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Cattle dispute may end amicably Morden Times — Most of the cattle at the centre of a dispute over their possible relocation within town limits for the winter are now on their way somewhere else. Warren McKennitt last week confirmed to the Times he had successfully found other facilities for the majority of his cattle. It left both him and sister Loreena hopeful this would put an end to the simmering dispute that had sparked talk of possible legal action. Having found herself involved in this dispute with her hometown - which paid tribute to the world-renowned musician with a gala in her honour earlier this year - was a strange turn of events for her. “I don’t think there’s anything worse than having bad relations with friends and neighbours,” McKennitt said. She stressed they wanted to settle the dispute in an amicable way while also clarifying “any misconceptions that were out there - both in and outside of the community.” A last resort In a statement appearing elsewhere in this issue of the Times, Warren stressed the ‘mad cow’ crisis forced him to consider the farm on the south side of Morden for housing surplus cattle for the winter. “(But) out of respect for the town and our neighbours,” Warren said, he “left this as an option of last resort and (has) worked hard to find other alternative facilities. “At present, these efforts have been largely successful, and we are grateful to the operators of these facilities who have provided us with assistance.” “We have said all along that this was his preferred choice, if he could find other facilities,” Loreena also stressed. Warren suggested they had tried to be responsive to the concerns raised by the town and residential neighbours. “As a gesture of goodwill, my sister Loreena has personally chosen to cover the cost of a barrier fence, in response to concerns about the electric fences and their proximity to children.” Always in use The dispute arose over a plan that could have seen as many as 250 head of cattle wintering on the property, which is within town limits. The town and McKennitt had not been seeing eye to eye on just what he could and couldn’t do legally. He and his sister maintained the “grandfathering” clause means it exists as a lawful non-conforming use of property going back to before the zoning bylaw took effect, and long before adjacent land was zoned and developed as residential property. The Town of Morden had taken the position it wouldn’t conform under the town zoning bylaw. It had disputed to what degree it had operated as a cattle farm and saw this more like an expansion that required explicit approval. In his statement, Warren said the farm has been operating as a family farm for four generations and over 70 years. “There have always been livestock on the farm,” he maintained. “The present zoning bylaw was enacted in 1993, and the original in 1985. However, the bylaws do not affect the farm’s grand fathered legal right to continue its operations as it has in the past. “Although the farm has, for many years, been mere blocks from the town centre, it has always undertaken its operations in a responsible way,” he said. “There have never been grievances advanced against it.” Warren further noted “the farm was designed to accommodate up to 300 head of cattle and other kinds of livestock, which it has done on past occasions. (However) it has never been my intention to expand the activity beyond this historical use.” As for the Town of Morden, officials last week agreed the steps taken by McKennitt were a positive development, but declined further comment pending a formal response from McKennitt.
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