Fence around stage in park a concern
Some local officials are concerned that fencing off the Gyro Park stage when it’s not in use will send the wrong message to the community.
“It is a public space, and by putting in a fence, it only invalidates and contradicts that we, as Penticton, (are) a welcoming and inclusive place,” Coun. Tarik Sayeed told colleagues at Tuesday’s meeting.
His comments came after city facilities manager Bregje Kozak proposed putting up a two-metre fence across the front of the band shell to deter undesirables from hanging out inside.
“Over the past couple of years, there have been increasing concerns with vandalism, lack of cleanliness and nuisance activities that are inconsistent with the intended use as a community stage,” she said.
Kozak estimated city staff spends eight hours per week in the summer — often on weekend call-outs — cleaning up the stage to make it safe for community events.
The fence is a last resort, she added, noting other deterrents have been tried and failed, including installing a siren attached to a motion detector — “that didn’t work very well for neighbours in the area” — and a strobe light.
“We’re not sure if this is the perfect solution — but what we’re suggesting is we try it now for the busy season,” said Kozak.
Mayor Andrew Jakubeit reluctantly agreed to the plan. “It’s an unfortunate reality of downtown parks,” he said.
Others were hesitant about proceeding with the recommendation.
Coun. Max Picton suggested putting some kind of banner across the fence to make it more visually appealing and harder to climb, while Coun. Campbell Watt urged staff to use the fence for just the first part of the summer while evaluating its effectiveness and exploring other solutions.
One such option was put forward by Coun. Helena Konanz, who suggested erecting the fence only at night.
“That way the public can play” during the day, she said.
Kozak replied, however, that there are no staff members on duty at night to perform the 30-minute job.
Council later voted 4-2, with Sayeed and Picton in opposition and Judy Sentes absent, to defer the matter to the next meeting to get additional options from staff and find out how much it will cost to have the fence put up each night.