SENIORS
NEW OKANAGAN SUN head coach Gavin Lake (right) had the first look at his new team during the club’s spring camp last weekend.
KELOWNA MINOR Hockey product has put away his hockey stick and created a new business opportunity for himself that is already benefitting both local golfers and golf courses
WHILE EXERCISE can have some negative drawbacks, it’s important for seniors to find a healthy way to stay active to maintain their independence, says a local specialist in seniors’ fitness class training.
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TUESDAY May 8, 2012 The Central Okanagan’s Best-Read Newspaper www.kelownacapnews.com
▼ KELOWNA
City unable to avoid property tax increase Alistair Waters STAFF REPORTER
The property tax increase Kelowna residents are facing this year is going to be a little bigger than originally thought. On Monday, city council approved a 1.12 per cent increase to its 2012 budget, up from the 0.11 per cent increase approved in the provisional budget in December. Thanks to the need for more police officers in the city, and council’s willingness to heed the advice of a consultant who said a sizeable number of cops should be hired this year to kick start the RCMP’s ability to focus on crime prevention, Kelowna property owners are now facing an increase one per cent higher than originally planned. The increase will mean about $15 more in the municipal portion of annual property taxes for a house valued at the average of $468,000. While the final tax increase was up from what council approved in January, Mayor Walter Gray was unapologetic. “We got 11 more police officers out of this,” he said. “That’s the biggest advance in terms of community protective services in decades. If that’s what it costs, that’s what it costs and we should not apologize for that.” Coun. Luke Stack said while he wished the increase could have been kept closer to zero, he recognized the need for more cops. But he noted that the five-year financial plan, of which the 2012 budget is part, said that with everything in this year’s budget, an initial increase of 4.5 per cent in property taxes is anticipated next year. That number includes another one percent extra for more cops next year. That anticipated tax hike figure is expected to be lowered as the city prepares its 2013 budget. In his report to council Monday, city manager Ron Mattiussi said Kelowna’s final budget for 2012 will see the increase in large part because of a plan to hire seven more RCMP officers than the four allowed for in the preliminary budget. In a report the city commissioned from consultant See Budget A6
Kelowna Y’s Walk For Strong Kids fundraising campaign. Donations collected help offset the costs of YMCA/YWCA programs for families that need a little helping hand.
▼ WORST ROAD IN B.C.
Wrong kind of attention for Westside Road Wade Paterson STAFF REPORTER
For years, those who travel along Westside Road have complained that the stretch of pavement is one of the worst in B.C. Now it’s official. The British Columbia Automobile Association announced the 10 worst roads on Thursday, based
on nearly 3,500 votes that motorists, pedestrians and cyclists submitted from April 2 to 23. Westside Road topped the list. The second annual campaign identified 730 stretches of road that voters deemed to be the worst in B.C. Westside Road was ranked 18th in the first ever worst roads cam-
paign last year. In this year’s campaign, 87 per cent of voters indicated that potholes and crumbling pavement were the road’s biggest issues. “We’ve heard from all types of road users about the condition of the roads in their community or along their commute,” said Ken Cousin, BCAA’s associate vice-president of Road Assist.
“Through their responses to the campaign, British Columbians are putting a spotlight on roads that they believe have a negative impact on their vehicles, stress levels and safety.” Jim Edgson, director of the Central Okanagan West electoral area, said he has been lobbying the provincial government to make improvements to the
road that connects Vernon and West Kelowna and raising general safety concerns for over 12 years. He added that others, who belong to the Westside Road Improvement Committee, have been trying to get the road fixed for even longer back than that.
See Road A6
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BEST FOOT FORWARD…Close to 100 kids turned out last week at Mission Creek Regional park in support of the