Public hearing on Kelowna Springs land use designation rescheduled to late June

Photo: Kelowna Springs Golf Club

A public hearing on the future of the Kelowna Springs golf course has been rescheduled.

The hearing was set to take place on June 6. It has been pushed back to Tuesday, June 20. The city clerk will begin accepting public correspondence about the proposed change to the land use designation on May 23.

“I just wanted to make sure the public had that information because some want to, whether you are pro or con, they want to be able to write in and express their position on the matter,” said Coun. Luke Stack, after he and his colleagues agreed to allow more time before the public hearing.

Under the 2040 Official Community Plan, Kelowna Springs was designated for industrial use, at the request of the previous owners of the golf course who said the property would not continue as a golf course through the duration of the OCP.

Denciti Development Corp. purchased the 106 acre property last fall after the OCP was unanimously endorsed by council. In February, the B.C.-based real estate development company indicated it wanted to redevelop the property as industrial.

There was a groundswell of protest over those plans from people who didn’t want to lose the golf course or the green space.

Denciti Group CEO Garry Fawley told Castanet News the BC-based real estate development company wants to work with the golf community and community in general, to come up with the best use of the lands to create a win-win for everybody.

On March 20, city council gave first reading to a bylaw that would, if successful, revert the property's future land use to private recreational. Returning the designation back to private recreational would not prevent redevelopment of the site, but it would add an additional hurdle.

The public hearing triggered by the new bylaw is now scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. on June 20 in Kelowna city council chambers. Details on how to participate in the public hearing can be found here.