As I work near Oliver I was curious of the new hotel proposal at Centennial RV Park and if politics were any better than the disgraceful politics of Penticton.
I phoned Oliver Mayor Ron Hovanes and was pleasantly surprised at his effort to be upfront with information and history of the park he provided. He then took the time to meet and show me in person the site and hotel proposal.
While Penticton prefers to hide agendas, mislead and ignore the public, I found Mr. Hovanes very professional, transparent and concerned to all public input. He even put the proposal to the public ahead of schedule to be sure the public knew what was being proposed.
Some protest that it was donated parkland, but this land has seen commercial use as a campground/RV park since 1958, hence as of now there is zero public parkland.
Under the hotel proposal almost one acre of the property at Fairview Road end will be made public parkland, so in reality Oliver will gain public parkland. I feel for those at the RV campground (and there are other RV parks nearby), but the public should look at the bigger picture . . . and that is downtown Main Street.
When I first lived in Oliver 26 years ago there were almost no vacant downtown lots and no vacant stores. Now we see many more empty lots and especially stores, hence the downtown is dying.
Question the public should ask is would this hotel generate tourist dollars not only in Oliver but the lagging downtown economy? Most would agree yes. Oliver is definitely in need of larger scale accommodations to attract more tourists and events.
Having dealt with Penticton’s irresponsible select senior staff and elected officials, it was refreshing to see Oliver’s local government acting professional and in the best interests of those they represent. Thank you for restoring my faith that good government still exists in B.C
Clifford Martin, Oliver
