the Regional Plan, which is a joint effort between the City of Spruce Grove, the Town of Stony Plain and Parkland County.

The Municipal Government Board (MGB) is an independent board established under the Municipal Government Act. Its members are provincially appointed. The MGB's role in annexations is to:

1. Conduct public hearing(s) relating to the annexation if any objections are received on the proposed annexation, which allows any affected party to appear at the hearing to make submissions; and

2. Prepare a report with its recommendations on the proposed annexation and send it to the Minister of Municipal Affairs for Cabinet to consider in making its decision.

If objections are received, the Municipal Government Board will provide notice of a public hearing to allow land owners and stakeholders to speak directly to the Board on any matters relating to the annexation application submitted by the City of Spruce Grove.

If your land has been identified to be annexed, at your request, City and County representatives will be scheduling a one-on-one engagement opportunity to hear your ideas, feedback, and concerns, and answer any questions you may have.

Owners are also encouraged to contact the City's Growth Study and Annexation Project Lead by email to ask questions and provide comments.

The City is committed to ensuring that Spruce Grove residents have an opportunity to be fully informed about the annexation process. Residents are encouraged to attend future public open houses through newspaper advertisements and the City's website. Residents are also encouraged to contact the City's Growth Study and Annexation Project Lead by email to ask questions and provide comments.

Annexation is not the expropriation of land. Land ownership is not impacted. In an annexation, only the municipal jurisdiction changes. If the annexation is approved:

  • Lands in the annexation area will receive services from the City of Spruce Grove.
  • Land use and development approvals will be transferred to the City of Spruce Grove.
  • Land owners will pay municipal property taxes to the City of Spruce Grove.

The City and the County are reviewing the services being provided by the County to its impacted land owners and will assess whether these services are consistent with those provided to existing City residents. Once assessed, a decision will be made whether existing County services will be maintained or amended. The City of Spruce Grove currently provides an equitable level of service to all residents.

Annexation is not an expropriation of mineral rights. Mineral rights are not impacted by a change in municipal jurisdiction as land use development can occur in a rural or urban municipality, and the approval to mine, or to access any minerals and subsurface resources remains with the Province of Alberta.

Owners within the annexation area will be able to continue to use their land in the same manner as prior to annexation, subject to City bylaws. It will be up to owners when and whether to develop their land.

To assist land owners with the transition from County tax rates to the City of Spruce Grove's tax rates, the City will request that conditions of annexation approval require that land be taxed at the lower of the tax rates established by the County and City for a certain period of years, subject to certain triggering events. This type of arrangement has been successfully implemented in other jurisdictions. The details respecting transition of taxation will be the subject of further negotiations between the City and County.

In late February 2020, Spruce Grove submitted the following Annexation Application to the provincial Municipal Government Board. 

Questions?

Contact Christina Kortmeyer, Annexation Project Lead, at 780-962-7634 ext. 278 or email for more information.