Plans to redevelop the Hiawatha Mobile Home Park on Lakeshore Road in Kelowna are headed to a public hearing later this month after city council gave its initial nod of approval.
The plan, which would see the Edmonton-based developer Westcorp construct as many as 19 buildings on the site, including an 11-storey boutique hotel, an eight-storey mixed use tower, an eight-storey apartment building, “stacked” townhouses and a 2 1/2-storey conference centre on the 7.2-hectare site.
In addition, the company will also build a linear park along Wilson Creek, which runs through the property, as well as parking for the buildings.
The new development will be oriented towards Lakeshore Road and will be built in phases.
The townhouses will be the first phase to be built if the project receives final approval from the city.
The hotel would be built in the final phase, depending on market conditions at the time, said city planner Danielle Noble.
Westcorp bought the Hiawatha Mobile Home Park in 2008 and has been buying trailers in the park since then.
Coun. Robert Hobson said one of the issues he wants to hear the company address at the public hearing is what will happen regarding relocation of the trailers that the company does not own and how the residents who still live there will be accommodated.
It’s estimated there are 19 owners still living at the park.
The planned redevelopment is located across the street from another planned redevelopment—that of the Manteo Beach Resort.
That site is also expected to become home to several residential buildings, including two towers and several townhouse buildings over a 10 to 15 year period pending final approval from the city.
Like the Hiawatha redevelopment, it is also slated to go to a public hearing later this month.
