Quality of life top-of-mind for Council

March 20, 2023

News Release

Kelowna City Council endorsed Council Priorities 2023–2026 at Monday’s regular council meeting. Council outlined six priority areas and 22 actions to increase citizens’ quality of life. The approach is designed to take immediate action on what is important to residents and guide the City’s business planning and investment decisions.

“During the election last fall, citizens told us directly what is important to them and Council’s priorities are a direct response to what we heard,” said Mayor Tom Dyas. “Citizens want a safe city where they can rent or purchase a place to call home. They want to protect Kelowna’s incredible natural environment and they want to be able to move between point A and B more easily.”

Council is committed to working closely with residents, community partners and other levels of government to bring positive change.

Working alongside other pivotal city strategies—such as the Official Community Plan, 10-Year Capital Plan, 20-Year Servicing Plan, and Imagine Kelowna—the approved council priorities are:

Crime & Safety

Develop a strategy to address property crime, including break-and-enters and theft
Provide local Business Improvement Areas support for urban centre safety issues
Develop a safety task force with stakeholders
Partner with provincial mental health and substance-use ministries to improve local conditions

Affordable Housing

Acquire city-owned land to build affordable housing
Increase number of rental units with below-market rents
Partner on the creation of a low-cost affordable housing pilot project

Homelessness

Advocate for additional complex care centres
Explore partnership opportunities for alternative forms of sheltering
Advocate for purpose-built permanent shelter with wrap-around supports and graduated-needs housing options
Develop an emergency winter shelter program

Transportation

Explore alternative modes of transportation between UBCO/YLW and downtown
Improve transit service including expanding the transit pass program
Improve traffic flow and capacity on major road networks
Complete the functional design of the Hwy 33 multi-modal traffic corridor
Enhance traffic safety presence

Agriculture

Facilitate the creation of a permanent home for the farmer's market
Review the Agriculture Plan with respect to secondary uses
Expand enforcement/bylaw officers

Climate and Environment

Include climate lens in decision making to assess mitigation and adaptation
Increase urban tree canopy
Pilot an energy concierge program to enable retrofits in buildings

“Council priorities are focused on addressing the community’s most pressing issues and will help guide our organization in budget and immediate action planning,” said City Manager Doug Gilchrist. “Staff will focus their efforts on the areas Council wants to see improvement while maintaining the essential services we provide to residents everyday, from first responders and clean drinking water to safe roads.”

City Council will continually monitor the progress of the priorities with formal reviews and evaluations every six, 12 and 18 months. City Council will also continue to listen and respond to citizens through multiple feedback channels including committees. “We are not afraid to try new things and will actively monitor the progress and adjust as needed to ensure we are delivering the results our citizens want,” added Mayor Dyas. “Progress reporting and citizen input is an important part of council's ongoing efforts to ensure we continually focus on the things that are important to our citizens.”

The full Council Priorities 2023–2026 document outlining support actions is available online at kelowna.ca/councilpriorities.