I know there have been a lot of letters regarding the Penticton lakeshore revitalization, and yes, I am adding another voice to the list.
I have been to the council meetings, listened to what they had to say and saw the slide shows, and I have to admit, I am still not impressed with their ideas.
What needs to be done on the lakeshore is not being addressed in a manner that I feel is appropriate, cost effective, or feasible.
I agree the lakeshore could use some sprucing up.
There are trees there that are, or soon will be, a problem. Those should be dealt with and new trees planted to replace them.
The walkway does need some attention, but all the options I have seen and heard are not feasible or cost effective. The walkway should be widened in the narrow spots and the brickwork should be leveled where needed. The pathway on the grassy area near the peach could be reworked with the new rubber type they were talking about and the pathway straightened and widened. The bricks from that section could be used to widen the areas along the rest of the beach where needed. (This could save some money to be used elsewhere as the bricks are a little pricey from what I understand.)
The wheelchair accesses they are speaking of and showing in the diagrams, to me, do not make sense. Wheelchair access should be somewhere that the grade to the water is not too steep or too far from solid ground. They also need some kind of bars to help them pull themselves out of the water and back into their chair as the wheelchair ramp bars have been removed by the Sicamous.
Bicycles, rollerblades and four-wheel bikes on the street or the walkway are a hazard during the busy summer months, so I suggested that for June, July and August that the south sidewalk from Power Street to the peach could be designated for their use only. It will not cost a great deal of money to make this safe for them, and for the vehicles using Lakeshore Drive.
Lakawana Park does need the humps of dirt removed to make that area more usable by everyone. A couple more picnic tables there that are wheelchair accessible would be a nice touch.
I understand that part of the cement abutment needs attention, so fix it.
Day moorage near the Sicamous is not something I am comfortable with as it may cause a danger to swimmers in that area, and the pollutants from the power boats is definitely not something I want to be swimming in. (This is in the options that were presented to us.)
Another public washroom near the Sicamous would be nice, and maybe one somewhere between Power Street and the peach. They could be painted with trees and/or a beach scene so that they do not detract from the feel of the beach.
We really do not need lots of vendors on the beach, or day moorage, which are reoccurring themes in the drawings I have seen in options 1, 2, 3 and 4.
These are my personal ideas on how the lakeshore should be fixed up. Leave the parking alone, leave the two-way traffic alone, and just fix what is broken, and if you feel the need to add something nice, put in a couple of public washrooms and a proper wheelchair access.
Thank you for letting me have my say.
Marie Nobles
Penticton