By Jennifer Smith - Kelowna Capital News
Any fleeting hope Kelowna might accept two bridge pontoons to build a public pier set sail Monday afternoon as city councillors tanked the costly proposal for good. City council decided the plan to use two free pontoons from the bridge over Lake Okanagan as the foundation for a public wharf and moorage was simply too expensive, given the pressures created by the new Mission pool on this year’s city budget. As it was the cheapest cost estimate for a project like this that the city has seen, some councillors voiced concern it may be the end of Kelowna’s dreams for a public pier. “I am very much of the opinion that maybe we’ll never see a pier in downtown Kelowna because of the cost,” said Coun. Colin Day. The other plan to build a pier floating around city hall is tied in with a complicated development scheme funded by the new owner of the Willow Inn property. From Day’s point of view, that scheme might not make it through council, given the number of towers included in the project. The conceptual drawings show what could be described as a preliminary etching a of a pier capable of supporting moorage, but there are no cost estimates or timelines or agreements in place.
In fact, the overall development scheme draws protesters to the steps of city hall every Friday. Detailed cost estimates to float the two free pontoons from the old bridge off the downtown waterfront and convert them into a pier pegged the price at between $4.4 million and $7 million, depending on where it was moored. For every million dollars the project increased it would have meant a corresponding percentage point tax increase. This year’s tax base would have to support a million dollars more just to anchor the pontoons to ready them for building at a future time. “I can’t justify going to people and asking them to give 6.5 per cent increase in taxes based on the original budget,” said Coun. Norm Letnick, who was at one point in favor of the idea. The project would have seen a private restaurant and kiosks built on the old highway strip as well, with private industry footing the bill for those additions. According to rough estimates provided by the city’s parks department it would cost a minimum of $8 million for the city or a private partner to build such a project from scratch. During preliminary discussions in December, Coun. Robert Hobson told council a wooden structure designed specifically for the site was still a far better way to go.“If you take away the blue water and the green trees, you’ve got a lot of concrete,” he said Monday as he looked over the pontoon designs.
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By Jennifer Smith - Kelowna Capital News
Westbank First Nation doesn’t want pontoons either
The Westbank First Nation has also declined an offer to use pontoons from the old bridge. In a statement released yesterday, it was explained that WFN council discussed the possibility of using the “discarded pontoons” from the soon-to-be decommissioned Okanagan Lake Floating Bridge as infill at Shelter Bay but decided against it. “It simply seems that utilizing the pontoons for our purposes would not be the most economical or practical way of proceeding with our plan,” stated WFN Chief Robert Louie. Shelter Bay is the site of a 1,500-unit development proposal from Concord Pacific, but WFN spokeswoman Kristy Jean said the infill project was not connected to that company’s plans. Jean said the infill was simply to expand the community’s property by adding a couple of acres. The Concord Pacific development is proposed to go on former chief Ron Derrickson’s own land. The Concord Pacific development is estimated at between $500 million and $1 billion. Meanwhile Lake Country mayor James Baker says he too has discounted using the pontoons for a pier in his municipality for logistical reasons. Baker indicated last spring he might be interested in the free infrastructure.Bridge contractors SNC Lavalin have offered the pontoon pieces up for free to those interested in recycling them into new projects.
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