Penticton city council has declined an offer to purchase about 1.4 acres of land the city owns near Skaha Lake, at least for now.
The properties in question, at 3807 and 3811 Skaha Lake Road, are part of the Oxbow RV Resort, adjacent to Skaha Lake but on the northern side of Skaha Lake Road, and bordering part of the oxbows wetlands.
Meeting behind closed doors, council voted to decline the offer to purchase the land, but turn it over to staff to engage in some public consultation on the future of the land.
According to Anthony Haddad, director of planning, the developer would like to consolidate the two parcels owned by the city with the remaining portion of the resort and have it rezoned for multi-family residential.
The existing zoning for the properties is split into campground/commercial for the major portion of the properties and parks and recreation for a strip along the oxbows. The official community plan has the larger portion of the property zoned for medium-density residential and parks and recreation for the area adjacent to the oxbows.
Haddad said they are developing a process that will examine the appropriateness of current designations and engage the community tassesses the appropriateness of land use.
“Ultimately, determining if the lands are acceptable for sale after engagement and consultation with the community,” said Haddad.
In 2012, the city directed staff not to pursue the sale of the land, and supported a five-year licence to use agreement with Oxbow RV Park Ltd., to continue operating the campground, with the lease set at $9,500 per year, to adjusted annually according to the consumer price index, along with payment of property taxes and liability insurance.