City selling road for $1.9M

Photo: Wayne Moore - Castanet

City Hall has agreed to sell a portion of Mill Street for more than $1.9M.

The City of Kelowna has agreed to sell off a portion of Mill Street to facilitate construction of a proposed new downtown hotel.

The purchase price is $1.915M.

Council Monday gave first three readings to the road closure bylaw that would transfer ownership of half the roadway to Westcorp Holyrood Developments Ltd. and 1324632 Alberta Incorporated to be consolidated with their property for construction of a hotel and convention centre.

Strategic Land Development Manager, Graham Hood, says transfer of the road closure area to Westcorp is subject to the receipt of a development permit on the consolidated lands.

Should the development not proceed for one reason or another the road would revert back to the city.

While the development would take up a portion of what is now Mill Street, council has been assured it will not encroach into Kerry Park.

Council was required to adopt the bylaw before the development goes to public hearing June 24.

Westcorp is proposing to construct a 24 storey hotel and convention centre on what was the former Willow Inn site.