An apparent dispute between the City of Kelowna, B.C., and a hotel owner is delaying public access to a popular waterfront boardwalk.

“This is a lovely walkway to go through and enjoy the waterfront,” said Raymond Wiebe, who lives in the Lower Mission area.

Last July, the city announced the temporary closure of the roughly half-kilometre boardwalk in front of the Eldorado and Manteo resorts for repairs.

In its public service announcement on July 14, the city stated, “the boardwalk is anticipated to reopen in September.”

“It hasn’t reopened since then,” Wiebe said.

Nor have any repairs taken place.

“I think it’s too bad,” said Kim Thompson, another concerned Kelowna resident. “I think everyone would enjoy that part of the lake and to access it.”

Wiebe says he’s sent multiple messages to the city, which replied it’s being denied access to do the work.

In an email to Wiebe last month, the city stated, ““Hotel management continues to restrict access to the site – including access for construction crews to do the repair work that was identified last year.”

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It also added, “Based on direction from the City’s legal team, we have decided not to remedy via self-help (i.e. unilaterally cutting locks, removing gates, etc.)”

The city declined to comment to Global News, saying there is nothing new to add to the response it sent Wiebe.

“I don’t really know what it is, what they are wanting to achieve by denying access to the city to come in and do the work,” Wiebe said.

Global’s messages to Argus went unanswered Tuesday.

1:53
Judge rules on legal spat between City of Kelowna and Eldorado

The decades-old public right-of-way agreement was made with previous hotel owners and came to a head in 2020 under Argus’ ownership when the boardwalk was closed to the public.

Among the reasons for the closure given by Argus was for crowd control and physical distancing amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The issue ended up in court, with Argus arguing the agreement wasn’t legally valid or enforceable.

The city argued closing the boardwalk was a breech of conditions.

In the end, the B.C. Court of Appeal ruled the agreement was valid and the boardwalk must remain accessible to the public.

The boardwalk did reopened for a couple of years until last September, when it closed to accommodate the repairs.

However, with the city not taking any action at this point, it’s not known if or when the repairs will happen or when and if the boardwalk will reopen to the public.

“This doesn’t make us feel like we have a very good neighbour,” Wiebe said.

2:18
City of Kelowna buys prime real estate for ‘world class hotel’

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In the midst of the trees along Trepanier Creek just above Peachland, a squatter encampment has been ballooning in size over the past year.

“It’s just getting out of control,” said Julie Gette, who lives in the area. “I think we’ve counted over 37 people up there right now,” along with 20 or so of their RV trailers and numerous tents and tarp-covered structures.

The dwellers have hauled in furniture and all kinds of equipment onto the site, which is in the Upper Trepanier Bench area.

Some of the squatters have hoses appearing to be drawing water from the creek.

There are boats and vehicles propped up on jack stands and trailers full of garbage along with piles of car tires.

“It’s gotten really dirty and gross,” said Kyle Gette, another area resident.

It’s raising some serious concerns, including potential wastewater and sewage contamination in what local signage says is a sensitive watershed area.

“There’s lots of our neighbours that do feed off that creek so it is concerning,” Julie Gette said. “We have a lot of neighbours now that will be getting their well tested.”

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Residents who live in the area are also concerned about the increased risk of wildfire.

“We’re not allowed to put a wood stove in our house but they all have makeshift wood stoves coming out of their trailers. It’s a concern,” said Kyle Gette.

“We live in fire country. We’re in a high risk fire area.”

Frustrated residents want the site, which is on provincial Crown land, cleaned up.

They have been calling on various levels of government and agencies to act, but they say what they have been getting is a whole lot of jurisdictional finger-pointing.

“Everybody’s wiping their hands clean of it and it doesn’t matter where we turn or where we go. They’re like, it’s not our responsibility, it’s somebody else’s responsibility, ” said an area resident, who wished to remain anonymous.

2:15
Okanagan group plans a major clean-up of a large squatter camp in the backcountry near Okanagan Falls.

Late Thursday, the provincial government responded to a Global News request for information.

It stated in part, “The Natural Resource Officer Service (NROS) is aware of the individuals on Crown land near Trepanier Creek.”

It added that the “NROS has been informed that the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction has plans to attend the site in the next month to meet with people and discuss additional supports or services that may be provided.”

“I know it’s hard times and so, like, we can’t be too hard on people but at the same time, I definitely don’t want to see this situation escalating,” said the area resident who did not want to be identified.

People in B.C. are allowed to camp on Crown land in one location but only for up to 14 days.

2:12
Frustration over Penticton homeless encampment

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It may be tiny but the happiness a 400-square-foot home in Okanagan Falls brings its owners is anything but small.

“It’s been a dream of mine to have a tiny home,” said Emily Kogel. “I was fascinated with the concept of living in a smaller square footage and having a smaller environmental footprint.”

The home was manufactured by Vernon Tiny Homes.

Kogel said it’s fully serviced with clean well water and a septic system and built like standard home.

“The outside is 100 per cent cedar siding. Those are double pane Ply Gem windows, the roof is a steel roof and it has a 40 pound per square foot snow load,” Kogel said.

The tiny home also enabled the young professional couple to achieve first-time home ownership.

“That was the deciding factor,” said Keith Balisky. “When we were looking at the housing market, it was just unattainable for where we are.”

Balisky is a registered clinical counsellor. Kogel is a locum family doctor working at clinics across the South Okanagan and Similkameen as well as Penticton General Hospital.

“We’re both early in our career coming into the housing market,” said Kogel. “We were looking at home ownership but the cost of owning or having a mortgage was so expensive, combined with our student debt. We just didn’t feel it was the right financial decision for us.”

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But their living situation is in limbo because their tiny home is not considered a permanent dwelling, classified instead as a recreational vehicle (RV), in which the Regional District of Okanagan Similkameen prohibits year-round living without approval.

“Tiny homes are in that kind of weird in-between limbo where there’s no regulation, so they have to follow some sort of regulation,” Balisky said. “The builders typically go by kind of RV standards but our home is way above RV standards in that way.”

3:28
Open House: Exploring a tiny home

The rules could force the couple to move, a potential loss to the communities they serve amid a doctor shortage.

“I don’t expect exceptions as a physician,” Kogel said. “But I do think that the bylaws governing additional dwelling units probably could be updated and I think it’s time to do that in the midst of our housing crisis.”

In an email to Global News, the RDCO stated the Okanagan Valley Zoning Bylaw does not recognize “tiny home” as a dwelling type.

It added, “the only way for them to be permitted is through an approval by the RDOS Board (either in the form of a rezoning or a temporary use permit).”

The couple has submitted a request application for a temporary use permit. In the meantime, the couple has taken their plight to social media, asking for the public’s support of their temporary use permit application by signing an online form.

Kogel said the response has been overwhelming.

“We’re very grateful for all the positive support,” Kogel said.  “We’re not we’re not trying to skirt the rules. We’re very supportive of having land use regulations in place and we want housing to be safe for everyone, but unless there’s a safety issue here, I don’t see why it should be prohibited.”

The RDOS board is expected to vote on the permit application at its regular meeting on April 16.

“It would be pretty devastating,” Kogel said when asked how she would feel if the application is denied. “We love living in this community. We love working in this community.”

1:58
Affordable housing advocates condemn government decision to de-fund community housing

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Thousands of people access emergency medical care at Kelowna General Hospital (KGH) every year, but now the emergency room (ER) will get some much-needed care of its own.

“Hopefully that translates into patients having a more seamless care journey in the emergency, getting kind of more efficiently brought into the department,” said Dr. Jared Baylis, an ER physician and the department’s medical director.

The KGH Foundation is about to launch a $2.5 million fundraising campaign to enhance emergency care in the Interior’s largest hospital.

“We’re all feeling kind of energized and excited about this,” Baylis said.

Called Give Where It Matters Most, the campaign is the last piece of the broader $40 million Closer To Home campaign.

It involves targeted improvements identified by medical teams and Interior Health (IH).

“This is a very big need for us and has been identified as a site priority for a while,” said Lindsay Taberner, KGH executive director of clinical operations.

The improvements will include redesigning patient registration and expanding triage capacity to help reduce wait times.

“If we have more ability and more space to triage patients, that will improve the triage time,” Taberner said. “So improved time to assessment and then time to result and time to treatment.”

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The redesigned space will also improve sightlines, allowing for better monitoring of vulnerable patients.

“I think triage is known to (be) a bit of a danger zone, because that’s the point where somebody’s come in seeking care but they haven’t yet been assessed or treated for what they’re coming in for,” Baylis said.

“And if wait times are starting to balloon, then people are in the waiting room for longer and longer and things can happen while they’re waiting.”

2:05
KGH Foundation launches new cancer care campaign

The funds will also support new diagnostic equipment including two mobile ultrasounds and a dedicated ER ECG and lab area, which Baylis said will help streamline the treatment process.

“Right now there can be some confusion about what happens next for patients. So they come in, they get triaged. Are they going to see the doctor next? Are they going for lab tests next? Are they going for an X-ray?” he said.

“It’s a little bit of a confusing journey, so we’re hoping to streamline that and just have it all happen in a more sequential way.”

According to IH, there were more than 101,000 patient visits to the KGH ER last year alone, making it second-busiest emergency room in the province.

As the region continues to grow, those patient numbers will continue increasing and put more strain on an already challenging staffing situation.

“We are continually recruiting, we are continually addressing need and demand,” Taberner said.

Work on the upgrades is expected to begin later this year and be completed by fall 2027.

For more information on the campaign or to donate, click on the KGH Foundation website.

2:21
New community-based mental health response team in Kelowna

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A Kelowna man has been ordered to pay a $5,000 fine for flying a drone during the McDougall Creek wildfire in 2023.

Derek Leippi was sentenced in provincial court Monday after being charged under the Wildfire Act for interfering with a helicopter responding to the fire. He was found guilty on Feb. 9.

He was set to be sentenced on Feb. 24, but Justice Cathaline Heinrich reserved her decision until March 23, saying she needed more time.

The Crown was calling for a $15,000 fine and a public apology.

Leippi, who represented himself, asked for far more leniency with a small fine or no fine at all.

During sentence submissions in February, Leippi told the judge he has already paid a price because the media attention has impacted his professional reputation as a realtor.

The drone incident happened on Aug. 27, 2023 — 10 days after the wildfire erupted.

2:34
One year since McDougall Creek wildfire

Leippi was flying his small drone off a boat on Okanagan Lake, near the fire-ravaged Okanagan Lake Resort, to capture footage.

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He previously told court he was unaware that firefighting aircraft were operating in the area until he saw a helicopter arrive to pick up water.

He admitted he made a mistake but added he did not mean to interfere with the emergency response.

While Justice Heinrich did find Leippi’s actions distracted the helicopter pilot for a brief time, she said she took into consideration mitigating factors, including this being Leippi’s first offence and him being cooperative and respectful when authorities approached him on the boat that day.

The judge noted she believes the fine is strong enough in this case to deter others from committing this type of offence.

0:34
Drone hits BC Wildfire plane

“I will certainly leave it to the courts to decide how best to respond and in this case, they have responded,” said Ravi Parmar, B.C.’s minister of forests. “I respect the court’s decision.”

But with another wildfire season fast approaching, Parmar had strong words for anyone thinking of flying a drone near wildfires.

Don’t fly your drones and put the lives of British Columbians that are so heroic in fighting those fires on the line,” Parmar said.

“We’ve got pilots. We’ve got people on the ground, boots on the ground, protecting people and communities every single day during wildfire season and for anyone to do the stupid thing of flying a drone, I hope the court holds them accountable.”

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Crown was also calling for Leippi to make a public apology but the judge said she accepts the remorse Leippi expressed in court and no further action is necessary.

Leippi appeared in court on video for Monday’s sentencing.

2:00
B.C. companies working on a drone that could help in wildfire fight

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It was a packed house at the Rutland Centennial Hall in Kelowna, B.C., Wednesday evening where Conservative MLA Gavin Dew hosted a town hall on crime and social disorder.

“In the last number of months, there has been a lot of conversation about what’s happening downtown and there were a number of events happening there,” Dew told the crowd of roughly 200 people.

“One of the reasons why we’re here tonight is that there were a lot of good folks at those downtown events…and one of the things they said to me is we wanted to make sure Rutland is not forgotten.”

Cedric Anderson was one the attendees.

He voiced concerns about rising crime in an area he’s lived in his entire life.

“Businesses getting broken into, homes being broken into,” Anderson said as he described some of his concerns. “I was attacked a couple months ago myself.”

Last fall, Anderson said, he confronted a man who broke into a fenced area on his property and was bear-sprayed.

“As he was leaving, he said something under his breath and caused me to look and at that point he bear-sprayed me,” Anderson told Global News.

In response to the growing social disorder, particularly downtown, the City of Kelowna implemented its Business Safety Action plan.

On Monday, city staff updated council on the initiatives, some of which include enhanced RCMP and bylaw patrols.

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Darren Caul, the city’s public safety director, told council the enhanced patrols are in place five days a week downtown but only twice a week in Rutland.

“Bylaw is currently in Rutland doing those patrols Tuesdays and Thursday afternoons,” Caul said on Monday.

The difference in patrol frequency between downtown and Rutland, which continues to be a hotspot for crime, isn’t sitting well with residents.

“I do feel that Rutland is treated like the redheaded stepchild. We do get left behind,” said Anderson. “We do get a lot of issues dumped on us as a community, and I don’t think it’s fair.”

Carley Cherney is a mother of two young children.

She said Rutland, with so many families, should have equal resources.

“I feel relatively unsafe. I want more patrols here. We’re just as important as downtown,” she told Global News.

“They’re tending to the businesses but what about the families? What about the kids?”

2:16
Rutland urging increased police support

Caul said the city is well aware of the issues in Rutland and has numerous resources in place for that part of the city.

“We are very attentive to what is happening for Rutland residents,” Caul said.

Caul said despite finite resources, the city re-deploys them based on greatest needs.

He added that the city takes a tailored approach to different areas of town and pointed to one program unique to Rutland.

“Rutland has the only dedicated business and community liaison that exists in the city,” Caul said. “In fact, that is a model that we started in Rutland last year and it’s working so well, we’re looking to replicate that for downtown and Midtown.”

Caul said that two more bylaw officers are being added in Rutland this spring.

In the meantime, Anderson is urging residents and business operators to report all crime, no matter how minor, hoping it spurs change for the better.

“If you go undocumented, it won’t happen and it won’t change,” Anderson said.

2:05
RCMP in Kelowna see rise in social disorder

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More than 400 police files since 2016, and now Justin Collins is facing three new charges.

Collins was back in court Tuesday, charged with one count of committing an indecent act in public and one count of mischief, both stemming from Feb. 16. A third mischief charge is tied to an incident on March 3. He was released on bail set at $250, with conditions.

“Beyond infuriating when you read something like that, and you’re like, ‘Are you kidding me,’” said Kristina Loewen, BC Conservative MLA for Kelowna Centre.

Kelowna Mayor Tom Dyas says bail decisions are based on specific legal criteria, but he questions how Collins was released, based on his history.

“For a judge to look at granting bail for an individual, they have to say that the individual will not commit any more crimes, that they will show up for court, and that there is a level of comfort that there is not a safety risk to the community,” Dyas said.

Collins has a lengthy criminal history, including charges related to assault, robbery and mischief. In total, he has faced 64 charges over the past decade. His record also prompted a rare public warning from Kelowna RCMP in 2022.

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“Four hundred police files, I don’t know what the number is where it gets to the point where it’s serious enough that they are going to deal with it properly,” Dyas added.

Frustration is growing among some officials, as Collins, described by some as a prominent example of catch-and-release, is once again back in the community.

Loewen says opposition politicians at both the provincial and federal levels are pushing for changes to bail laws.

“I just was back in Ottawa speaking to Bill C-14 and Bill C-42, that we need tougher laws around bail reform and repeat offenders,” Dyas said.

In a statement, B.C.’s attorney general pointed to the province’s repeat violent offending intervention initiative, saying it has shown strong results.

“The Province’s repeat violent-offending program (ReVOII) has also shown strong results, with an evaluation shows 50% fewer police interactions involving accused individuals and faster charge approvals for high-risk violent offenders,” said the ministry.

“Building on ReVOII’s early success, the Province is expanding a similar initiative, Chronic Property Offending Intervention Initiative (C‑POII), provincewide with $16 million over two years to address persistent property and public‑disorder offending.”

Collins is back in court on March 31.

“As politicians in the opposition, both in our province and across the country, are fighting for changes to federal and provincial laws,” said Loewen.

2:09
Kelowna community safety forum

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Canadian comedian Ben Bankas is pushing ahead with his planned Kelowna, B.C., stop, despite growing calls to cancel the show.

In a video posted online ahead of March 19, Bankas tells fans he’s coming to Kelowna. Wearing a Kelowna Rockets jersey, the Toronto-born comic, now based in Austin, Texas, is seen stepping off a plane in another online video saying “can’t stop me.”

Bankas has built a reputation for controversial material, including a recent set where he compared Winnipeg to an apocalyptic scene involving Indigenous people.

Kelowna Pride spokesperson Candace Banks says that kind of content is part of a broader pattern.

“If you look up any of the clips on YouTube, it only takes a second for him to get into trashing immigrants, Indigenous people, women, trans folks, queer folks,” she said.

His “I Said What I Said” tour has already faced fallout. A show in Nanaimo was cancelled, with the Port Theatre saying it supports freedom of expression within the bounds of the law.

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In the U.S., multiple sold-out shows in Minnesota were also scrapped after backlash to a routine referencing Renée Good, a 37-year-old mother who was fatally shot by an ICE agent earlier this year.

Bankas joked about her death during a performance, saying it was ‘good,’ drawing widespread criticism.

“To make light of the death of a human, an innocent woman, that’s not comedy,” Banks said.

Kelowna Pride is now calling on Prospera Place to cancel Thursday’s show.

“Especially for a public venue where we get most of our entertainment from, I think our entire community needs to feel comfortable and safe there. With events like this, there is no safety,” she said.

In a statement, Prospera Place says it is listening to feedback.

“The venue hosts a wide range of events throughout the year, presented by different organizers. When providing the space for these events, we recognize that not every performance will resonate positively with the whole of our community,” said Prospera Place.

“Any decisions related to an event proceeding are considered carefully and take into account a variety of factors, including existing agreements and public safety.”

Global News reached out to Bankas’ team for comment but did not receive a response.

For now, the nearly sold-out show is still expected to go ahead.

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It was a busy weekend for Cecil’s Perogies — just not the kind the owners were hoping for.

Owner Jonathan Warwaruck said his phone “was ringing off the hook” after the family-run restaurant on Richter Street was broken into early Saturday morning.

Police say the first incident happened around 6 a.m. Then, just 24 hours later, it happened again.

“The front door was smashed in and they stole pop,” Warwaruck said. “The second time they came back and took more stuff.”

Kelowna RCMP say they’ve already gathered surveillance footage and are working with nearby businesses to identify the suspect.

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“We did get some video and we’re working with the owner to get more,” said Cpl. Steven Lang. “Some businesses have really good footage, so we were able to make efforts right away.”

While the items stolen were of relatively low value, the damage left behind is far more costly. The front window was shattered, and parts of the interior were destroyed, including a Ukrainian display case near the back of the store.

Warwaruck says in more than three decades of business, he’s never experienced anything like this.

“It’s getting really bad in this town. This was the first time we’ve been broken into in 33 years,” he said.

He adds his neighbours haven’t been as lucky.

“The sushi place next door had their window smashed last week, and other nearby businesses have also been hit,” he said. “There have been a few break-ins in this area. It’s getting out of hand.”

The concern is one being echoed by businesses across Kelowna, as many continue to speak out about rising crime and public disorder in recent months.

In response, RCMP say they’ve increased their presence in key areas, working alongside city bylaw officers on joint patrols in the downtown core and Rutland neighbourhood.

“We have specific RCMP patrols at least five days a week in those areas,” Lang said.

Police add that 12 officers were deployed over the weekend, focusing on both education and enforcement as part of ongoing efforts to address crime in the community.

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They may be small, but invasive quagga and zebra mussels pose a huge threat to the environment and economy.

“Mussels will destroy the water chemistry. They will destroy the beaches. Tourism will go away,” said Blair Ireland, chair of the Okanagan Basin Water Board (OBWB).

“You know, we’re talking about hundreds of millions of dollars in impact.”

Many waterways across the United States and Canada are already infested, including the Great Lakes and Lake Winnipeg.

Now, efforts to prevent them from spreading into B.C. are ramping up with a fundraising campaign to accelerate groundbreaking mussel-detection technology being developed at UBC-Okanagan.

‘It’s for detecting boats that were in mussel-infested waters,” said Dr. Michael Russello, a geneticist with UBC-Okanagan who is leading the project. “They may not have obvious signs that they were in those waters.”

Known as environmental DNA or eDNA technology, it involves a portable, suitcase-sized lab that can detect microscopic mussel larvae attached to boats, invisible to the human eye.

“Imagine a handheld, wet/dry vacuum, but modified to have filters that will bind DNA, all DNA that’s on the surface,” Russello explained.

“We would then process those filters with this DNA lab in the field and it would allow for a presence or absence detection of mussels.”

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The results are almost instant, according to Russello.

The technology would be a game changer,” said James Littley, chief operating officer for the Okanagan Basin Water Board.

Right now, inspections rely on human checks and mussel-sniffing dogs.

While the canines are considered  the most accurate, resources are limited.

“They’re expensive to train. They take specialized equipment. They have limited working hours and there are only two of those dogs to cover the entire province of B.C.,” Littley said.

2:33
Partnership formed to fight invasive mussels

Local Rotarians have launched a $100,000 fundraiser to advance the technology, matching another $100,000 donated by the Colin and Lois Pritchard Foundation.

“I spent a lot of my life in the beach of Kalamalka Lake, fishing in Okanagan Lake and I want to ensure that the future generations are going to be able to do the same,” Colin Pritchard told Global News. “And the only way they can do that is to ensure that these mussels don’t get into our watershed.”

While boat inspection stations help prevent the spread of the invasive mussels, Littley said they are only seasonal.which means if you are entering B.C. outside of the season or on routes without inspection stations,

“If you pass an open inspection station, you’re legally required to stop but if you come in out-of-season or on a different route or when the inspection station is closed, there’s no legal requirement to get checked before you launch your boat in B.C. waters,” Littley said.

Littley added that since the province started inspections in 2015, more than 175 mussel-fouled boats have been intercepted.

“The threat is real,” Littley said.

The OBWB has committed $200,000 towards the development of the eDNA technology.

Click here for more information on the mussel-detection technology or to donate.

2:01
Invasive mussels intercepted entering British Columbia

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