Slimmer highrises encouraged for city

New Kelowna highrises should have significantly slimmer profiles, city planners say.

They recommend the maximum allowable size for a highrise floor be reduced from 1,221 square metres to 850 square metres for a commercial or hotel building, and to 750 square metres for residential towers.

“These proposed changes will encourage more slender towers to preserve view corridors, reduce shadowing on adjacent properties, and reduce the overall massing of the structure for a more pedestrian-friendly streetscape environment,” planning technician Jason Issler writes in a report to council.

The proposed reductions in maximum floor area amount to 30% for office towers and 40% for residential high-rises.

City council was to consider the proposal for slimmer towers at a public hearing on Tuesday evening. No correspondence from the public or development community had been received by the city, according to city clerk Stephen Fleming.