Penticton making $1.5-million land purchase

The City of Penticton is spending more than $1.5 million to make more land available at the South Okanagan Events Centre.

“In recognition of the growing volume of activities taking place at the SOEC complex as a whole, the city has acquired four nearby properties along Eckhardt Avenue that, after existing structures are removed in the future, will provide new land for further development,” said Jim Bauer, the city’s chief financial officer, in a release.

Penticton city council will be reviewing a budget amendment for the purchase at their April 3 regular meeting.

The cost of the four Eckhardt Avenue properties is $1,515,550, with funds for the purchase coming from the city’s land acquisition reserve.

The land’s future use will be determined in part by the outcome of the city’s forthcoming SOEC parking strategy, set to commence soon. In the short-term, visitors to the SOEC are advised to watch for the arrival of 40 additional parking spaces currently occupied by the vacated temporary visitor centre.

A parking study (December 2015), completed as a requirement for the development of the Cascades Casino, showed that with more than 1,000-plus parking spaces on site, there would be sufficient parking at SOEC for the vast majority of the year and on rare occasions where a major event is taking place, there are another 1,000-plus spaces in lots and on the streets within a five to 10 minute walk.

Related: City reports back on parking after busy weekend

However, concerns were raised at the time and continue, that more parking would be required than the city originally predicted.

Related: Letter: Marked reduction in parking availability