West Kelowna News

Over West Kelowna's objections, the Central Okanagan regional board will open a public hearing Monday evening on two bylaws that would pave the way for the proposed Crystal Ski and Golf Resort development on Last Mountain.

Crystal Mountain Ski and Golf Resort Inc., owned by a Swiss investor, wants to turn the 40-year-old seasonal resort into a year-round operation with new and updated ski lifts and runs, a lodge with related visitor amenities and a golf course.

The company also wants to develop residential pockets of chalets, town homes and condos in six phases according to market conditions that would ultimately add up to 4,000 beds to the mountain.

The resort and proposed development are situated in Upper Glenrosa, inside the Central Okanagan West regional electoral area and just outside of West Kelowna's boundaries.

The public hearing will be held starting at 7 p.m. at the Holiday Inn in West Kelowna.

West Kelowna council called on the regional board once again to postpone the public hearing until matters West Kelowna considers contentious are resolved, but with next to no prospect that the RDCO would heed the request, as notice of the public hearing, the agenda and staff reports were posted Friday on the regional district's web site.

West Kelowna councillors are concerned about improvement and upkeep of Glenrosa Road, a municipal artery that is the only non-wilderness access road to the resort, as well as the resort's water supply and impact on downstream water quality, and fire protection at the resort.

The regional district rejects the contention that the public hearing is premature, however.

"In staff's view, the requirements for the public hearing to go ahead have been complied with," says Dan Plamondon, the region's development services director.

Central Okanagan West regional director, Jim Edgson, says the issues outlined by West Kelowna were not the issues the regional board identified to be resolved prior to public hearing.

Edgson and Plamondon both said West Kelowna's concerns could be satisfactorily addressed before the bylaws receive fourth and final reading.

The Crystal project will be the second of two public hearing items on what should be a long night for regional board members.

Another controversial proposal, by South Okanagan Land Developments Inc. for development of 78 residential sites, 43 of them waterfront, in a strata configuration along Westside Road between Nahun and Fintry, will go up before the public first.

The developers will donate about 90 hectares (222 acres) of upland to the regional district as part of the development.

Staff reports make clear the Crystal proposal has a lot of hoops to jump through with various provincial and other agencies before it could be approved, even with favourable results with the public.

The regional board will not make any decisions at Monday's meeting, but will consider the proposals at a future meeting.