Getting short end of lease

News that City Hall has signed a 99-year lease for the old ‘cop shop’ property is disheartening. Once paved and built upon the decision locks our grandchildren and even our great grandchildren into an agreement which, while it may be legal, is certainly questionable and challenges the purpose of civic centres and the importance of land use planning.

Kelowna, as a town, is 115 years old. Today the community bears little resemblance to its early self. Think back 99 years: Kelowna in 1921 was still dealing with the dwindling waves of the  Spanish Flu pandemic; about 2500 people lived in the small town, and very few buildings from that time continue to exist: Central School, St. Michael’s Cathedral, the BC Dragoon Armoury, the Glenn Avenue School, now the Boy’s and Girl’s Club, and the oft-restored Guisachan House and Benvoulin Church. Perhaps a few more but certainly not many.

During the intervening years, land use priorities have changed, our economy has undergone several evolutions, and Kelowna has become a very different city to what is was 99 years ago. In spite of this reality, Kelowna City Council has seen fit to now lock this land into a 13 story – though maybe more – luxury residential and commercial development by leasing the property for a term almost equivalent to our city’s entire existence. And for a remarkable net amount of $2.7 million dollars, or about $273,000 a year – in today’s dollars - for the next 99 years. There is no mention of an inflationary adjustment of those figures.

By freezing the land use and accepting such a meagre return for this unique piece of city-owned land, council has eliminated the potential for citizen-driven initiatives that could enhance its use for the enjoyment and benefit all citizens. The decision was made without meaningful consultation and is a shameful abdication of council’s responsibility to act in the best interests of our community. For today and into the future.

Sharron J Simpson, Kelowna