By Lexi McFarlane, Times Chronicle
A high-density residential space in Osoyoos is saying they are being treated unfairly in comparison to single-family dwellings in town when it comes to water restrictions currently in effect.
Byron Karren, speaking for the Casa del Lago homeowners, requested an exemption from the restrictions to Council. The Casa del Lago strata sought the same exemption granted to them in 2025, which Amy Robinson, Deputy Corporate Officer, said allowed for watering on three days of the week.
At the root of the issue is both the infrastructure on the Cottonwood Drive property, which, according to Karren’s presentation, was installed in 2003, and the amount of time allotted. Two of their three water systems feature 24 “zones” for water to be distributed through. Under a four-hour (or 240-minute) designated time period for automatic watering to take place, each “zone” would only be allowed to spray for 10 minutes.
Karren explained that, compared to a single-family dwelling which can receive 30 minutes of watering, restricting Casa del Lago to just four hours would be “unfair” given it would amount to just a third of the time period a single-family dwelling may water for.
“Anybody who’s watered their yard knows that 10 minutes is not a sufficient amount of water,” Karren said.
Karren also noted that, like Sole Vita, Casa del Lago is working to implement upgrades that will reduce their water usage, and reliance on exemptions, though it may not be an easy process.
“We have a very big property, and our piping is very complex, runs the full length (of the landscape), and to go in and make changes… would be very complicated. We are doing work, xeriscaping when we can, and changing irrigation. But, again, we have a system that was designed in the early-2000’s, and it’s just not designed for the sort of thing we need now.”
Mayor Sue McKortoff took issue with Karren’s later characterization of the Casa del Lago owners being “treated poorly”, saying that water conservation in Osoyoos is something all residents are going to have to think about.
“I’m not going to agree to that, but we all need to do our best at conserving water,” McKortoff said. “Next week, we do have a ‘Make Water Work’ presentation, and we’d certainly invite any of the people from Casa del Lago to come and learn more about it.”
McKortoff also suggested that watering gardens and potted plants either by garden hose or watering cans would be more ideal, as those are more often granted exemptions as compared to automatic systems.
“If you have hand watering, if you have a place in your garden that’s fairly small, you can certainly use a hose and hand-water, and that’s allowed a lot more often than the automatic sprinklers,” McKortoff said.
Water Councillor Bob Appleby inquired about what other measures, besides system upgrades, Casa del Lago homeowners were taking to minimize the amount of water consumption. Sharing similar concerns on the issue was Councillor Zach Poturica.
“We have some smaller areas of grass in front of the townhouses that we’re taking out, and we’re putting in rocks, and plants that will be drought-resistant,” Karren said. “Whenever we change planting, we always take that into consideration. We have a (lot) of xeriscaping going on this year as well.”
Karren maintained, however, that the best option for Casa del Lago residents was to be permitted a larger window for watering than four hours. Alluding once again to the advantages that single-unit property owners have, Karren said that upgrades should not be the be-all and end-all, once again questioning why Casa del Lago should “be expected to do more” in conserving water.
McKortoff said that, while the same exemption from 2025 can likely be granted again to Casa del Lago, it is incumbent upon all residents of Osoyoos to curtail water usage wherever they can, given current drought conditions.
“Everybody needs to consider conserving water and using less, no matter what.”
