Re: Issues with becoming a city...

Treblehook · Post by **Treblehook** » May 5th, 2015, 9:11 am

Sounds like more of the same drum, beaten by a different stick. Change is not always a bad thing. I suppose if one really wants to, it is entirely possible to conjure up all kinds of problems that might result from change, and in doing so make things stay the same forever. The big ticket items of any budget don't really change much through a change like this. Public safety costs are always a huge ticket item.. policing being number. it matters not whether you call yourself a District of or a City of, the costs are the same. I think most people would agree that there is something ambiguous about the "District of" identity. Some peoples immediate reaction is a question as to what it is... do you have a mayor and council?

inquisitive · Post by **inquisitive** » May 5th, 2015, 1:48 pm

A member of the council was asked a question similar to this, " Will the reimbursible structure for council and mayor remain unchanged should the district become a city. No answer has been received, lo, these many weeks.

Omnitheo · Post by **Omnitheo** » May 5th, 2015, 4:02 pm

Is it too late to just be annexed by Kelowna?

Symbonite · Post by **Symbonite** » May 12th, 2015, 3:56 pm

I dont care if its a city or not since they changed the name but I love how council and any town council uses the alternate voting process to vote no against something that they try to cram through. everyone knows that no one votes.

its like they could probably say we are gonna sell a town asset to balance budget..but if you dont want that to happen...then come and vote no....oh well no one voted...lets sell the waterfront.

Glacier · Post by **Glacier** » May 13th, 2015, 8:38 am

I have not been following this story, but the BC government has defined terms. If your municipality is under a certain population density then it is classified as a "District Municipality." Once you become dense enough you can apply to be a city, town, or village (depending on your total population). Is West Kelowna dense enough?

Ranger66 · Post by **Ranger66** » May 13th, 2015, 10:00 am

Certain areas of West Kelowna are certainly dense.

Omnitheo · Post by **Omnitheo** » May 13th, 2015, 10:06 am

A population center only needs 5000 residents to qualify as a city. WK far exceeds that. In fact WK is more populous than either Vernon or Penticton.

westbankkid · Post by **westbankkid** » May 13th, 2015, 10:15 am

Omnitheo wrote:Is it too late to just be annexed by Kelowna?

Worst mistake they could ever do. fortunately smart enough to realize that when the vote was taken. Kelowna's taxes have risen faster than West Kelowna.

Glacier · Post by **Glacier** » May 13th, 2015, 11:02 am

Omnitheo wrote:A population center only needs 5000 residents to qualify as a city. WK far exceeds that. In fact WK is more populous than either Vernon or Penticton.

I'd like to know where you get your "facts."

I don't know that you understand the difference between a district municipality and a city. Hint: it's not the population size. Double-hint: West Kelowna needs 61,000 people to meet the criteria.

Fancy · Post by **Fancy** » May 13th, 2015, 11:08 am

What are the advantages of being designated a city?

Glacier · Post by **Glacier** » May 13th, 2015, 11:11 am

Fancy wrote:What are the advantages of being designated a city?

One thing is the confusion. My relatives from Ontario drove across Canada, and they were confused when entering West Kelowna. They thought it was some sort of district within the city of Kelowna.

westbankkid · Post by **westbankkid** » May 13th, 2015, 11:21 am

Glacier wrote:I have not been following this story, but the BC government has defined terms. If your municipality is under a certain population density then it is classified as a "District Municipality." Once you become dense enough you can apply to be a city, town, or village (depending on your total population). Is West Kelowna dense enough?

The Province changed the rules for City designation at West Kelowna's request as they don't meet the criteria for being a city under the old rules.

inquisitive · Post by **inquisitive** » May 13th, 2015, 11:25 am

Fancy wrote:What are the advantages of being designated a city?

There was an official statement some months ago that this appellation is merely cosmetic. (Sorry, I can't attribute the statement to an official. It is, however part of the public record - in one of the local newspapers).

Fancy · Post by **Fancy** » May 13th, 2015, 11:26 am

westbankkid wrote:The Province changed the rules for City designation at West Kelowna's request as they don't meet the criteria for being a city under the old rules.

That doesn't sound right. Source?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mu ... bia#Cities

Fancy · Post by **Fancy** » May 13th, 2015, 11:27 am

inquisitive wrote:There was an official statement some months ago that this appellation is merely cosmetic. (Sorry, I can't attribute the statement to an official. It is, however part of the public record - in one of the local newspapers).

That makes sense and easier to say City of....