Reaction mixed on options
Public reaction to Urban Systems' open house held last Thursday at Osoyoos town hall was intense.
Local area residents came to see how the town spent their $8,400 to conduct a study of the future of Desert Park. Many were disappointed with what they saw.
The most overwhelming reaction from townspeople, whether or not they favoured horse events at Desert Park, was that they absolutely did not want to see an RV Park as part of Desert Park's development.
I am disappointed that the Friends of Desert Park wasn't included in this because that was what I was expecting and I know that their proposal would have been just as exciting as all of these three.
The multi-use recreational and equestrian activities are what we want here, not an RV Park.
We want more public parkland here, we want outdoor activities for people here and if we lose this, it's gone, said Osoyoosite Lorraine Snyder.
Mary Hopkins agreed.
Desert Park is for the public. It doesn't need to generate revenue for the town. It belongs to us, she said.
Charlie Stewart added that the Town of Osoyoos should have gone first to the taxpayers to get their input.
I think this is an insult to the taxpayers in this town for the mayor and council to go out of town and spend our money to get Urban Systems' suggestions and then try to shove them down our throats at a thing like this, said Stewart.
We're unique in B.C. but the antelope brush is in jeopardy. It would just be a shame to let an RV Park go up there, said Bev Grant.
Overall, public opinion was mixed. Most people liked some of the components they saw in all three options, but not any one concept in particular.
Urban Systems Senior Consultant Ed Grifone felt that the open house attracted a very biased group as a result of the Friends of Desert Park publicity.
The challenge is still going to be how do you operate the facility.
They're saying 'leave it the way it is' but they still haven't come up with a solution as to who will operate it. I think what will ultimately happen is that council will have to ask themselves, 'do we want to increase taxes to pay for this scenario?'rnCan they protect the integrity of the green space and find someone out there in the private sector that could come in and operate it with a profit motive, Grifone wondered.
The next step, according to Grifone, is that the town will receive all the comment pages and then decide if they want to go out to a proposal call on a particular concept to see if they can attract a private operator.
Max Gibb, a Lethbridge, Alberta horse racing enthusiast and C.E.O. of the United Horsemen of Alberta (U.H.A.), Inc., was on hand at the open house to learn about the options and to consider what kind of investment Desert Park could be.
The U.H.A. was awarded a long-term race track license for the Calgary market.
Gibb stressed the economic benefits the horse racing industry has created in Alberta, including employment opportunities, significant economic activity for local and regional businesses, and tourism and business development.
We're here doing diligence and we're excited about this community, said Gibb.
Osoyoos is the nicest kept secret in Canada and we're interested in being part of this community.
We are extremely impressed with the people, the climate, the lake and the overall beauty of this community. And we're impressed with the race track.
In Lethbridge, where we operate a sports and entertainment centre, we're a $39 million economic benefit to the community and to southern Alberta.
We think if we get serious and work with the community, the horsemen and with all the parties, it could be that kind of economic benefit to Osoyoos.
We like what we have seen so far. As long as there is flexibility and openness we think we could work with this.
In a written statement, Donna Yakimishyn, spokesperson for The Friends of Desert Park, said: The Friends of Desert Park agree with several features of the three plans including: the Antelope-brush natural area with walking trails, an indoor arena or multiplex for a variety of events such as music festivals and the combination of recreation fields (baseball and soccer) and equestrian facilities (if the equestrian facilities are left in place, not moved to the south end).
The Friends are strongly opposed to an RV Park in Desert Park because it is public land zoned for recreation and equestrian use only.
We hope to work with Town Council and Urban Systems in the future to come up with a plan that will provide a wide range of recreational opportunities for the people of Osoyoos.
