Special Features - Progress 2016 Kelowna

PROGRESS A FOCUS ON BUSINESS IN THE CENTRAL OKANAGAN

inside this issue Kelowna airport keeps growing Real estate matters in Kelowna

Tourism braced for exciting year

CAPITAL news

w i n e moves in

to grocery store aisles

SPRING

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Progress A FOCUS ON BUSINESS IN THE CENTRAL OKANAGAN

Economic Development Commission................................4 Okanagan Spirits bringing the spirit to BC..................................5 Save-On-Foods introduces wine to Kelowna grocery shelves...........6 It’s a seller’s market...................7 West K Truck & Auto gets community support....................8 Westbank First Nation changing the culture and the thinking.........8 Bluestar Tours has big plans......9 New downtown hotel set to add to the energy of Kelowna.............. 10 Theatre improvements attract varied performers..................... 11 Plenty of potential remains in the tourism industry................... 12-13 The evolving Best Western PLUS Hotel......................................... 14 Airport expected to expand its facilities in response to growth..15 Tourist industry positioning itself to continue to prosper......... 16-17 The changing face of Rutland.... 18 North Clifton Estates to link Clifton Road and McKinley Landing......20 The modernization of the car shopping experience................ 21 Economy upswing felt locally....22

~f~ Publisher Karen Hill Managing Editor Barry Gerding Writers Barry Gerding Mike Strauss Sawyer Klassen Production Director Tessa Ringness Production Designers Kiana Haner-Wilk Fatima Hartmann Nadine Krahn Tiffany Larkan Laura Millsip Kelly Ulmer Lana Gregson Advertising Manager Karen Hill Account Executives Tracy Cole Jim Coulter Teresa Huscroft-Brown Rick Methot Christine Mould Megan Munro Wayne Woollett

CAPITAL news

Economic Development Commission aims to bring together employers and job seekers

BY BARRY GERDING, bgerding@kelownacapnews.com

T

he Central Okanagan economic engine is hitting on nearly all cylinders in 2016, says the general manager of the region’s Economic Development Commission.

Corie Griffiths says there are 13 different statistical metrics that the EDC monitors for economic growth or retraction and only one is raising concerns right now.

That relates to the numbers for unemployment in the region, which in March registered at 9.1 per cent.

whereas historically that would have been roughly around 15 per cent. Instead, the Lower Mainland is tracing at that 15 per cent level, so there has been a flip-flopping of the origin of outside buyers,” Griffiths said.

“That probably has a lot to do with the Alberta economy but it has happened later than was anticipated. We thought that change would come into play more last year but it’s just now beginning to resonate.”

But Griffiths says Statistics Canada has told them to take that stat with a grain of salt, because it may be a greater reflection of people out of work who live here but work elsewhere, We are constantly looking at often referred to now as shadow or phantom programs to help bring employers residents. and job seekers together to help

“

Meanwhile, as real estate values continue to spiral in the Lower Mainsupport them both.

The slowdown in land, sellers are the Alberta oil patch looking at the Cenwill have an impact on tral Okanagan as Economic Development Commission local residents workCorie Griffiths an attractive place ing there, evident also to relocate, particuby the regular Fort Mclarly with the added value for their buck Murray to Kelowna flight schedule being that homes here offer. cut back since it was expanded last year.

And the off-shore buyers fuelling the “The methodology behind determinLower Mainland market could also start ing the unemployment rate doesn’t take looking at the Okanagan because of the that into account, as we don’t think it is as comparative value of real estate investhigh as that for residents who work and live ment—you get more house for our money. here,” she said, noting that housing starts, “I think it is fair to say we are falling airport passenger traffic and business more and more under the radar of foreign bankruptcies are some of the other indicators. real estate investors but primarily the market here is driven by local residents buying If anything, she says the message the and selling. And with the housing starts, we EDC has taken to heart through variare starting to see more multi-unit developous initiatives is helping employers meet ments coming on stream.” their needs to find and attract the required Griffiths said the EDC focus right now is skilled labour across all economic sectors. on workforce development program initiaShe said a study done in 2014 jointly by tives meant to connect employers with job Okanagan College, UBC Okanagan and seekers. the province forecast the need to fill 28,000 “The traditional job market where you to 48,000 new jobs by 2020 across the Okanagan Valley. look for job posting and apply has changed dramatically,” Griffiths said. “There has In another metric economic measurebeen a cultural shift in that regard, where ment, Griffiths said for the first time Lownow job seekers have to formerly engage er Mainland buyers outnumber Albertans with potential employers rather than buying real estate here. waiting for a posting and do things like volunteering in a given area to draw the “At the end of February, the Alberta recruiting interest of employers. percentage of buyers was at 7.3 per cent,

CORIE GRIFFITHS, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION

“That shift is more dynamic and more difficult, but we are constantly looking at programs to help bring those employers and job seekers together to help support them both.”

She says the predicted job shortfalls over the next decade across many aspects of the Canadian economy, from the trades to high tech skilled positions, has been well documented and here in the Okanagan is no exception.

She said convincing young families to move here is not a hard sell from a lifestyle perspective, given the available shopping and outdoor lifestyle amenities, transportation, clean air and health services.

“People who move here are buying here because the Central Okanagan is a healthy place to raise a family. From an urban lifestyle viewpoint, we offer a great balance of infrastructure and amenity components.”

Up to now, those components have been largely a draw for retiring seniors, as Kelowna has a higher proportion of pensioned and investment income seniors living here.

“We are starting to see some signs of a shift in the proportion of people living here over the age of 65, about 18 or 19 per cent currently, from past years but it still remains a high proportion when compared to other communities across Canada. And that’s not hard to understand, given that the Okanagan is a great place to retire,” Griffiths said.

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Internationally acclaimed spirits in B.C. MIKE STRAUS, Contributor

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kanagan Spirits CEO Tyler Dyck’s fiery zeal for crafting high-quality farm-to-table spirits with 100 per cent B.C.-grown fruits and grains has led the craft distillery to find award-winning success.

The spirits manufacturer owns the noble distinction of being the first and only non-European distillery to ever be named Distillery of the Year at the World-Spirits Award in Austria.

“Our distiller, Peter von Hahn, was a rising star,” said Dyck. “We put a product in each category—liqueur, absinthe, gin and vodka—and two panels of 20 super-tasters did blind tastes of each. We were named Distillery of the Year. Our Blackcurrant Liqueur was named Spirit of the Year and was given 97.7 out of 100 points.”

The distillery’s unprecedented win was so timed as to be almost poetic, providing much-needed validation during challenging negotiations with the British Columbia government. One of the government’s conditions in the new distribution agreement was that Okanagan Spirits would have to destroy all of the products it had previously made—including the Blackcurrant Liqueur, which to date remains the highest-ranked spirit in world history.

“You can’t call it a bourbon in Canada,” Dyck noted, referring to an obscure clause in one of Canada’s international trade agreements, “so we call it a bourbon-style B.C. corn whisky. It took us several years to actually plant a crop of corn here in B.C. The learning curve was intense.”

British Columbia’s first bourbon-style whisky will be available starting in 2017 and is expected to become an instant hit.

“The government said, ‘We didn’t approve the growing sites, which means we didn’t tell you that your B.C. product is a B.C. product.’ (They were going to make us) dump everything we’d made to date. So after we won those awards, I said, ‘I’m going to call a press conference and dump all these award-winning liqueurs and I’m going to tell the world that it’s because you’re not approving them,’ and the government conceded.”

Okanagan Spirits has also created Canada’s first genuine absinthe, called Taboo. Despite common myths, the drink does indeed contain both varieties of wormwood and is made in the traditional way.

Okanagan Spirits has clearly mastered the art of craft brewing and is bringing innovative new products to market that Dyck believes will put B.C. in league with Portland, Oregon in terms of reputation for craft spirits. The brewery’s hotly anticipated new products include British Columbia’s first bourbon-style corn whisky, which Dyck says took great time, care and resilience to create.

“We’re gambling on the hope that the government will see that stifling our industry hurts the economy. The government takes 79 per cent of our sales. We’re the largest and longest-standing distillery in the province. If we can’t turn a profit, then it’s only a matter of time before the other distilleries reach the same conclusion and decide to close up shop.”

For Dyck, Okanagan Spirits’ continued success has been hard-won and extremely gratifying. As head of the British Columbia Craft Distillers Guild, negotiations with the B.C. Government are among his chief responsibilities and he strives to win a fair deal for distilleries across the province—one in line with what is currently offered to wineries.

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Terrific response to wine availability in grocery stores “People shopping at Coopers were looking for the same Darrell’s Deals offerings as what was available at Save-On stores,” he explained.

BY BARRY GERDING bgerding@kelownacapnews.com

W

elcome to the 21st century.

That reflects the positive vibe that Save-On-Foods has received in Kelowna since opening wine departments here earlier this year.

The first grocery stores in the Okanagan to do so, the Save-On-Foods store in Orchard Plaza started selling wine Feb. 18 and the Lakeshore Road store followed suit March 4.

“It has been so well received by our customers,” said Don Gandy, manager of the Lakeshore store in the Mission.

“We have consistently heard from our customers that it is long overdue.

And it serves as another example of how we continue to support local agriculture producers and now we’re able to support local wineries.”

Save-On acquired two existing wine selling licenses from two QVA wine shops in Kelowna approved by revamped provincial wine retail regulations and some of the staff from those two outlets also came over to work at the grocery stores.

“Every team member in our wine department at our store and the Orchard Plaza store all came from either the previous wine museum or Discovery Wines wine store locations,” Gandy said.

THE WINE DEPARTMENT ADDITION IS JUST ONE OF SEVERAL CHANGES ADOPTED BY THE SAVE-ON-FOODS GROCERY CHAIN

“And some winery employees also have opted to come work for us. One way or another, the people working our wine department bring with then hands-on experience in the retail wine market.”

As well, local wineries are also given the opportunity to showcase their vintages with their own staff.

“We don’t have wine tastings every day but when we do, the response has been terrific. One winery we had in recently sold out the inventory they brought with them in the morning and had to send someone back to the winery to bring back another eight cases,” Gandy said.

Overall, each of the two stores have more than 900 wine varieties in stock including many of the locally produced wines.

The wine department addition is one of several changes adopted by the

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Save-On-Foods grocery chain in Kelowna this year, which Gandy called a “refresh” for the store brand, something he says needs to happen every five to eight years, just like a house interior or a restaurant, to avoid becoming old and stale.

“People always hate change, but once it happens and you get used to it, you become the better for it,” he said.

One notable shift this year was seeing the three Coopers stores in the Central Okanagan, located in Rutland, Glenmore and Lake Country, changed to the Save-On store brand.

“

S

Save-On-Foods continues to be a s major retail employer in the Central Okanagan, operating six stores and R employing 568 people. r The company has a sizeable footprint on the competitive grocery business in the Central Okanagan and y Gandy notes the stores are spaced outt ideally across Lake Country, Kelowna t and West Kelowna to serve their im- I t mediate communities. o “As a company we are starting to h get away from the big box store con- $ cept, gravitating more to smaller a stores more oriented to the product w demands of the immediate areas they serve,” Gandy said. s An example of that in Kelowna has s been the opening of the Urban Fare c store in the Mission Shopping Centre, t one of three in the Overwaitea chain f targeted to serve a specific area.

The focus on neighbourhood, Gandy i noted, also extends in a broader way to Save-On’s commitment to support local producers when it’s feasible to meet their customers’ demands.

Gandy says Save-On recognizes a growing desire for shoppers to buy locally grown or proManager, Save-On-Foods, Mission duced grocery Don Gandy products, reflected in the Kelowna market by items in the proCoopers was already operating duce, deli, meat, frozen foods and genunder the Overwaitea Food Group eral grocery departments. which include Save-On-Foods and Collectively, Save-On supports some Urban Fare, but having the different 70 local growers and producers in the store titles was becoming confusing for Kelowna area. shoppers trying to take advantage of sale item deals.

The local stores also continue to be active in supporting local non-prof“We both had different marketing it groups and organizations such as and sales campaigns unique to each Kelowna General Hospital, Fat Cats store so it was causing some confuFestival, Canstruction campaign for sion,” Gandy said. the food bank, Across The Lake Swim, That problem was exacerbated by Salvation Army, BC Children’s Hosthe success of the “Darrell’s Deals” adpital, BMO Marathon, Arion Theravertising campaign, in which Overwaipeutic Farm, UBC Okanagan, Okatea president Darrell Jones offers week- nagan College and other fundraising ly deals at the Save-On-Foods stores, initiatives by local schools and community groups. but which didn’t apply to Coopers.

And it serves as another example of how we continue to support local agriculture producers and now we’re able to support local wineries.

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STRONG and HEALTHY market expected to continue SAWYER KLASSEN sawyer.klassen@kelownacapnews.com

A senior sales associate with West Kelowna RE/MAX is very pleased with the current state of realty in the Okanagan.

Tracey Boorman has been with RE/MAX for 12 years and said sales were very strong last year, a trend which has continued into this year. In 2015, the $300,000 to $500,000 range was selling very well.

In fact, pairing rising prices and the strong sales, there are very few houses in the $300,000 range left on the market. This year, the trend has continued as house values have risen. Houses in the $400,000 to $700,000 are selling very well in 2016 and Boorman added even houses in the $1 million range are selling well, as there is money coming into town.

“Our sales are up about 26 per cent board-wide, so there are certainly people coming into town,” she said. “We’re finding that there are fewer Albertans coming into town, probably by about half compared to last year at this time, but we’re seeing more money from the Lower Mainland.”

The current real estate market in the Okanagan is without doubt a seller’s market and sales are up

20 per cent again this year from 2015’s 26 per cent increase. So long as the market in the Lower Mainland remains strong, Boorman expects the growing trend in the Okanagan to continue. With no signs the increase in sales will end anytime soon, there is some opportunity when coupled with low interest rates.

“With lower interest rates we’re getting a lot of first time buyers coming in,” Boorman said. “And because of the rates, we’re getting a lot of investors coming in for rental income. The investors are taking advantage of the market.”

Boorman explained it’s inevitable that prices in the Okanagan will continue to rise whether it’s healthy for the market or not as the region is growing. Many purchasers are coming from outside the valley, including many American investors cashing in on the high U.S. dollar.

SALES ARE UP 20 per cent AGAIN THIS YEAR IN THE LOCAL REAL ESTATE MARKET

“Probably just over 60 per cent of our purchases in the Okanagan are from people who are buying from within,” she said. “So the majority of people who are buying here are buying from within and are moving up. They’re either first time homeowners, or they’re moving up, or downsizing. And that’s nice to see, because it keeps our young people in Kelowna.”

Boorman added as long as interest rates remain low, we will see the strong and healthy market continue. In fact, at its current rate, she said a house that is priced right will sell in a few weeks or even overnight.

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West Kelowna’s go-to used auto lot MIKE STRAUS, Contributor

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espite being open only a few months, Ted Thomas’ West K Truck & Auto on Byland Road has already developed a strong reputation in the community.

West K Truck & Auto is a brand new dealership, having opened in February 2016, but owner Ted Thomas says the pre-owned car lot has already won the confidence of West Kelowna residents.

“We had a lot of clients coming from the

of the Kelowna dealerships, he says, are concentrated in one area of town and therefore tend to stay around a similar price point.

“We’re not in a big auto mall. I can usually offer much better prices because I’m not in the auto mall—and because my vehicles come from the (Lower) Mainland.

A lot of people will go to Vancouver for a better deal because the prices here in the Okanagan West Kelowna customers want tend to be to support their own local higher. But in Vancouneighbourhood. The people ver, there’s of West Kelowna are very so much supportive… competition that everyWest K Truck & Auto Owner one is bringTed Thomas ing their prices down.

Our main He says that shopping for a car in the Oka- dealership is in Vancouver, so I can get cars from nagan can be compliVancouver and bring cated and choosing the them here and offer right area of the region them for better prices.” to buy in is critical. Most Okanagan to our (Lower) Mainland Vancouver stores,” said Thomas.

“We decided to open West K Truck & Auto to better serve the Okanagan.”

Thomas notes that the dealership prides itself on strong customer service and great products, focusing exclusively on BCAA-certified and ICBC-inspected used vehicles. The approach appears to be catching on, he says.

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West K Truck & Auto has close ties with major dealerships, he says, meaning the dealership can offer big-city inventory at small-town prices.

“I’ve been in the business for 25 years. If we don’t have the vehicle you want, we can get it within about a day.”

Thomas notes that originally, he chose the West K Truck & Auto location because it was centrally located between Penticton and Vernon, serving as a convenient hub for the whole Okanagan. What surprised him, though, is how loyal West Kelowna residents are to local businesses.

“Just talking to customers, I’ve noticed it.

They say they want to keep the money in West Kelowna. They want to support their own local neighbourhood. The people of West Kelowna are very supportive of anything happening in the community.”

Thomas says that he aims to provide a great experience for buyers, stocking a variety of vehicles that appeal to all personality types. He says that first-time buyers in particular need to test drive multiple vehicles in order to ensure that the car they buy is the one that suits their needs and wants.

“Definitely have an idea of what you want before you go looking, but also make sure you drive it and decide if it’s something you want in a car.”

In order to provide buyers with an array of options to choose from, West Kelowna Auto is making plans to expand its car lot and bring in more variety in its makes and models.

“We plan to double our lot size within the next year,” Thomas said.

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WFN has become an economic powerhouse in the Central Okanagan SAWYER KLASSEN sawyer.klassen@kelownacapnews.com

The Westbank First Nation economic engine continues to purr along despite some recent years of economic instability within the Okanagan and the province.

Speaking at a Greater Westside Board of Trade luncheon earlier this spring, WFN Chief Robert Louie said progress on several different levels continues to move forward.

Developed property on WFN lands was assessed at $1.511 billion in 2016, up $95 million from the previous year.

“We’ve had some studies done to take a look at our contribution to the gross domestic product,” he said. “In 2005 it was calculated at about $100 million into the GDP and today it’s five times that.

“We’re at half a billion and it keeps growing every year. That’s a pretty big impact in 11 years as of April 1. That’s pretty phenomenal, I think.”

Another thing Louie highlighted was how far education has come within the community. He recalled just a generation or two ago most youth didn’t attend school, whereas now it is part of the norm.

“We’re seeing that if we support the youth, put in more recreational programs, give them the support they need, make it known and get the parents out, it makes a world of difference. So that’s changing the culture and it’s changing the thinking.”

Those changes were highlighted in 2015, as WFN had higher graduation rates than the provincial and national averages.

Meanwhile, it’s been a decade since the WFN became one of the first aboriginal bands in Canada to get self-government, evolving into an economic powerhouse in the Central Okanagan.

Through its own lands act, part of its self-government agreement with the federal government, locatees—band members who control large pieces of reserve land—have developed residential, commercial and retail projects that have changed the retail landscape in the area.

While there are still many vacant commercial properties following the most recent building boom, on the Westside reserves adjacent to Westbank and in the Lakeview Heights area the creation of the projects not only saw the arrival of many big-box stores, but also the movement of some out of the downtown Westbank area and onto reserve land.

It has also seen housing developments shoot up, pushing the reserve population to around 10,000. Most of those residents are non-native— the WFN has the largest concentration of non-aboriginal housing and population in Canada.

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MIKE STRAUS, Contributor

S

ince acquiring and merging three other tour companies, Bluestar Tours has high hopes for summer in the Okanagan and big plans for expansion.

Bluestar Tours hasn’t yet seen its first tourist season, but already, the company has extensive offerings available and an expert team in place to deliver high-quality bus tours year-round.

The company was the result of the acquisition of a coach company, a tour company and a full-service mechanical shop, which co-owners Jason Neale and Mark Krehel purchased from the retiring owner.

“That was a twoyear process,” says Neale. “The biggest challenge with anyone who wants to retire is that negotiating an agreement is a lengthy process. But since the merger, things have been really good. We’ve substantially expanded the coach fleet.”

Bluestar is just entering its first tourism season since the merger and is expecting that the next several months will be a busy time for the organization’s fleet mechanics.

“From mid-May, the buses only come back to the depot for monthly maintenance,” Neale notes. “The mechanics have to service buses at all hours as they pass through Kelowna between tours.”

Bluestar Tours is actively working to manage high levels of growth, with demand for quality tourism experiences higher than expected.

“Since Bluestar has taken off, we’ve expanded into cross-Canada tours. We have adventure and cruise tours. We did a Mamma Mia! tour at the end of March. The guests stayed at the Fairmont Waterfront and got orchestra centre-row seating to Mamma Mia! as well as a few other perks. We like being able to reach out to different demographics.”

Palmer says that the company is actively working to provide a variety of offerings for Okanagan residents, partnering with Destination BC and other tourism organizations to generate awareness about local trips. Bluestar also offers charter services for ski groups, tours of the Rockies and other events.

“There’s been a big push to keep residents in B.C. to support our local economies,” she says. “We’ve added a lot of Canadian tours. (Given the natural beauty that’s already here), we’re able to be really creative with tours within the province.”

Krehel says the tour company is raising the standard on its luxury tours by adding tour directors.

“The Mamma Mia! tour had a tour director and it was very successful. We’re trying to raise the standard for coach tours.”

Bluestar’s next move is to begin communicating to the public over the course of the next two years exactly how the Bluestar experience differs from other sorts of bus tours—and Krehel hints that tour directors are just the beginning.

“Pro drivers, reclining seats. It’s a completely different experience from what you’ve ever had on a tour bus.”

Gearing up for a busy tourism season “We’ve doubled our fleet in less than a year and we’re still sold out,” says Neale. “We’ve added 25 jobs in the last year and we’re still recruiting. We can’t find drivers fast enough. We need mechanics, too.”

The company has had other challenges with managing its rapid growth, owing to the fact that a bus tour company is a capital-intensive business.

Bluestar estimates that a new coach bus costs approximately $600,000—but thanks to a partnership with Volvo Financial Services, Bluestar has managed its expansion well.

Business development manager Kasandra Palmer says the company is striving to offer a mix of international and local trips to appeal to all audiences.

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Westcorp’s ‘Downtown Hotel’ project…

PROPOSED DESIGN FOR WESTCORP’S NEW DOWNTOWN HOTEL

expected to break ground by the end of the year.

A

SAWYER KLASSEN sawyer.klassen@kelownacapnews.com

“We always knew that it was going to be a really tight timeline to try and hit putting piles in the ground in spring, that was maybe too aggressive,” said Gail Temple, vice-president of stakeholder management for Westcorp Development. “We now know that we will be going in basically by the end of the year, we’ll have everything done and ready to go.”

Design drawings for the hotel building were submitted several weeks ago and the interior design plan is still be-

lthough the hotel received approval several years ago, all that could be prepared at that point without risk was a conceptual plan for the 24-storey building. Construction on the building was originally supposed to begin this spring, although Gail Temple, vice-president of stakeholder management, said that may have been overly ambitious.

ing finalized. However, the first stage of construction will begin soon, as fencing has gone up around the site, at the corner of Queensway and Mill Street, in preparation of taking down the existing buildings.

“We ran into asbestos with the Willow Inn (which was taken down several years ago), so we of course tested this

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(remaining) building as well because we thought there could be issues and there are,” Temple said. “So it will take two to three weeks to remediate the asbestos in this building. Our services get disconnected on the twenty-third of April and it’s only after our services get disconnected that we can actually take the building down. I believe we’ll take the building down in the last week of April or first week of May and then we’ll level the site, take the fencing down and just use the site for temporary parking until we start driving piles.”

Another thing Westcorp has to take into consideration when looking at construction is the interest in a tourism structure on Queensway.

Since they are the ones tearing up Queensway for all of the service work for the hotel, they have to make sure it lines up in a logical sense with the tourism centre (if it’s approved) so they can work in tandem to provide the services they will need. Once construction

starts, it will be about a two-year process to complete.

Once complete, the hotel will have 189 rooms, a five-floor parkade, restaurants on the second and main floors and great cohesion with Kerry Park through patios from the restaurants and the way the hotel will be designed. The hotel will have synergy with the marina, allowing clients to have a place to store their boats, rent a boat, or simply have a nice destination to walk to.

While the name of the hotel has not yet been released, Temple explained it will not be a branded hotel and will be built to a four-star standard with fivestar service.

“We looked around at what’s here and from a marketing perspective we looked for where we could find a niche that wasn’t well served and we don’t think the higher end of the market is well served at this point,” she said.

“There are a couple of lovely boutique properties like Manteo and Eldorado, but they are completely full every summer.”

Although it is still several years until Westcorp’s hotel opens, Temple is excited to add to Kelowna’s waterfront and all of the energy of Kelowna’s downtown.

PROGRESS 2016 k Capital News Friday, April 29

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Kelowna’s reputation as a great arts community is blossoming

4

SAWYER KLASSEN sawyer.klassen@kelownacapnews.com

Since taking over as Kelowna Community Theatre manager in 2003, Randy Zahara has been working to change the focus of the theatre from a solely community-based stage to one that also brings in performing groups from across Canada and around the world. While the theatre is still very accessible for local groups looking to use it, Zahara noted upgrades they have made to the lighting, sound and other aspects have made it a much more appealing location for performing, which has brought entertainers to Kelowna who otherwise likely would not have been here.

“It used to be we would just get the big rock shows in the bigger arenas, but

cluding sound and now lighting, which is currently being upgraded, the theatre will be undergoing more changes next year as a roundabout will be put at the corner of Doyle Avenue and Water Street, where the theatre is located.

“That will precipitate a few changes to the front of the theatre here, we’re not 100 per cent certain what that will look like yet, but it will improve the plaza and the entrance to the theatre area,” Zahara said. “We’re hoping at the same time to work on a few of the accessibility issues inside here and improve the lobby a bit.”

While Zahara has heard some discussions about the possibility of building a new theatre to replace the Kelowna Community Theatre, he cautioned that would be quite a way in the future.

Zahara said all kinds of surveys, THE KELOWNA COMMUNITY THEATRE HAS COME A LONG WAY TOWARDS BRINGING IN TOURING GROUPS IN THE PAST TEN YEARS.

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now we get a good mixture,” he said.

“We still get the rock shows, but now we get some classical music, or some fantastic dance. We had the National Ballet of Cuba a few years ago, we’ll get blues concerts and a real wide variety of performances. It meets more of a broad spectrum of community needs.”

Every year, the theatre has the goal of increasing the percentage of ticket sales per event from the year before. So far this year that is going well, as ticket sales are up 10 to 12 per cent from 2015. Zahara explained the theatre is consistently booked, and is in use about 80 per cent of the time, which is as high as they want to go as they need time for maintenance. Despite seeing several upgrades over the past few years in-

studies and other reports would have to be done to determine the need for a new theatre and what it should entail­— none of that has happened yet.

For now, he noted Kelowna Community Theatre is able to meet the majority of the community’s needs, and the theatre itself is good for the job it does.

On a larger scale, Zahara is very encouraged by the state of arts in Kelowna. He said the city is developing a reputation for being a great arts community with a great symphony orchestra, ballet and many other groups in the community, adding the future is very bright for arts and performing in Kelowna.

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Efforts

OF TOURISM ORGANIZATIONS

paying off locally

BY BARRY GERDING, bgerding@kelownacapnews.com

T

he tourism industry plays a formidable role in Kelowna’s economic picture but it is an industry with still untapped potential for growth, says the president and CEO of Tourism Kelowna.

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Nancy Cameron says tourism has evolved over the last 10 to 15 years in Kelowna, with the growth of the city combined with sophisticated marketing initiatives at the local, provincial and national levels.

“Everyone wants to come to a place with a beautiful lake, parks, mountains, access to nature…that kind of beautiful environment creates a desire for people to want to travel here,” Cameron said.

No longer is Kelowna tourism centred around the amenities offered by Okanagan Lake on a 30 C day. Cameron says there are more things to do here than ever before, from wineries to restaurants to outdoor activities like hiking and cycling.

“We are no longer just a summer tourisms season in Kelowna, there is also a developing spring and fall tourism season. People are coming here because they love the area and what it has to offer them.”

And where those people are coming from, Cameron notes, is largely from other parts of Canada.

Last year, the tourist visitor profile in Kelowna broke down as 94 per cent from Canada, four per cent from the U.S. and two per cent from international locales.

In 2015, hotel occupancy was up three per cent in Kelowna from the previous year, ahead of the provincial average of 2.2 per cent.

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“That profile has been pretty consistent for the last 10 years which means we have become well known in Canada as a summer tourist destination. Most of our marketing money goes to our western provinces and the Greater Toronto area,” said

Cameron, named business person of the year in 2012 by the Kelowna Chamber of Commerce.

“We also work with other tourism organizations like TOTA (Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association, Destination BC and Destination Canada where we are well represented as well. All of those marketing efforts have been terrific and we are starting to see those efforts paying off.”

Looking ahead for 2016, Cameron said various indicators point to Canadians continuing to look more for vacation experiences domestically rather than traveling abroad, while U.S. tourists will have a heightened interest in crossing the border because of the devalued Canadian dollar.

“We are looking at that as well in terms of working with our partners to help draw more interest from the U.S. Spokane and Seattle are the main areas where we have focused marketing efforts this year,” Cameron said.

Tourism Kelowna has been on the industry ground floor in terms of using modern technology to reach out to potential tourism customers, dating back to 2009.

Technology, Cameron says, has changed the philosophy today behind tourism marketing, in part by offering the opportunity for Tourism Kelowna to interact with people directly compared to mass media advertising campaigns.

“It’s not easier or hard, just different, “ said Cameron of Tourism Kelowna’s marketing efforts.

“Social media is all about engagement and interaction so it allows>

PROGRESS 2016 k Capital News Friday, April 29

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Kelowna continues to attract not just tourists, but also job seekers from other communities us to laser in on potential tourist visitors through endorsements and referrals, by interacting with people online.

“We were one of the early adopters of technology as a marketing tool back in 2009 and we’ve continued to grow with it in the years since. It’s a pretty efficient and cost-effective way to reach people.”

Another big step forward for Tourism Kelowna is the proposed $3.5-million visitor information centre proposed to be built at the foot of Queensway Avenue in the downtown core next to Okanagan Lake.

Cameron said the current visitor info building on Harvey Avenue is

outdated and hard to find for tourists in traffic. More importantly in today’s tourism world it is not widely accessible to pedestrian traffic.

7,000 people in the Central Okanagan.

“Tourists end up spending more money with local businesses than they originally intended, they stay longer in town and the end result for them is a more positive experience which will get reflected in sharing those experiences on social media.”

Cameron said the current tourist info centre, located on Harvey Avenue, dates back to the idea of providing a place for tourists arriving in town to find a place to stay, a place to park their trailer or RV and learn more about what there is to do in the Central Okanagan.

“Today, people are already book-

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President and CEO Tourism Kelowna Nancy Cameron

The proposal has generated some controversy as the project goes through the application for approval process mainly because the city has been requested to set aside waterfront land to accommodate the new centre, but Cameron says the relocation will further help maximize tourist revenue potential for local businesses and attractions.

“You have that positive impact by creating a situation where you are creating a point of interaction with visitors looking for information about what we have to offer and those interactions result in people staying longer and doing more things,” Cameron said, noting the tourism industry already employs

ing their accommodation ahead of time online and have already Google mapped or GPSed where it is. They want to settle in and then go out and explore. It’s at that point in their trip where we have an opportunity to influence them, to give them ideas through having a visitor information centre located in a high-traffic pedestrian area, so the downtown core waterfront is a natural place for that,” Cameron said.

The location is ideal downtown, she added, because an overwhelming majority of tourism visitors to Kelowna make the trek downtown to check out City Park, Kerry Park and the boardwalk that stretches from City Park to Waterfront Park along the lake foreshore.

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SIGNS

of the

O

TIMES

“It’s a great brand refresh and it offers a broader appeal visually, ” says Brenda Rayburn, director of sales and marketing. “It features a vibrant cranberry colour that’s very warm and upbeat.”

The Best Western PLUS Kelowna Hotel & Suites has been greeting the city’s tourists from its corner of Highway 97 and Leckie Road for 50 years. For nearly 30 of those years, the bright yellow letters and red crown of the hotel chain’s logo told guests exactly where to stop.

The hotel recently took back operating both establishments and both will emulate the hotel’s relaxed and reliable brand.

Where Best Western may have once been thought of as your grandparent’s hotel, the chain has evolved along with changing travel demographics. For Kelowna’s Best Western PLUS, the new branding—crisp, clean, current—will appeal to families and millennials alike.

You bet we are!

Director of Sales and Marketing, Best Western Brenda Rayburn

ne of the city’s most iconic hotels is about to get a new look. Make that three new looks.

This year the chain, now home to seven different hotel and resort brands, unveils a completely new logo.

“ Progressive?

Locals may have already noticed two other new signs on the property, that of the new Cornerstone Grill and the back-by-popular-demand 97 Street Pub.

“The restaurant and the pub have great service and a really casual atmosphere as well as amazing food featuring locally sourced and organic ingredients where possible,” says Rayburn.

“It’s not a typical menu at Cornerstone Grill but it’s not so outside the comfort zone,” says chef Cliff Huck. It’s all about the quality. From presentation to taste, the customer is going to know we care.”

When the 97 Street Pub returned and opened the doors in January, Rayburn says the hotel was amazed to find a bevy of regulars from the pub’s first incarnation.

S s

2 While the face of the hotel will have seen some big changes by the end of the year, Rayburn says the hotel will always keep its values of outstanding accommodations and service and its commitment to the environment, sustainability and our community.

p m H a S

To accommodate the young and tech-savvy guests, the hotel offers fibre optic Internet and it recently launched its own nature adventure app that encourages guests of all ages to play along, complete the mission-filled trivia questions and augment reality, promoting Kelowna and British Columbia, all while enjoying the hotel’s one-acre courtyard.

m b a S h o g

“We’re so pleased with how we’ve been able to cater to the variety of new market segments in a way that captures what our Best Western is really about for the community of Kelowna and our guests,” says Rayburn.

t m p j u m

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PROGRESS 2016 k Capital News Friday, April 29

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Ongoing upgrades AT KELOWNA’S AIRPORT SAWYER KLASSEN sawyer.klassen@kelownacapnews.com

For Kelowna International Airport, 2016 is going to be a very busy year.

In 2005, the airport devised a master plan that anticipated it would hit 1.6 million passengers per year by 2015.

However, growth exceeded expectations and that number was reached in 2014.

So far in 2016, that trend continues.

“When we look at the first three months of this year, we’ve grown by eight per cent in terms of overall traffic,” said airport director Sam Samaddar. “So as a consequence, we have to continue to grow our facilities in order to manage processing our passengers, baggage, cargo and aircraft.”

Currently, the leadership team at the airport is developing an updated master plan, which will extend the plans from 2025 to 2045. Current projections for the airports growth run until 2025, when it expects to see 2.4 million passengers per year, a 50 per

cent growth in just nine years. To prepare for those numbers, the airport is always undergoing upgrades to various processes so it will be able to handle the increasing passenger counts.

Since the airport is an active building and can’t close any sections for upgrades, all of the work has to be done in phases. This year, the airport is investing $20 million around the airport, with a large portion of that going into departures. The upgrades into the departures section of the airport began last year with the opening of a new concession area, retail services and a kid’s zone. Currently, the kitchen area is being expanded to include a Subway, which will give customers more opportunity and options to have food on their flights.

In addition to the new restaurant chain, another project the airport has been working on for some time should be coming to fruition soon.

“The other part that we’ll introduce is something called Farm to Flight,” Samaddar said. “It’s something that’s

taken us a number of years to get to where we are today, but it deals with the concept of taking Okanagan fruit as it comes into season and people can take it for individual consumption onboard the flight, or they can take case loads of it with them to their destination. Obviously you have to be careful travelling across the border with fruit, but if you’re flying within Canada, you can take Okanagan cherries and apples to your cousins, aunts or uncles. It also promotes the Okanagan agricultural community.”

Another area receiving a major upgrade this year is the outbound baggage system. A new system is currently being built and installed at the airport, which will allow staff to be more efficient in getting bags to airplanes, which in turn increases the speed in which the airport can turn planes around. The current capacity of the outbound baggage system is 550 bags per hour—the new system will double that to nearly 1,200 bags per hour, which will help

meet the needs of the anticipated future growth. A vertical steel structure is currently being built for the new system and once complete construction will begin working backwards into the building. The old baggage system will be removed and turned into offices for the airlines at the airport and they will create a deeper lobby where Air Canada currently sits.

Development outside of the central building itself is also planned for 2016, as phase one of Airport Plaza is expected to open in late fall or early winter. Airport Plaza is a private sector on the right hand side of Airport Way heading into the airport and will include a gas station, Tim Horton’s and a second food service as the first phase.

Samaddar described Kelowna International Airport as an economical conduit for the region and as such every effort has to be made to keep up to the growth they are seeing to continue to facilitate the economy in the Okanagan and not hinder it.

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Friday, April 29 Capital News k PROGRESS 2016

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P

Destination BC

e c e d s i

raising awareness

t o o a w

lution in how we market ourselves as a region, but it’s still a work in progress,” he said.

BY BARRY GERDING bgerding@kelownacapnews.com

T

ourism business operators from across the Thompson Okanagan gathered in Kelowna last fall to talk about the development of their industry.

The tourism business operators who attended the Thompson Okanagan Tourist Association’s Annual General Meeting and Tourism Summit last fall were full of optimism.

Revenues for tourism businesses is up in our region, five to 10 per cent over previous years. Many saw business pick up in the months of May, June and September, something that wouldn’t have happened a decade ago.

The tourism industry pumped $1.75 billion in spent dollars into the Thompson-Okanagan region and attracted 3.5 million visitors.

“Some areas felt the impact of the forest fires and the smoke in the air towards the end of summer,” acknowledged Glenn Mandzuik, chief

executive officer of the Thompson Okanagan Tourist Association. “But even with that, there is a very positive attitude within our industry across the region.”

Not that there are not challenges on the immediate horizon—marketing awareness, labour shortfall and the potential impacts of climate change—but Mandzuik said the industry is positioning itself to continue to prosper.

In recent years, TOTA has begun to tout the concept of regional marketing to its members, that a collective marketing approach is better for business and offers greater attraction options for tourists, rather than directly competing with each other. “There has been an evoPeter Boyd Owner

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Mandzuik also cited the importance of establishing Destination BC, a provincial tourism marketing arm of the government that is overseen by the industry rather than politicians or political appointees, to help market tourism both within and outside the province.

“It has been two and a half years since Destination BC was started and we’re starting to see results now from that effort, “ said Mandzuik, who noted it also complements the Destination Canada tourism promotion initiatives launched by the federal government.

“I think we all now realize the only way to get our province on the map from a tourism promotion perspective is to raise the level of awareness,” he said.

Mandzuik points out how some pockets of the Lower Mainland still don’t realize the Okanagan has a wine industry and the need to combat the focus on B.C.’s “golden triangle” for tourism—Vancouver, Victoria and Whistler.

Walt Judas is the chief executive officer of the Tourism Industry Association of B.C. and one of the guest speakers at the summit. Judas said his message was largely positive, in particular pointing out what a fabulous year it had been for the Thompson Okanagan.

“There is a tourism product here that continues to grow and mature, case in point being the wine industry, where generally operators and tourism businesses have done well to market the attractions here,” Judas said. “It’s not just the weath-

i h h s o

er or drop in the Canadian dollar bringing more Americans here, but a buildup of a lot of hard work by destination marketing groups like u Tourism Kelowna and (TOTA) for e a several years.” v But Judas said the industry can’t let up on the need for marketing awareness initiatives and will have s to address labour shortages and cli- e mate change. On the labour front, f Judas said tourism operators have a difficulty filling the job openings, particularly those which are sea- a i sonal.

“Finding seasonal employees is f always a challenge and providing o i accommodation for them is probg lematic as well,” Judas said.

“Sometimes foreign workers are willing to come here and work, sharing accommodation with others in order to send money back home, while for people here they have higher expectations for the type of work they desire to do.

“They are looking instead for jobs with higher wages and for jobs that are personally more career-oriented.”

It is a similar challenge to what the local agriculture industry faces, p where nobody locally wants to pick b the fruit leaving orchardists to in- j creasingly rely on other labour options, such as bringing in workers t from Mexico. o Like agriculture, for the tourism d industry there are no easy answers w to that issue, but Judas said the in- w dustry has to continue to build a m marketing case for how tourism-re- e lated jobs are a great resumé build- m er and a way to learn more about w the career opportunities that tourism might hold. w “There is also the opportunity to n

PROGRESS 2016 k Capital News Friday, April 29

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Positive experience brings tourists back again and again Judas thinks one key, given that few resorts have Whistler’s marketing resources, is that they have nature that will attract tourists.

enjoy some of the resort areas and cities around or province to experience the amazing amenities that draws tourists there, whether it be skiing in the winter or summer activities,” Judas said.

Mandzuik said TOTA estimates that by 2020, there will be a shortfall of people to fill 1,600 full-time jobs, one that his organization wants to address “head-on” now rather than waiting till it reaches a crisis stage.

Mandzuik said TOTA is placing a lot of emphasis on the development of the Kettle Valley Railway, from Christina Lake in the Kootenays to Hope, as an outdoor experience that tourists are looking for.

“We already hear about labour issues in our region. I know of one hotel property that has to close down half the hotel because they can’t find staff to support keeping the rooms open,” Mandzuik said.

“Those issues are important for us because it is the tourism employees that play a key role in delivering a positive tourism experience to our visitors.”

He said if you don’t have enough staff it will diminish the experience, one of the best marketing tools for bringing people back again and again.

To that end, Mandzuik said TOTA and a provincial human resources initiative called go2HR have joined forces on a $250,000 investment over the next two years to put a tourism industry labour recruiter on the ground in the Okanagan.

“

It’s not just the weather or drop in the Canadian dollar bringing more Americans here, but a buildup of a lot of hard work by destination marketing groups like Tourism Kelowna and (TOTA) for several years.

Tourism Industry Association of BC Walt Judas, chief executive officer

That person’s role, Mandzuik explained, is to develop awareness on both a local and international level of job opportunities that exist here.

The mandate will be to reach out to local high schools and post-secondary institutions to educate students on those job opportunities, to work with smaller tourism operators who don’t have human resources management staff to attract workers and to spread the recruitment message on an international level as well.

“This is a big movement for us, but we want to raise the level of awareness for job opportunities in the tour-

SKI RESORTS ARE EVOLVING INTO YEAR-ROUND TOURIST PLAYGROUNDS

ism industry starting now and not wait until those challenges arise in 2020,” Mandziuk said.

As for climate change, Judas said it remains an issue that “is hard to get a handle on.”

For the tourism industry, it’s important to understand the potential impact of climate change and where it could lead down the road.

He said that rail corridor offers potential tourism benefits to all the communities along the Kettle Valley corridor and is an outdoor experience that tourism surveys indicate consumers want to have.

For that reason, the efforts to develop the former CN Rail corridor into a trail between Vernon and Kelowna, also has the attention of TOTA.

“That project is on our radar as well, although not as far along at this point as Kettle Valley. But we are a strong supporter of the (rail) trail because that is what consumers are telling us they want,” Mandzuik said.

“The beautiful thing about the (rail trail) is it is easily accessible.

“Being an old railway the trail is relatively flat, it’s not treacherous to walk along and it gives people walking a chance to get immersed in nature, to have that experience.”

Mandzuik cited the example of the famous El Camino de Santiago trail in Spain which generates millions in tourism benefits for the communities connected to the historic pilgrimage route.

“People walk that trail for spiritual or health reasons, but many communities along that trail wouldn’t exist today without it and the tourism it brings.

“When I look at the potential of the (rail) trail, I think of what a shot in the arm it could be for a community like Oyama to build tourism industry growth.”

“Adjustments have to be made for certain tourism businesses, certain sectors and products that might feel a negative impact,” he said.

Judas cites the ski industry as one example, where changing weather patterns impact the amount of snow a ski mountain may expect to receive in future years.

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“The ski industry is a good example because if there is a lack of snow, how do those resorts adjust to that given the huge investments in infrastructure, marketing and staff that are made? What do they do to adjust to that reality?

Judas said Whistler is an example of a ski resort evolving into a yearround tourist playground, to where summer revenues out-pace the ski season.

“It can be an issue with a fishery, with weather and storms, forest fires. As an industry we have to be aware and prepare for the inevitable and try to mitigate the impacts,” he said.

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BY BARRY GERDING, bgerding@kelownacapnews.com

W

hile other town centres in Kelowna see growth and expansion of their business sectors, the commercial core of Rutland may at first glance be changing very little.

But the reality is the Rutland town centre continues to evolve, perhaps slower than some might wish , but change is happening.

This year has already seen the beginning of a public process to replace or upgrade the Centennial Hall, the city has begun work on developing a soccer field and playground for Centennial Park, upgrades are planned for the Plaza 33 Shopping Centre, the long-time Coopers grocery store has taken on

the higher profile SaveOn-Foods brand name and a new commercial development has taken root at the corner of Highway 33 and Rutland Road North.

Laurel D’Andrea, executive director of the Uptown Rutland Business Association, says their membership continues to work at attracting more businesses to the Rutland Town Centre and signs of progress to that end are becoming evident.

“Everybody would

The changing face of Rutland

THE CORNER OF HWY. 33 AND RUTLAND ROAD

like to see that kind of change happen more quickly but these things don’t happen overnight.

Logistically, it takes time to evolve,” said D’Andrea.

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The aspect of time is reflected by the development at Highway 33 and Rutland Road North, which sat vacant for more than 25 years, as did the lot across the street at that same intersection now occupied by a new branch of Valley First Credit Union.

But the latest development has seen Starbucks, Memphis Blues Barbecue restaurant and Domino’s Pizza all in one complex.

“Memphis Blues and Domino’s are busy and happy to be there and we are looking forward to Starbucks opening very soon,” D’Andrea said.

And just down Highway 33 west of that intersection, change continues to happen for Roxby Square, now the home for the Rutland community market on Sundays from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

“Our goal is to create a community market that combines the elements of a flea market, local artisans and food growers,” said D’Andrea.

“For those who can’t get in as vendors at Kelowna Farmers’ Market, we want them to know there

is another option.”

With Centennial Hall, the Rutland Park Society, which operates the facility, is undergoing a public process on how to move forward with the hall, built in 1967 and in need of extensive repairs or replacement.

The society has more than $900,000 to invest in that project, money generated from the City of Kelowna in return for a road right-of-way through the centre of what is now the Centennial Park parking lot.

D’Andrea says whatever decision is arrived at by the society board based on feedback from local residents, the hall will continue to be a key ingredient in Rutland’s town centre growth.

“We are located on a major highway and we don’t have a lake, the boardwalk, or the H20 Centre or ball diamonds as a focal point to build around. I like what (park society vice-president George Basran) said recently, that the community hall is our lake,” D’Andrea said. “It is an important part of our community and will con-

tinue to be so.”

Looking ahead this year, D’Andrea says URBA, which was formed in 2007 from the creation of a business improvement district funded by a tax on local businesses to help promote aesthetic, marketing and development growth, will continue to foster business growth and engage local residents.

“Rutland has and will always have its own flavour. We don’t want to be the Mission, or Glenmore or the downtown. We see a tremendous opportunity to be the major housing hub for UBC Okanagan students, being close to transit access to the university. What we hear is those students like living in Rutland so we need to embrace that moving forward,” she said.

While Rutland already has the highest area population base of any of Kelowna’s town centres, that will continue to grow as the Black Mountain residential developments continue to expand and build out.

PROGRESS 2016 k Capital News Friday, April 29

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Friday, April 29 Capital News k PROGRESS 2016

Z20 www.kelownacapnews.com

Melcor development will lead to connection between Clifton Road and McKinley Landing

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SAWYER KLASSEN, sawyer.klassen@kelownacapnews.com

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ver the next several years, a number of new lake-front lots will become available. The lots will be part of North Clifton Estates, which is being developed by Melcor Developments Ltd.

Melcor has been working on the project for just over six years, and is finalizing the last permits required from the city to start building. Andrew Bruce, Melcor regional manager, explained the company hopes to begin working onsite by mid-May, with the first lots available for construction around spring of 2017.

With more than 200 acres of land, the development will link the north end of Clifton Road into the McKinley Landing area, eventually connecting the two areas.

“The Clifton Road extension, which is the main spine through this property, gets built with each phase,” Bruce said. “So we’re probably eight to 10 years away from making that connection to Arthur Court and McKinley.”

The development has six planned phases, each requiring roughly one year for lot preparation and then another year or two for the market to absorb the properties. Once complete, however, the linking Clifton

CITY OF Recent KELOWNA’S developments

and McKinley Landing will have multiple benefits.

“This road connection means there are now two ways out of both of those communities,” Bruce said.

“We bridge that gap in between them and provide a loop through the area. That’s important for emergency planning. Wildfires are a very real thing here and this would give people alternate routes out of the area. It also makes things like a transit shuttle more viable in the long term. Probably not a full-sized bus, a smaller shuttle bus could look at a loop through the area.”

North Clifton Estates has been approved for up to 200 lots, and the current lot layout has the development at 180 to 185 lots. Melcor will not be setting a minimum square footage requirement, so long as the buildings still meet the architectural guidelines. The early design scheme for the development is a modern look with low pitched roofs, lots of glass and a fairly simple design.

“We have a pretty huge range in lot types and siz-

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es,” Bruce said. “We have everything from waterfront lots to estate-sized lots that are going to be a couple acres in size, to the more standard hillside lots that are around a quarter of an acre.”

Of the 200 acres in the development, over 65 acres will be left undeveloped and largely undisturbed.

Bruce said Melcor plans to have plenty of open space, with trail systems and other development-free features.

North Clifton Estates will also have a waterfront park of about four acres, and almost every lot will have a view of Okanagan Lake.

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PROGRESS 2016 k Capital News Friday, April 29

www.kelownacapnews.com Z21

Bannister GM modernizing the car dealership experience

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ocal General Motors dealership aims to make a mark in the new car market with revolutionary changes to decades-old business practices. cial media in ways the new car industry hasn’t yet seen. Westwold says the dealership recently hired a fulltime online marketing manager, who is responsible for managing all of the dealership’s Internet advertising, including its website and social media accounts. The big draws of online advertising, says Westwold, are that it’s more convenient for consumers and that it goes for a softer sell.

“With digital advertising, the customer can go online at any time.

They’re not waiting for the newspaper to get to them. It’s also not as invasive as TV advertising.”

The dealership’s many programs are proving to be a hit with consumers, with a variety of options to suit nearly any buyer’s needs. The Test Drive From Home program is a new initiative that is generating moderate response, Westwold says, by giving consumers the option of a more convenient test drive.

GM’s Equitable Pricing Strategy is another major draw that is founded on transparency and ethics.

“I’ve been in the car business for

MIKE STRAUS, Contributor

Since taking over Kelowna’s General Motors dealership in July 2013, the family-owned Bannister Automotive Group has gone to work giving the building a more modern appeal. Exterior renovations, a new Cadillac showroom and new furniture and offices are just a few of the projects currently underway.

“Our waiting area will have iPads for customer use and we’re getting a gourmet coffee maker,” says Bannister GM employee Brian Westwold.

“It’ll be an easygoing atmosphere, something that looks a little more modern.”

Westwold says that these upgrades are meant to capitalize on the strong local car industry in the Okanagan and GMC’s reputation for quality vehicles.

“The Central Okanagan auto industry is as strong as it’s ever been, for domestic cars, at least. Used cars are a strong market. New trucks and SUVs are strong. Cadillac is up 200 per cent over last year—that’s a big deal. We have a lot of new models coming in (due to strong local demand). Kelowna is hot right now. The housing market is very strong.”

Westwold notes that the Okanagan car industry hasn’t even flinched in response to the economic downturn in nearby Alberta, which caught the dealership by surprise.

“We were bracing for the fallout,” he said, “and it just didn’t happen. The news is full of doom and gloom, but British Columbia’s economy—especially in the Interior is quite strong right now. If you can get your staff to buy into the fact that things are good, you get them to perform at a high level. It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy.”

Bannister GM is also changing the way dealerships operate by embracing Internet marketing and so-

“

Our waiting area will have iPads for customer use and we’re getting a gourmet coffee maker…

Bannister GM Brian Westwold

16 years,” said Westwold. “I’ve seen all sorts of ways of pricing vehicles.

I’ve heard of guys who price things high and then give discounts. But with the Internet, consumers can go online and within about 15 minutes have a rather accurate idea of what a given vehicle is worth. With Equitable Pricing, we price our cars just below the market. We make money in volume by selling each individual car

for a little bit less.”

Westwold hints that Bannister GM has further innovations and advances still to come, noting that the dealership will be making major changes to how it sells vehicles in order to make the buying experience easier.

Given that General Motors has

NEW TECHNOLOGY, NEW INITIATIVES AT BANNISTER AUTOMOTIVE GROUP

been a strong innovator for over a century, it’s not unreasonable to expect that the company that gave us the electric starter and the V8 engine will be at the forefront of innovation for years to come.

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Friday, April 29 Capital News k PROGRESS 2016

Z22 www.kelownacapnews.com

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When developers are looking at investing in business or residential housing proposals in a given community, one of the first things they consider is the economic health of the downtown core.

Kelowna is no different, and the changes taking place, both public infrastructure and private projects, are catching entrepreneurs’ attention, said Robert Fine, director of business and entrepreneurial development of the City of Kelowna.

Fine says Kelowna is currently getting swept up on a general upswing in B.C.’s economy that is largely being felt across the western provinces, although one significant blip remains the oil and gas industry in Alberta due to the drastic collapse in world oil prices.

But while Alberta investment has dipped noticeably in Kelowna’s real estate market, there has been a definitive upswing in interest from Lower Mainland buyers looking to escape an overpriced and over-heated housing market and from Toronto area buyers facing the same issues, said Fine.

Asked what would happen if an Alberta oil patch revival coincided with Lower Mainland interest continuing to grow, Fine could only smile about the impact it would have on our local economy.

“I have always said that we will never see what happened in the housing market here from 2005 to 2008 ever happen again in my lifetime,” said Fine, regarding the perfect storm of conditions that sent housing prices spiralling up to 100 per cent above their value compared to 2000 and allowed homeowners to invest their sudden equity growth into the local retail economy.

“Right now I think I would compare this economic period we are in now to the post-Okanagan Mountain fire time period of 2003 to 2005. Back then it was not crazy out of control nutty growth, but the city was getting a lot of attention.”

Fine said while Kelowna’s real estate market is always a topic of interest for homeowners and developers, the city’s manufacturing sector continues to show signs of growth, particularly in the high tech field.

“There are a lot of companies operating here creating good paying jobs for people, but you don’t often hear much

about them because they are creating products for export to other markets,” Fine said.

“But manufacturing remains important because those related jobs pay two to three times more than service industry jobs.”

Many of the larger scale projects on the downtown agenda, he said, are now completed or in their final phases. That includes everything from the new yacht club and new commercial office sites to the high-tech innovation centre, new Interior Health administrative buildings and new parkades. And further out, there has been the ongoing expansion at UBC Okanagan and Okanagan College, and the expansion of the Kelowna General Hospital facilities.

Fine said the downtown buzz will likely intensity as the Westcorp hotel construction begins this fall adjacent to Kerry Park.

A new RCMP headquarters on Clement Avenue to replace the existing detachment on Doyle Avenue is already under construction, and debate going forward will focus in part on potentially replacing the aging Kelowna Community Theatre and what to do with Memorial Arena.

“Clearly the Civic Centre development will be a huge project overall that will take public and private investment pieces into it. What that will look like in the longer term will be interesting to see how that progresses,” he said.

The challenge for the city moving forward, he added, is to provide the mix of rental accommodation and housing that new business growth will demand to provide affordable housing for their employees.

“I think one of the bigger questions will be rental accommodation specifically for those working in the technology industry…from a rental perspective right now, the cost is not that much different from the Vancouver market,” he said.

Fine said as those factors become larger impact variables, which he said is already starting to happen, it will be reflected in the real estate development industry in a shift away from the large single-family home to more multi-unit projects.

“Ten years ago we were the oldest city in Canada based on our population demographics and today we are now the fourth oldest. That is a remarkable change in demographics over a 10-year period,” he said.

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