Three city officials and five members of the public attended a public meeting at the RM office Thursday night to discuss the RM of Weyburn's proposed new zoning bylaw.

The Ivan family and two other ratepayers raised concerns about rezoning of their property that might affect the use of their property for livestock production and industry.

City community services director Doug Mulhall asked for a clause in the bylaw to allow the city to make advance comments about developments, like intensive livestock operations, proposed for sites close enough to the city to impact city residents.

Mulhall also asked if the RM has a plan for highway commercial development in a new zone it will create north of the city along Highway 39.

The RM has completely redrafted its 30-year-old zoning bylaw to reflect actual property use, to protect the watershed, and to account for changes in philosophy about livestock production in residential areas. Council gave first reading to the new bylaw on Jan. 15.

The bylaw is not about tax changes or imposing change on people's property, explained Reeve Dan Sidloski at the beginning of the meeting.

"We've been finding holes in the (old) bylaw and inconsistencies, so we needed to redraft the whole thing."

Sidloski reassured residents in the new country residential zone that existing property use is grandfathered, so they can continue raising the same numbers of animals in spite of the new zoning.

It's only when their animal numbers drop for a six-month-period, or they want to build new outbuildings, or new landowners apply for new operations, that the activities allowed on the land, or near watercourses, might be restricted by the new country residential zone requirements, he said.

Activities on land already zoned agriculture will not change as a result of the new bylaw.

Sidloski told both RM residents and city officials that council will consider their concerns in a discussion to be held before second reading of the bylaw at the Tuesday, Feb. 10 meeting.

Maybe as a courtesy, the city should be notified of any potentially troubling proposals, he said. Sidloski also told the city the RM has no current plans for more development along Highway 39.

"Sewer and water would be a big issue and would require the city's co-operation," he said.