A brief and informal summary of the latest decisions made by Penticton City Council.
Exploring new child care at Community Centre
More good news for parents when it comes to child care: the City of Penticton will sign a deal with the YMCA of the Southern Interior to explore the development of a new centre.
After the MOU is signed, the next step will be to procure an architect to help finalize the design of the expanded/renovated Bugaboo University space.
As the City did with the Edmonton Avenue child care project, the City will hire the architect using funds already identified in the Social Development budget. Similarly, to the Edmonton Avenue child care centre, it is anticipated that the construction costs directly attributable and related to the child care project will be covered by a capital child care grant.
The Province is recommending that capital grant applications be submitted no later than January 2023 in order to be competitively reviewed by the Province during the current round of capital grant applications.
Public engagement for Spiller received
Council unanimously accepted the public engagement report on a proposal for 1050 Spiller Road and, in a 6-1 vote, agreed to direct staff to utilize the “1050 Spiller Road Official Community Plan Amendment Engagement Results” report in the evaluation of any applications for land use change of the subject lands at 1050 Spiller Road. For more on this story, click here
More affordable housing
City Council gave the green light to a new project that will see construction of a five-storey, mixed use development containing 28 residential units and approximately 1,300 square feet of commercial space.
Located at 603 Main Street, the project was given a development variance permit that will allow the height of the building to increase to 17.4 metres from 15 and increase the number of small car parking spaces.
The development, operated by the M’akola Housing Society, will feature a variety of affordable housing units ranging from one to three bedrooms.
Play (Indoor) Ball!
The boys and girls of summer will now have the chance to play baseball year-round.
Following a public hearing that featured a lineup of speakers, Council has approved a zoning amendment bylaw that will allow for the construction of an indoor baseball facility.
Located at 1603 Dartmouth Road, the facility consists of 7,000 sq. ft. indoor multi-use sport facility with over 5,000 sq. ft. of artificial turf.
North Wiltse gets first Hillside Development Permit
A phased project that could ultimately reach a full build out of 686 new dwelling units in single detached, duplex, townhouse and apartment forms has gotten its first permit.
This first Hillside Development Permit sets the City’s expectations to be met at each phase of the development, and future Hillside Development Permits will have to show conformance with this overarching Hillside Development Permit.
Given the large scale of the North Wiltse Block development, this is the first of many future Hillside Development Permits for the site.
FireSmart funding sought
City Council is throwing its support behind an application for grant funding up to $200,000 for the City of Penticton FireSmart Program.
The funds would come from the Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) under the Community Resiliency Investment (CRI) program
The Community Resiliency Investment (CRI) program is a provincial grant program intended to reduce the risk and impact of wildfire has on communities within British Columbia. The application for the 2023 funding is to continue the success and momentum of the 2021 and 2022 FireSmart program, including hazard assessments for residential homes and neighbourhoods within the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI), and fuel management at the local home owner level.
Additionally this year’s funding will also include fuel mitigation on large parcels of land in and around Penticton’s WUI neighbourhoods, and rebates for residents working towards mitigating their home and property.
Skaha Marina construction this fall
City Council received an update on the progress of the redevelopment of the Skaha Lake Marina. More details here
Planning for EV
Based on a recommendation from the Community Sustainability Advisory Committee, City Council has asked staff to prepare an amendment to the Zoning Bylaw that would see electric vehicle charging requirements for new residential and commercial developments.
These highlights are intended to provide a brief summary of recent Council proceedings. The summary is not inclusive of all agenda items. For a detailed account of the full agenda, including staff reports, other supporting documents and official meeting minutes, please consult the City’s website (www.penticton.ca/council) or call the City’s Corporate Administration Department at 250-490-2400.