Osoyoos town council voted to endorse a parks planning process after hearing from the public over the past year.

Parks and green spaces within the Town of Osoyoos were a hot topic during the official community plan review which started in 2019.

“During the review of our official community plan a number of items regarding parks and public spaces were brought forward following public open house sessions, graffiti board comments and during the public events,” said Gerald Davis, director of community services, during council’s regular meeting held at the Sonora Centre on Aug. 17.

The public expressed a need for a variety of parks and recreation opportunities including public open spaces, trails and the protection of environmentally sensitive areas and facilities such as an aquatic centre and outdoor pickle ball courts. Comments received by the town also spoke to the need to have more recreation space on the east side of Osoyoos.

“I certainly know that parks and green spaces is a huge issue in this town and there are lots of people talking about it asking us when the next playground is coming up, so I appreciate the fact you are looking at all those things,” said Mayor Sue McKortoff, prior to council unanimously supporting the plan.

Prior to the official community plan review the town also completed a parks and trails Master Plan and identified a number of park and green space areas for improvement or development. Currently town staff are working on a number of projects, including the Acacia Trail project will upgrade the trails connecting sẁiẁs Provincial Park (Haynes Point) to Acacia Court and Oleander Drive.

Davis noted the list of projects provided by town staff “is intended to provide a sample only there are several other items that would be discussed as part of a strategic park planning process,” including the Desert Park Equine facility.

  • Floating pier at Gyro Park
  • Future of green space development at Gyro Park following museum relocation.
  • Pop-up park downtown and information kiosks
  • Playground at Meadowlark subdivision
  • Accessible Dog Park, fishing pier, mobi-mat installations etc.
  • Acacia Trail development
  • Kinsmen Park – future development options
  • Linear trail connectivity throughout the region
  • Outdoor exercise equipment

The strategic planning process supported by council includes the completion of the official community plan as a guiding document, a review of all existing documents, reports or plans (i.e. parks and trails masterplan), an inventory of green spaces park spaces and recreation sites and forecasting a projected need for parks, play spaces, and facilities over the next 20 years.

The parks planning process also aims to prioritize locations and green space areas and identify spaces that require enhancements or development.

“At this point, staff are looking for Council’s support, in general, for the process. Following which, staff will complete a project plan and proposed budget along with possible funding sources to complete the project,” Davis said.

Top of the list was the proposed Acacia Trail project will connect sẁiẁs Provincial Park (Haynes Point) to Acacia Court and Oleander Drive providing a link to shopping and existing trails.

Council voted at the Aug. 17 meeting to pursue $500,000 in grant funding for upgrades and maintenance for the trail through the Community, Culture and Recreation (CCR) infrastructure stream of the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Plan.

The costs anticipated for upgrading the trail include environmental and geotechnical assessments and services, surveying, lighting and potential erosion control works along the water’s edge.