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Letters to the Editor

Letter to the Castanet Editor: Rezoning and Park Neglect—A Call for Leadership and Action

Dear Editor,

The City of West Kelowna's Draft 2025 Budget and recent actions on rezoning proposals have raised serious concerns about the future of our community. At the heart of these issues lies a lack of comprehensive planning that prioritizes the well-being of residents and the livability of our neighborhoods.

The Lakeview Heights Community Association strongly opposes the rezoning of 911 Anders Road from R1 to CD (zoning amendment bylaw 0320.01). The reasons for our opposition are clear:

The City of West Kelowna Advisory Planning Commission voted against this zoning amendment.
Zone CD provides minimal restrictions on building size or type, leaving the door open for inappropriate developments.
The lot is surrounded by R1 properties, and a six-story structure would significantly disrupt the character of the area.
The lot’s narrow size and small area make it unsuitable for a high-quality mixed-use development.

We are not opposed to rezoning or development in principle. However, this particular amendment lacks thoughtful planning. A rezoning proposal for this neighborhood should include:

Specific conditions tailored to the area, such as height limits of three to four stories.
A requirement for parcel sizes no smaller than 5,000 m² to ensure high-quality developments that benefit the entire community.

Furthermore, the Draft 2025 Budget allocated only $1.7 million for “parks enhancements and improvements,” with no funding for acquiring new parkland. This is deeply troubling, especially as residents in Lakeview Heights continue to grapple with the loss of Anders Park—a vital green space taken from the community for a new fire hall without any replacement in sight. While the city states that the proceeds from the old fire hall sale and Harmon Road properties are earmarked for replenishing fire reserves, this approach overlooks the desperate need for parks in our growing neighborhoods.

West Kelowna’s children and future generations deserve better. Green spaces and parks are not optional—they are critical to the health, safety, and happiness of our community. The city's plans to sell the Harmon lot for Medium Density townhomes is another example of prioritizing revenue over residents' needs. This lot could instead serve as a crucial green space or neighborhood park, helping to address the significant deficit in our area.

The Lakeview Heights Community Association is calling on the city council to reconsider these plans and work with residents to develop a more balanced, comprehensive vision for our community. We also encourage residents to join our association to amplify our collective voice. Visit www.lvhca.ca to learn how you can get involved.

We hope that you all will recognize that this zoning amendment is not appropriate for our community and join us in trying to prevent it from happening.

Please make a written submission and/or attend the council meeting Tuesday 1:30pm January 14

HOW TO MAKE A SUBMISSION

All submissions must be made Attn: Corporate Officer, File Number (Z 24-01) and must include your name and address by 4:00 p.m. on Monday, January 13, 2025.

Written submission can be provided to Council in advance of the scheduled first reading date via:

1. Mail - Address your submission to Corporate Officer, City Hall, 3731 Old Okanagan Highway, West Kelowna, BC V4T OG7

2. Email - Send your submission to submissions@westkelownacity.ca

3. In-Person - Leaving your submission with reception or in the drop box located on the outside of City Hall, 3731 Old Okanagan Highway.

Any written submissions received before 4:00 p.m. Monday, January 13, 2025, will be provided to Council as part of the publicly posted Agenda.

For more information contact Cam Graham, Planner II at 778-797-8830.

Finally, as we reflect on these challenges, it is clear that attracting accomplished and community-minded individuals to join in the discussion and to run for city council is essential for driving the change we need. By joining the LVHCA and supporting discussions like these together, we can build a future where development is thoughtful, parks and green spaces are prioritized, and West Kelowna becomes a place we are proud to call home.

Sincerely,
Patrick Montana
Director, Lakeview Heights Community Association

Parks Detail

Parks

Historically the CWK has not considered the acquisition of parks as a high priority. There are many reasons for this including the relative youth of the city. Also, we have been blessed with a relatively large number of regional parks and open land. Much of this land is quite rugged but functions reasonably well as “Passive Parks” for hiking, dog walking, etc.

The main issue is the relative lack of Active Parks. These are generally smaller parks that can be used as play areas and sports fields. This lack of active parks is a result of most of the flatter land being taken up by older developments that lacked park planning or by Agricultural Land Reserve.

It turns out that our community fares especially badly with respect to active parks (see Fig #1 & Fig #2) Recall that LHCA comprises the city-designated areas of Lakeview Heights and S. Boucherie. Without bold action our situation will only get worse as the population increases, infill housing continues, and our demographics move towards younger families.

Fig #1 Lakeview and S. Boucherie are lacking in active parks

Fig #2 A comparison of the Lakeview Community and Kelowna at the same scale. Note the big blank area in the middle of our community.

In conclusion we recommend that the CWK acquire at least 4 blocks of flat land of 0.7 hectares or more per parcel inside LHC for Active Parks. They should be distributed in such a way that they can serve the maximum number of residents with the minimum walking distance. This may require extra funding and/or innovative approaches with the ALR.

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