Kelowna to develop three new dog beaches

KELOWNA – Dog owners in Kelowna will soon enjoy two new permanent dog beaches and a third one on a two-year trial basis.

After a lively debate, Sept. 19, Kelowna council gave the nod to dog beaches at Poplar Point and downtown near the Sails at the foot of Bernard Avenue.

A third beach will be installed for two years at the Lake Avenue beach access on a trial basis. A dog beach at Cedar Avenue will require further study and a dog park at Munson Pond was voted down.

Parks planning manager Robert Parlane presented the entire package to council as one but councillors quickly agreed to split the proposed locations and vote on them individually.

While all councillors agreed on the need for new dog beaches, there was varying degrees of support for each individual site.

Parlane explained to council the sites were chosen through statistically valid surveys of local residents as well as a series of open houses and an online survey, all designed to gauge neighbourhood tolerance.

No opening dates have been set. The budget for each park has yet to be determined and will be introduced in the 2017 financial plan.

To contact a reporter for this story, email John McDonald or call 250-808-0143 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above.