Over 50 letters of support from the public, and multiple speakers at a public hearing on Nov. 5 backed plans to turn a warehouse on Penticton's Timmins Street into a recreational and housing complex.
Unlike the 2021 public hearing for the property which was purely about converting it to housing that stretched over two hours, the Nov. 5 hearing wrapped up in just over 20 minutes.
In addition to 72 units of housing in a three-storey building, the developer has pitched two NHL-sized hockey rinks, an indoor baseball facility, additional sports courts and commercial space in what is called the Peach City Sportsplex.
Initial feedback from residents shared some concerns about noise from outdoor pickleball courts, which the developer adjusted by the time it reached the public hearing stage.
Representatives from Penticton Minor Hockey, South Okanagan Minor Baseball Association, Penticton Minor Fast Pitch and Penticton Minor Football all spoke at the hearing and threw their full support behind the proposal.
Following the public's opportunity to speak, the property owner spoke and thanked them for their support as the project grew beyond simply building more housing.
"It was going to be just something little and then it grew to something big and in a business career, there are certain times in your life where the money goes out the door and the right thing for the community comes in the door and that's what's happening here," said the developer. "It's awesome to see everybody out here."
Coun. Campbell Watt noted the outpouring of support from the public for the project before he made the motion to move forward with it.
"I'd love to say thank you for the amount of input we received tonight. Thank you to the developer for working with the staff. I know that one of the only concerns that we heard was about noise and it was addressed, I think quite quickly and quite well," said Watt. "I think this kind of collaboration is something that our community really thrives from and really benefits from."
Despite the support of the public, and council passing third reading to the zoning and OCP changes, the project was not able to be approved immediately following the public hearing.
Due to the proximity and impact it can have on Highway 97, the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure needs to review it and give its approval before council can adopt the zoning changes.
After that review is complete the project will return to Penticton's city council for adoption.
