Banks Crescent Boondoggle

[seewood]

Best of everything is there. Including that Chinese food restaurant on the main street, good food.

The won-ton soup was atrocious. The rest typical fare, not a bad price. I haven't been there for a few years though.

No, it's somewhere people want to live without big box stores, huge developments and in-your-face modernization.

No place for big box stores to build... a good thing really. Plenty of that in Westbank and to some degree in Penticton.

Thank God for the ALR!

I agree, however the lowest cost to build housing usually takes place on flat land and easy infrastructure installation. Build on the hills? I prefer that but once rock has to be dealt with, costs go up...

The lark group, I believe, will regroup and hopefully make a proposal smaller in scope and a more suitable location for their target clients.

[fluffy]

I suggested Queen K is wanting to keep Summerland in the past...yes, I most certainly did because that is exactly what she suggested.

There was a critical tone to your wording that seemed unnecessary as her take is bang on. The fact that Summerland seems to have missed a few decades is a huge part of its attraction, and apparently something worth fighting for to a lot of locals.

[Corneliousrooster]

The fact that Summerland seems to have missed a few decades is a huge part of its attraction.

Attraction? What exactly has summerland attracted?

[fluffy]

Attraction? What exactly has summerland attracted?

Retirees & commuters mostly. The wine industry has a good foothold, and I bet the “day tripper” tourist numbers would be a surprise to many.

[Corneliousrooster]

Retirees & commuters mostly. The wine industry has a good foothold, and I bet the “day tripper” tourist numbers would be a surprise to many.

Retirees? Commuters??? Wine industry is hardly a summerland attraction - more part and parcel with the whole south okanagan. When people say "wine destination" they usually find summerland but they are saying naramata or Oliver.
Day tripper tourist?

So basically it is a place to come to die or if you HAVE to drive somewhere more important you might hit up a gas station on the hiway. A handful of wineries in an over saturated wine belt and people just floating by that get caught up in curiosity as to why our little town has pretty much only 2nd hand/thrift stores/antique shops and almost zero capitalization of our best assets - the beaches and lakefront areas..... I would wager that peachland with less than 1/2 the population does way more tourist dollars based on that fact alone. Summerland is plagued by a lack of foresight and any will to progress much beyond its 1940's charm.

You need industrial and commercial to be in balance with residential - I can think of many losses but can you name any great new additions in the industrial/commercial sectors in the last 10 years?

[fluffy]

Well you have to wonder then, how is it that a council that ran on what was basically an anti-development platform came to power?

[Queen K]

The fact that Summerland seems to have missed a few decades is a huge part of its attraction.

Attraction? What exactly has summerland attracted?

Thank God be to J H C not everything has to be built up to be deemed attractive.

Summerland: The Research Gardens, incredible blooms three seasons long, the dog park walk to the 1964 bridge ruins (photographed those a few years ago), beautiful large lots with trees and gardens and only one house, festivals in the park, the nicest downtown walk, great fruit stands not turned into huge complexes and pavement (RIP Kelowna Fruit Stand, we loved you), unencumbered views, nice beach fronts.

I can see why a developer like Lark won't get their tentacles out, they will bang at the door forever with a new proposal in thier image. I hope the good council of Summerland won't be turned over by money like Kelowna's has obviously been.

[Corneliousrooster]

Well you have to wonder then, how is it that a council that ran on what was basically an anti-development platform came to power?

Ignorance and misinformation. Lack of foresight and reasoning by the voting public.

Having ALR in the town centre that has infrastructure already available .... Real intelligent urban planning right there. Gee, why do the populations of bears,deer, and coyotes coming into town keep happening??? Such a mystery. Let's keep building outward where more roads/electric/sewer/gas needs to be expanded. Then let's complain about tax increases.....I think council should impose an IQ test to move here (unfortunately they probably wouldn't pass the test)

[fluffy]

Ignorance and misinformation.

There was no shortage of the latter in the last election. Voters were happy to jump on Mr. Waterman’s bandwagon, I wonder if they knew what they were buying into. As I understand it Summerland has some significant bills looming by way of seriously aging water infrastructure, and without an increased tax base that means increased taxes. Such is the cost of a “quiet little town”.

[seewood]

As I understand it Summerland has some significant bills looming by way of seriously aging water infrastructure, and without an increased tax base that means increased taxes. Such is the cost of a “quiet little town”.

Not to mention the state of many of the roads. Many look like they have been strafed buy 20mm shells.

Summerland for the most part is a retirement community and a bedroom community for Kelowna and Penticton. The private sector for the most part services the locals providing car repair, banking, insurance building supplies etc. Ripley's is an exception where their products are shipped throughout N. America.
Because of the location, I believe the Okanagan will always have a tough time recruiting large employers to the area. Remember a family usually consists of a spouse and if they don't have work, the likelihood of moving is reduced. ( Prison in Oliver for example) Pattison sign is doing the exact opposite. Me thinks Jimmy can see the writing on the wall regarding this governments promises and the impending tax increases to pay for them. NDG have already increased the corporate tax 1%, more to come. He's making a statement...
Peachland is much the same, nice waterfront area, housing up the hill, not much industry I believe. Lots of retirees there as well.
Although I don't live there I do currently work there and like the way it is for the most part. The Lark proposal was just wrong location for the customers it was supposedly targeting.

[twobits]

There was a critical tone to your wording that seemed unnecessary as her take is bang on. The fact that Summerland seems to have missed a few decades is a huge part of its attraction, and apparently something worth fighting for to a lot of locals.

Yeah, sure they are fighting for it now fluff. But given the infrastructure deficit that is looming, even worse than that of Penticton with an actual land base that isn't 80% ag lands paying 5% of the load, all these nimby's are going to be asking "*bleep* happened" when they open their tax bills. Queen stops in for chinese food. Awesome. Loves the small town feel. Awesome. I think we should ask Queen if she wants part of the future infrastructure tax bill to be able to buy her chinese food at a restaurant that won't be there if she doesn't. Lefties like that amaze me. They always want benefits that someone else pays for. When Queen actually moves to Summerland and pays taxes there, I will accept her point.

[seewood]

^^^^ I pay property taxes in Summerland and I believe for apples to apples, I'm about $1000.00 year less compared to Penticton. M2 industrial.
Unless Summerland does open/ develop more suitable land for industrial, the residential/commercial segment will continue to pay most of the property taxes. Same thing as Penticton but Penticton is confined because of geography and the res.
What industry can be recruited to the area without push-back from some disenfranchised group is also an issue.

Perhaps not a fair comparison, but West Van does not have any industrial zoned land so residential and commercial foot the bill.