Have your say on proposed development

Public consultation is underway now on a proposal to put up 229 residential units on an industrial-zoned property near the Penticton campus of Okanagan College.

The proposal calls for two five-storey apartment buildings and 81 townhouses on the 2.7-hectare property at 955 Timmins St. The site, which is currently home to a selfstorage warehouse, is immediately east of Canadian Tire.

City council hasn’t yet deliberated on the required zoning and Official Community Plan amendments, choosing instead to first gauge the public’s mood about the project.

“The addition of rental and multi-family housing in the vicinity of Okanagan College is something that has been long desired for the college as well as the city,” said Blake Laven, the city’s director of development services, in a press release.

“We are looking forward to understanding the community’s views of the vision for this property.”

The easiest way to provide feedback is via www.shapeyourcitypenticton.ca, where you can also register for an online information session with city staff on Thursday, Aug. 19, at 7 p.m. City staff will also be available to discuss the project at a booth at the Penticton Farmers’ Market on Saturday, Aug. 14. And paper copies of feedback forms are available at city hall.

If city council likes what it hears and gives first reading to the necessary regulatory amendments, that would then trigger a second round of public engagement on the project.

Penticton Herald Staff