Cameron House on Richter Street needs urgent remedial work. Photographer: John McDonald

Heritage council a step closer to reality in Kelowna

KELOWNA – Heritage management in Kelowna by an independent committee is a step closer to reality.

City council agreed to have staff move on to the final stage of resurrecting the heritage advisory committee, an arms-length group to consist of nine representatives from local heritage groups, Westbank First Nation and Tourism Kelowna that also includes three at-large positions.

The ultimate goal of the comittee is to create a non-profit heritage council which would administer most heritage-related functions in Kelowna such as administering a grants program, public education and advocacy under contract to to the city.

Kelowna council moved last spring to conduct a heritage review after a staff report identified the loose collaboration of non-profit groups that manage the city's heritage assets to be the source of overlapping mandates and confusion.

An inventory in September of heritage assets in Kelowna has identified several that require immediate remedial restoration, such as Brent’s Grist Mill and Cameron House.

To contact the reporter for this story, email John McDonald at jmcdonald@infonews.ca or call 250-808-0143. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.

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John McDonald

John began life as a journalist through the Other Press, the independent student newspaper for Douglas College in New Westminster. The fluid nature of student journalism meant he was soon running the place, learning on the fly how to publish a newspaper.

It wasn’t until he moved to Kelowna he broke into the mainstream media, working for Okanagan Sunday, then the Kelowna Daily Courier and Okanagan Saturday doing news graphics and page layout. He carried on with the Kelowna Capital News, covering health and education while also working on special projects, including the design and launch of a mass market daily newspaper. After 12 years there, John rejoined the Kelowna Daily Courier as editor of the Westside Weekly, directing news coverage as the Westside became West Kelowna.

But digital media beckoned and John joined Kelowna.com as assistant editor and reporter, riding the start-up as it at first soared then went down in flames. Now John is turning dirt as city hall reporter for iNFOnews.ca where he brings his long experience to bear on the civic issues of the day.

If you have a story you think people should know about, email John at jmcdonald@infonews.ca

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