Penticton residents will have another chance to get involved in the Official Community Plan in January and this time, they will do all of the talking.
Following up on the PenTALKton presentation last November, the city has planned ExpOCP, a multi-day exposition where residents can share their views on the future of the City.
“At PenTALKton we had several dynamic speakers talking about some of the challenges and opportunities facing the community to get people thinking about Penticton’s future,” said Ben Johnson, manager of special projects. “At ExpOCP, we will turn the conversation over to residents.”
ExpOCP runs from Jan. 18 to 20. It will feature displays, hands-on activities and workshops exploring a variety of topics including the economy, transportation and infrastructure, heritage and history, healthy communities, arts and culture, environment and sustainability and housing.
“These topics surfaced through earlier engagement events as the areas of greatest opportunity for the city,” said Johnson. “At the expo, residents will have the chance to discuss these topics in more detail and share concrete suggestions, which is something people asked for at PenTALKton and other events.”
In appreciation for participating, residents who take time to get involved will be entered for draw prizes including items like tickets to Cirque du Soleil as well as the Scotties Tournament of Hearts. Information gathered at ExpOCP will be used to develop draft policies for each of the topics, which will be tested with the community in future engagements.
The hours for the drop-in activities at ExpOCP are:
Thursday, Jan. 18: 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Friday, Jan. 19: 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 20: *Scotties Day! 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. (Curling fans are invited to drop by the Expo. Each hour, staff will give away official Penticton Scotties pins to the first 10 fans. Draws will also be made for tickets and souvenir books.)
The showroom of the former Penticton Auto Sales building at 249 Westminster Ave. has been leased for up to three months to be home to the expo and other Official Community Plan engagement activities.
“Many communities will establish a storefront to make it easier for the public to get involved in the creation of major plans on an ongoing basis like we did for the downtown plan,” said Johnson. “The showroom in this building is perfect for workshops and meetings with the community around the Official Community Plan and can be used for other engagement activities the city is planning.”
Watch shapeyourcitypenticton.ca for more information about future events as dates and activities are confirmed.