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Voters will elect a new city councillor Nov. 28. (Photo Adrian Nieoczym)
What is the biggest issue facing Kelowna and its city council? It depends on who you ask.
For Weldon LeBlanc, CEO of the Kelowna Chamber of Commerce, there are a number of interrelated issues facing Kelowna but ultimately it all comes down to development.
“Whether it be the CD-21 proposal or the official community plan, both of those are really paving the way for the future of the economy,” he said.
The CD-21 zone is an extensive redevelopment plan for the downtown area bounded by Highway 97, Abbott Street, Water Street and Queensway. If implemented it will include parks, sidewalk shops and cafes, as well as several high-rises, some as tall as 27 storeys.
The proposal is currently waiting for approval from the Ministry of Transportation. It will then be up to council to either adopt it or go back to the drawing board.
The OCP meanwhile, dictates what kinds of developments are allowed where and addresses issues like housing, transportation, infrastructure, parks and economic development. A public consultation process is currently underway to update the plan with a vision for what Kelowna should look like in 2030 and a final draft will be before council in the new year.
LeBlanc said it is important that whoever is elected in the Nov. 28 municipal by-election be able to intelligently deal with development issues. “What it boils down to is we need someone who has a good understanding [of how to balance] economics, environmental and social concerns in a growing community.”
Tish Lakes, executive director of Okanagan Advocacy and Resource Society and former NDP candidate, identified housing and transportation as pressing issues facing this city.
“We have serious problems with being able to house our workforce in Kelowna,” she said, adding it’s important that council insist developers build affordable housing as part of their developments.
As for transportation, she noted that poor people tend to live on the outskirts of the city where rents are cheaper. But the services they need to access -like the food bank or help finding work- tend to be downtown.
“For many people, even getting a bus into downtown with all the connections, can be a challenge,” she said.
Lakes would like to see city council improve public transportation and help make Kelowna less of a car-dependent community.
To get a sense of what the candidates running in the Nov. 28 municipal by-election think the most pressing issues are, we asked them, “What do you see as the biggest issue council will have to deal with over the next two years (the amount of time remaining on the current council term) and what is your position on that issue?”
Their answers are listed in random order: Todd Sanderson, Kevin Craig, Andrew Uitvlugt, Vern Nielsen, Matthew Reed, Rocky Mix, Mary-Ann Graham, Ernie Patterson, Clayton Kessler, Michael Loewen and Mark Thompson.
Kim Ouellette, James Murphy, Dennis Rojem and Valerie Hallford did not reply to our questionnaire.
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Todd Sanderson
Kelowna’s services and infrastructure have to expand, and modernize, to keep pace with our continued population growth. In recent years council has been able to rely on new development and the related Development Cost Charges (“DCC’s”) to finance much of our new infrastructure, and improvements to existing infrastructure.
Our current recession is expected to continue, and residential development has decreased dramatically. We can no longer rely on DCC’s for infrastructure improvements. This lack of DCC infusion, coupled with commitments that the City has made to reduce our carbon footprint, will put tremendous pressure on general taxation. If elected I will champion a city council review of all programs and departments to ensure that the current services are effective and efficient.
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I like the answers given by Matthew Reed, Ernie Patterson, Andrew Uitvlugt, and Michael Loewen. However, there are a few boners in there as well. Take, for example, Kevin Craig saying that “council must bridge the disconnect between [the] municipal government and the business community. Establishing a business-friendly climate will allow us to attract [a] high level of jobs …” What disconnect Kevin? Wake up! The business community owns city council here and the latter has been doing the bidding of the chamber of commerce for as long as I can remember. It’s time that average residents take back their council. You won’t be getting my vote, Kevin.
Then there is the political double-speak of Vern Nielsen who is famous for using words to say absolutely nothing as he calls for “sustainable growth” and the need to “move forward.” Just what do these terms mean in terms of actual policies, Vern? Readers should have a look at his website which is full of nebulous and meaningless slogans like these.
Vern does get down to some specifics in this article, but he is dead wrong in what he says. He offers that “Downtown and centralized density is good for economics and good for the environment… It improves transportation, while decreasing the reliance on the automobile and more pavement. … Densification also allows more opportunities for affordable housing.”
So what are you saying here, Vern, that the thousands of people who are projected to live in the downtown in the future won’t have cars or won’t use them to go places like the Orchard Park Mall? They sure will and this will create even more traffic congestion than we already have.
Vern goes on to say that “Densification also allows more opportunities for affordable housing.” Is that why the proposed downtown CD Zone will be 95% luxury condos? Your answers show a superficial and naive understanding of urban planning, Vern, and you won’t be getting my vote either.
Please continue discussion on the forum: link