Kelowna to get another riding under proposed changes

The B.C. Electoral Boundary Commission's preliminary report is out with a fourth riding proposed for Kelowna.

It’s to be called Kelowna Centre and include all of downtown north of Cadder Avenue to Scenic Road. It will dip as far south as KLO Road, follow Mission Creek to Ziprick Road then the west side of Highway 97 to Sexsmith Road.

None of downtown Kelowna will be in the former Kelowna West riding, which is proposed to be called West Kelowna-Peachland, moving Peachland out of the Penticton riding. It would be known as the Penticton-Summerland riding.

Okanagan Mission will contain the southern end of the city and north to Highway 33 while Kelowna-Lake Country is proposed to be stretched a little further to the north to include some of the existing Vernon-Monashee riding.

The commission notes that some people wanted Big White to be included with Kelowna but it’s not recommending that, saying the ski hill has administrative ties to the Boundary Regional District.

The Vernon-Monashee riding is nearing the limits of the population maximum for provincial ridings so the commission is suggesting Beachcomber Bay, Okanagan Landing and East Bella Vista Highlands be moved into the Kelowna-Lake Country riding.

There are changes proposed as well for the Kamloops ridings, with the rural areas west of downtown moving into the Fraser-Nicola riding.

The main core of the city will be called Kamloops Centre.

Westsyde and Raleigh, Prichard and Chase will be part of the Kamloops-North Shuswap riding which is shown stretching from McLure to the east and north of Salmon Arm.

There will be more public consultation before the commission makes it final report in six months.

The full report can be seen here.https://bcebc.ca/wp-content/uploads/Preliminary-Report_WEB.pdf

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