To the editor:
I was alarmed at how easily and quickly council complied with the demands of the professional presentations by Tourism Kelowna and their business partners. The regular citizens pleas to “put it downtown but just don’t block the view of the water” were obviously in the majority but they fell on deaf ears. Only Mr. Hodge on council heard the taxpayers ask for help.
Why? Because many on council had already made their minds up before the meeting and decided that a large building was necessary to activate the area and at the same time get rid of an ugly parking lot. And who needs more park space with just grass and flowers and views anyway?
Three years ago the previous council also gave away another big piece of waterfront. There were 240 linear feet (36,000 sq. ft.) of Cedar Avenue park also known as Pandosy Waterfront park (except there is no park). Instead this waterfront is covered by a clubhouse for the Kelowna Paddle Club, complete with their own waterfront parking lot, and numerous deteriorating rental houses owned by the city.
The park that the expensive and time consuming city wide charrette plus the previous city council recommended is still, sadly, just a dream.
So after the Tuesday night explanation that buildings are essential in parks to “activate” them and, make the public happier, we should ask what we can reasonably expect when council finally gets around to designing Cedar Avenue park?
Personally I think we will be told that this park also needs ‘activation’ by a big building. And then it will be approved, over the protests of the public, and built with a concrete walkway around it. And council will say that the good news is that the ugly parking lot and old houses will now be gone.
What will not be mentioned, because it will be too late, is that the Queensway walkway and the Cedar Avenue park could just as easily have been built anyway. No building was really necessary – all that was necessary was the determination of council to do the right thing.
The citizens of Kelowna need to get together and develop a clear position that large buildings are not wanted on the waterfront before the second shoe drops on Cedar Aveue park or on some other park.
Bob Whitehead, Kelowna
