Ignoring neighbourhoods

The purpose of Kelowna's 11 neighbourhood associations is to communicate members' concerns to the city. However, I know enough about my community to say that the city has ignored residents on at least the two issues that are important to me.
 
Only the ghost of the first issue haunts Council. This year the ghost presented petitions for a second dog beach. In response, Council asked staff to conduct a survey in 2016 to uncover a final solution to the years-long appeals from dog owners. This ghost-buster survey will cost $7,500, as free advice from residents has to be checked by surveys.
 
The second issue is Cedar Avenue Park, a.k.a. Pandosy Waterfront Park.  In the 9 years between 1989 and 1997 Council acquired 11 lakefront properties for the future park.  In 2010, when about a thousand people met at the foot of Cedar Avenue to voice support for the park, the city did not have $2 million in the budget to develop the park.  Forgotten were the rents collected on the properties, which with compound interest would have grown to at least $2 million, enough to develop the park.
 
Urban dog parks of at least one hectare, and the waterfront park are not a priority in the City's budget, but there is a bottomless trough for surveys, open houses, charrettes, and "It's Your Neighbourhood" signs.  Such a sign was attached to the chain-link gate of the 4 properties now leased to the Kelowna Paddle Centre. When membership of the Paddle Centre grows to 300, council might again give unanimous approval to lease the remaining natural beach to the paddlers. The city placed riprap on the shores of the properties north of Cedar Avenue, effectively ending any dream of a public beach.  It's now the paddlers neighbourhood.
 
Helen Schiele