Special Features - Whats Up Westside December 2017

NOVEMBER 2017

WHAT’S UP

CELEBRATE WEST KELOWNA PAGE 2

ON THE

WESTSIDE [4]

CONTROVERSIAL WINE TRAIL

[9]

LIVING CONDITIONS FOR FARM WORKERS

[12]

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CITY OF

Let’s Celebrate, West Kelowna!

10th

Anniversary

The City of West Kelowna is turning 10 years old on December 7, 2017.

We’re combining our Anniversary Celebration with our annual Light Up Event for double the fun!

Friday, December 1, 2017 5 to 8 p.m. along Brown Road

Towne Centre Light Up

Join Mayor Doug Findlater and West Kelowna Councillors as they celebrate this important milestone and also light up the City for the 2017 holiday season!

Food

Prizes

Music

Giveaways

Crafts

Entertainment

Winterfest Fun for the whole family at West Kelowna’s Winterfest.

Sunday, December 3 10 am to 2 pm

Mt. Boucherie Complex, 2760 Cameron Road, West Kelowna. Enjoy skating, crafts, cookie decorating and free hot dogs and hot chocolate.

Admission and activities are free, but a donation to the food bank will be gratefully accepted.

City of West Kelowna 2760 Cameron Road, West Kelowna, BC V1Z 2T6 T: 778.797.1000 | F: 778.797.1001 | E: info@westkelownacity.ca

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November 2017 | What’s Up Westside X3

It was no trick, it was a scratch-and-win Halloween treat WEST KELOWNA WOMAN WINS $675,000 SCRATCHING HER SET FOR LIFE LOTTERY TICKET HALLOWEEN NIGHT Debbie Davies of West Kelowna received a memorable treat this Halloween—and it was no candy bar.

“I was scratching my Set for Life lottery ticket on Halloween night,” recalled Davies. “It showed I won, and it was the best Halloween treat ever.”

Davies discovered she had won $675,000 and immediately called her family over for a big celebration.

She said she plans to put some money towards her retirement, and then patiently wait for the next baseball season to start.

“My ultimate goal is to take a trip down the East Coast and watch a bunch of baseball games!”

Her winning ticket was purchased at the Real Canadian Superstore in Westbank.

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West Kelowna wine trail development stirs up controversy 〉 THE PROPOSED SECOND PHASE OF THE WINE TRAIL IS PROMPTING CITIZENS AND CITY COUNCILLORS TO RE-EXAMINE THE EXISTING PLAN AND DEBATE BOTH ITS DESIGN AND ITS NECESSITY.

By Mike Straus West Kelowna retiree Richard McLeod says that his opposition to the wine trail project started when he met with a group of other retirees to “grumble about how our tax dollars are being used.”

McLeod and his friends then decided to watch the webcast of the West Kelowna City Council’s Sept.

19 meeting, during which council held a hearing on decision points for the second phase of the wine trail project.

“It was interesting to see how the money was being spent,” he says. “There were some major issues with phase one, which is why we started watching what was going on – watching council spend our money in an unwise manner.”

McLeod points to a variety of issues raised

during the council meeting as points of concern for him, primarily relating to whether the proposed development work is driven by functionality or by aesthetics. He claims that council has largely failed to address the problems present in the first phase of the plan, and that the development plan is too costly and impractical.

“The two roundabouts at Anders/Boucherie and Hudson/Boucherie are going to cost taxpayers (a lot), depending on how much land they have to expropriate.

And the cost of the Phase Two upgrade is double the cost of Phase One, which was already excessive.”

Councillor Rosalind Neis says that she shares this concern around the cost of the project. She admits that yes, Boucherie Road is in need of an upgrade, but the proposed plan prioritizes

luxuries over necessities and is more complicated than it needs to be.

Says Neis: “I’d love to have that design – I live less than a block from Boucherie Road - but I don’t think our taxpayers can afford it. We have kids walking to school on roads with no sidewalks.

Safety trumps luxury. And nobody needs encouragement to go to a winery. Not all of that money is coming from the taxpayer, but at the end of the day it’s going to be spent on something, and I’d rather see it spent on sidewalks.”

Neis says that she wasn’t impressed by the Sept. 19 presentation. While the city and Stantec are home to very talented and enthusiastic design professionals, she says, the design process is missing a moral component.

Part of the proposed development would in-

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clude the replacement of an underground water main that is nearing the end of its life cycle. Neis agrees that it makes sense to replace the water main at the same time as the other development work in order to save money, but she says that what doesn’t make sense is spending $8.5 million on less than two kilometers of road.

Neis also raised concerns as to whether creating a wine trail is an appropriate use of taxpayer funds.

“Are we creating a wine trail? Is that the purpose?

And if we are, then perhaps the wineries should be contributing. If we’re upgrading a road to deal with safety issues, then that’s different.

But should it be designed as a safety road or as an aesthetic road?”

Neis highlights the City of West Kelowna’s current financial situation as anoth-

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November 2017 | What’s Up Westside X5

Residents question how tax dollars are being spent er reason why the project shouldn’t move forward.

Neis says that according to the city’s Chief Financial Officer, Lisa Pleadwell, the city has a meagre $2 million surplus.

Says Neis: “I asked our CFO: If something horrific were to happen and we had to sell everything and pay off all of our debts, where would we be? We have $2 million. That’s it. We have $30 million in reserves, but we have $28 million in debt.

The water treatment plant will set us back $14 million.

We are not a city that is flush with cash.”

Mayor Doug Findlater says that the development project is currently on hold pending a review of the costs

and funding options. Council balked at the notion of moving forward on the project when it was presented in September, he says, and when the proposal comes up for consideration again, cost will be a major factor in the decision-making process.

Findlater says that Stantec is still working on the project design, which is estimated to be delivered in December.

“It’s not all coming out of the taxpayer’s pocket,” Findlater says. “A lot of this project will be funded by contributions from developers. The report that’s due to be presented in December will outline how much the developers will chip in.

This is a big infrastructure

project, but it was delayed from last year, and we have to move on it because of the water line replacement.”

Findlater explains that the water main replacement is a significant contributor to the high cost of the project.

Roundabouts cost $445,000 each, he says, whereas the water main replacement will have a $1.2 million price tag. But he also notes that it makes more sense to replace the water main when the roundabouts are built than it does to wait.

“The water line and water mains have to be replaced anyway. We also have a transmission main that has to be replaced – an old line from the Lakeview system.

The road is going to be dug

up anyway, so you might as well also do the water system at the same time. We also have to keep in mind that we’re living in a different economic time. Construction projects are considerably more expensive now than they were in 2008. ” Findlater says that when the project design proposal is resubmitted in December, council will have a variety of options at its disposal, including removing non-essential parts of the project and seeking non-taxpayer funding from outside organizations to offset the cost to taxpayers.

The next hearing on the wine trail project is scheduled to take place on December 12.

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West Kelowna’s new homeless shelter provides welcome warmth in winter

A homeless shelter in West Kelowna opened Wednesday and will offer its services for the colder months.

IMAGE: ALISTAIR WATERS/CAPITAL NEWS

By Carli Berry A Wednesday night in early November was the first night homeless individuals had a soft place to rest their heads in West Kelowna.

The Westside’s only homeless shelter, located at the Emmanuel Church, 2600 Hebert Road, has opened for the winter season.

The shelter has 15 beds and will provide individuals with a hot meal, breakfast and a packed lunch. Laundry and showers will also be provided.

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Stephen Johnston, president of the West Kelowna Shelter Society, said 10 of the beds will be able to be reserved.

“Those who are in good standing can actually have their name on a bed,” he said.

The shelter is open seasonally from Nov. 1 to March 31 at night from 7 p.m. to 8 a.m.

A shelter was run by the church a few years ago, which started to address homelessness in the city.

Now taken on by the society and working with BC Housing, initiatives are starting to provide homeless with shelters across the province for the winter, said Johnston.

“There are a lot of services available (in downtown Kelowna) and in the summer that works OK because the services aren’t overwhelmed, but as soon as the winter rolls in, people get pretty maxed out.”

The demand increases in winter because as the weather turns, those who are able to sleep outside have to move indoors, he said.

A lot of homeless in West Kelowna are residents of the community and there are approximately 25 individuals who are in need of shelters, not counting underage individuals, said Johnston.

He said resources are needed in the city, with the next goal is to get a 24-hour facility for the winter months.

The City of West Kelowna supports the shelter’s initiative. “The city has met with a representative of the new West Kelowna Shelter Society to see if there is anything the city can do to help their efforts. We don’t have a true gauge at this time on how many homeless people are in West Kelowna and we welcome information from the shelter society as it becomes available,” said communications officer Kristen Jones.

A new temporary emergency weather shelter has also opened in Kelowna, which has 10 beds at 2600 Hebert Rd. The shelter was created as part of a province-wide initiative to combat homelessness, especially in the cold months.

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〉 CITY COUNCIL BRIEFED IN LIGHT OF RECENT TRAGIC AMMONIA LEAK IN FERNIE

City staff say West Kelowna’s ice arenas are safe

By Alistair Waters In light of the recent ammonia leak at Fernie ice arena that killed three people, West Kelowna council has been briefed on the safety precautions and procedures in place at the ice arenas in West Kelowna.

The city operates two arenas, the Jim Lind Arena and Royal LePage Place, both located at the Mt. Boucherie Recreation Complex.

City staff say the ammonia refrigeration at both rinks is maintained to the highest standard and have received risk assessed facility designations from the B.C. Safety Authority. The designations are considered the leading standard in safety when it comes to maintaining, monitoring, and operating an ammonia refrigeration plant inside a community ice arena.

In addition to regular inspections by the B.C. Safety Authority, the city’s refrigeration contractor conducts monthly inspections and routine maintenance on the ice plants City staff also conduct routine checks and fill out a detailed checklist every two hours.

November 2017 | What’s Up Westside X7

Council was told earlier this week all staff are trained and have a provincially-recognized certificate, which is legislatively mandated for workers. Monitoring is done 24 hours a day and notification is sent if there is a problem.

In the event of an ammonia leak, an audible and visual alarm goes off inside the rink, a signal is sent to the monitoring company and staff are notified.

A high speed fan also kicks in to help exhaust the ammonia, however, it will shut off if ammonia levels are too high and present a risk to the outside public. The arenas are located near residential properties.

If needed, an emergency shut down button located outside the ice plant can be activated by staff.

A gas monitor is mounted outside the refrigeration plant and displays the gas levels inside the plant.

Personal protective equipment is provided to staff including gas masks, eye protection and hearing protection. In the event of an emergency, the city will implement facility evacuation procedures, which all arena staff are trained to lead.

Following the Fernie accidents, Kelowna city staff reported similar precautions and procedures are in place at its arenas.

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West Kelowna acting on squalid farm worker conditions

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MOVE TO SET NEW RULES FOLLOWS INCIDENT AT A SCHARF ROAD HOME IN AUGUST Collin Crabbe went to West Kelowna city council in August to call for improvements to temporary farm worker housing.

IMAGE: ALISTAIR WATERS/CAPITAL NEWS

By Alistair Waters hended by police hiding in Following a frightening a shed on the property, incident for a West KelowIn August, the husband na woman and her children of the woman who had last summer, West Kelowto fend off the intruder na council has moved to appeared before council to address the issue of templead for help for him and porary agricultural worker his neighbours, long frushousing. trated by the situation, and Council has directed city for the workers, who he staff to start said are bedrafting zoning ing forced bylaw amendto live in “Something needs squalid and ments to deal with the issue unsafe conto be done.” after a female ditions.

COLLIN CRABBE farm worker, Collin believed to be Crabbe high on drugs, showed pushed her way into the council photos of run down woman’s Scharf Road accommodations, outside home and was later appretoilets, and other appalling

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living conditions he said the foreign farm workers are being subjected to on a farm near his home. He also alleged exploitation of the farm workers and an increase in crime in the neighbourhood.

“Something needs to be done,” said Crabbe, who said his wife had to hide their children in a bedroom while she fought off the female intruder, before the woman fled the house.

The intruder was later identified as a temporary worker at the nearby farm and was believed to be high on drugs at the time of the incident.

Last year a petition signed by 70 people in Crabbe’s neighbourhood asked council to take action on the sub-standard farm worker housing.

In directing staff to act, council expressed concerns about ongoing alleged criminal activity and bylaw infractions related to the inadequate housing on the Scharf Road farm. In

response, staff provided a report with options for council to consider to help address the concerns.

Council has now asked staff to: • Investigate further regulations in the zoning bylaw for the use of tents and recreational vehicles as acceptable forms of temporary agricultural worker dwellings.

• Require that all agricultural worker dwellings have hygienic washroom and bathing facilities.

• Require that all agricultural worker dwellings follow occupant loads in the British Columbia Building Code and gather input from the industry on that point.

• Investigate further mechanisms for proponents of temporary agricultural worker dwellings to notify the city of their intent to operate.

• Investigate the possibility of requiring business licenses for the operation of agricultural worker dwellings and increasing the fine for a contravention of the bylaw.

• Investigate a council policy for statutory declarations and/or restrictive covenants associated with temporary agricultural workers.

City staff also plan to consult with the Ministry of Agriculture, the Agricultural Advisory Commission and the local agricultural industry when drafting new regulations.

Public consultation will also be undertaken.

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60 years of dancing…

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By Mark Dreger TINA TAYLOR OF You’re never too old to dance.

WEST KELOWNA’S West Kelowna’s Westsyde Squares WESTSYDE SQUARES celebrated their 60th anniversary as a WHICH CELEBRATED club with a party for current and former members at the Westbank Seniors THEIR 60TH ANNIVERSARY SAT., Activity Centre, Nov. 5.

NOV. 4, 2017.

“Square dancing is awesome enterIMAGE: MARK DREGER tainment,” said Lynda Bjalek, Westsyde Squares president and 30-year member. “It’s good for the brain, it’s good for your physical fitness, it’s good for everything. When the music turns on you can be in a real sour mood or had a real bad day, you come to the dance and I guarantee within five minutes you’re a totally changed person.”

Initiated in 1957, the Lakeview Recreation Commission were planning how to celebrate the British Columbia centennial the following year until someone suggested square dancing as part of the Old West heritage.

“And basically the dancers decided, ‘this has been so much fun, that’s not going to be it,’” said Brian Elmer, who’s been a part of Westsyde Squares for 46 years. “We want to estab-

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lish a regular dance club and continue to enjoy this activity beyond the centenary year.’”

It was Ray Fredrickson from Summerland that met with the group at the Lakeview Elementary School cafeteria and that began the Westsyde Square Dance Club. They’ve been dancing from fall to spring ever since.

“I think the fact that we’ve been going for 60 years is testament to the longevity of the recreation as a social recreation,” Elmer said. “People can gather together, learn this dance form, meet at least weekly, and apart from the time spent on the dance floor there is a lot of time on the sidelines socializing. And over the years—in fact pretty well right away—you begin to solidify friendships with people who were strangers not too long ago, and that lasts a lifetime for many of us.”

Over the years, the club jumped from location to location, moving to the old Westbank Community Hall until the Mount Boucherie Community Center was built; and then later they moved to the Westbank United Church for their Wednesday night dances.

“When I joined the club in 1971, we danced in what is now the Westbank Lions Community Hall,” Elmer said.

“The hall was in its original state back then and the floorboards had collected dust and wax particles over the years and when we danced there in the early ‘70s—as a man often wearing dark pants—I’d come off the dance floor after a couple hours with a white coating up to about my knees because we moved on the floor and worked that dust out of the cracks and it had come up onto our clothing.”

With most of the members “It’s good for the brain … in their senior years, Westit’s good for everything.” syde Squares LYNDA BJALEK hopes to attract younger members.

Their dance caller—Dustin McGifford—is currently only 26-years-old, showing that all ages are welcome to join.

“Right now we’re hoping that it will be younger,” Bjalek said. “We range right now from 50 to—well we got people right up into 90. It’s very good for everybody.”

With 60 years spent in the community, it has become a second home for its members. “It’s my family,” Bjalek said. “If I have a conflict of something, two or three different things going on, if there’s a square dance I’m here. It’s my priority.”

November 2017 | What’s Up Westside X11

Awards gala celebrates local business West Kelowna veterinarian Dr. Moshe Oz accepts an award for his Rose Valley Veterinary Hospital

Awards: • Community and public service (sponsored

by City of West Kelowna): West Kelowna Warriors • Tourism and hospitality (Let’s Go Transportation): Uncorked! Okanagan • Small Business (City Furniture): Fifth Avenue Auto and Distinctly Kelowna Tours

The Greater Westside Board of Trade hosted its 16th annual Key Business Awards Gala Thursday Nov. 2 at 19 Okanagan Grill and Bar at Two Eagles Golf Course.

This year’s recipient of the Geoffrey Paynter Citizen of The Year was West Kelowna Warriors co-owner Mark Cheyne. Presenting the award to Mr. Cheyne was Mrs. Marci Paynter.

“There are so many amazing people that contribute to the local Westside community choosing this recipient was a difficult process but also very rewarding to

• Aboriginal Business (Westbank First Nation): Tronson Logging • P erforming Arts (Hergott Law): JC and Andy Plett, musical duo “Room To Dance” • Y oung Entrepreneur (Global Roadway Maintenance): David Nguyen, owner, Revive Nails Bar • Sustainable Green Business (FortisBC): Off The Grid Organic Winery

see Mark get recognized publicly in this way. He employs Westside people, he believes in fundraising for numerous local charities during game nights and he believes in educating young men with more than 100 players receiving university scholarships over the years,” said chair Bobby Gidda.

The awards reception at Volcanic Hills Winery saw over 30 businesses recognized for excellence in service and community involvement on the Westside.

The event’s title Sponsor was 3BP Solutions and the Event Sponsor was Valley First.

• Large Business: (Scotiabank/Roynat Capital): Bylands Nurseries • New Business: (White Kennedy): Floramaxx Technologies • Platinum Service Provider: (Fifth Avenue Auto): Rose Valley Veterinary Hospital • Business of the Year: (Kelowna International Airport): Off The Grid Organic Winery

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Paradise Papers highlight tax gap

By Dan Albas The major issue reverberating around Ottawa is the recent release of the ‘Paradise Papers’.

For those of you unfamiliar with the ‘Paradise Papers’, these are leaked documents that contain the names of individuals who have involvement in offshore accounts that in some cases are used to avoid paying domestic taxes.

The reason why this has become a political issue in Ottawa is that one of the names on the list happens to be the Liberal Party of Canada chief fundraiser. This same individual accompanied the Prime

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Minister to an exclusive dinner at the White House during the Obama administration. This in turn raised the question why a Liberal Party fundraiser was brought to an exclusive dinner when the Liberal Government’s Natural Resource Minister was left off the guest list.

To date the Prime Minister has refused to answer this question. From my perspective, I think it is important to recognize that being named on this list is not indicative of having done anything illegal.

The real issue from my perspective is that recently we have observed the Canada Revenue Agency attempt to tax employee discounts. At the same time the Liberal Government attempted a large tax grab against farmers and small business owners.

Meanwhile individuals of immense wealth can utilize offshore accounts and family trusts here at home with no proposed taxation change whatsoever.

In many ways this creates two tiers of taxation

where the wealthiest are treated differently by this Liberal Government than everyday Canadians.

This raises a question on exactly how much potential tax revenue is lost by these types of tax policies.

Officially, this is known as the “tax gap.” Tax Gap is the Government’s potential tax revenue as opposed to the amount of tax revenue it is actually able to collect.

In the United States this type of taxation data has been tracked and publicly disclosed for many years.

As the recent release of the Paradise Papers has brought the extent of this problem to light many have questioned what the tax gap here is in Canada.

Unfortunately the Canada Revenue Agency refuses to disclose this information.

In fact there has been considerable effort in Parliament by MPs and Senators alike to obtain this information however to date there has been no success. Considering that some estimates believe Canada’s tax gap could be as high as $47 Billion an-

New West Kelowna welcome sign Things are brighter now in West Kelowna. After complaints that the dark writing on the new welcome to West Kelowna signs was too hard to read given the new dark wood background, the city has painted the letters a brighter colour.

Dan Albas

nually, this is a serious and growing concern.

The Liberal Government has so far justified the position of the Canada Revenue Agency arguing that Canadians tax information is confidential and as a result this aggregated data should not be publicly released. The Liberals have also pointed out they are increasing the budget for the Canada Revenue Agency for enforcement and investigation purposes.

My question: Do you believe that Canada Revenue Agency should join countries such as the United States, Sweden, Australia and others in publicly disclosing the tax gap?

I can be reached at Dan. Albas@parl.gc.ca or call toll free at 1-800-665-8711.

The new Welcome to West Kelowna sign at the entrance to the city with its new paint job.

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November 2017 | What’s Up Westside X13

New company opens store with donation 〉 BATTLE AND GIBSON CELEBRATED ITS GRAND OPENING BY DONATING TO HELP OKANAGAN COLLEGE STUDENTS

By Alistair Waters A leading Western Canadian company is celebrating the opening of its new store in West Kelowna with a $37,000 donation to Okanagan College’s electrician program.

The money, from plumbing, heating and electrical products distributor Bartle and Gibson, will support the tool room at the new Okanagan College trades training complex that serves the electrician program. The company is also pledging an in-kind donation to provide products, tools and equipment to electrical, plumbing and piping student.

“We feel this is a winwin situation for the industry and for Okanagan College,” said Bartle and Gibson president and CEO Robert Whitty Friday.

He said it’s important that industry work with institutions like Okanagan College because they train the people who will be working in the field in future.

The money from the company will be distributed through the Bright Horizon’s fundraising campaign, set up to raise $7 million towards the cost of the $35 million trades training centre that opened

last year on the Kelowna campus.

The state-of-the-art complex, that mixed new construction with extensive renovations of some existing trades training facilities at the college, resulted in a complex that has won awards for both its architecture and it’s environmental innovations.

The Bright Horizons campaign has now surpassed the original $7 million goal and the college is now using money donated to the campaign to help fund its new trades training house on the Kelowna campus.

The electrician program at OC is the college’s largest program, with 700 students enrolled at OC’s four campuses in the Okanagan and Shuswap—Kelowna, Vernon, Penticton and Salmon Arm. Okanagan College is the second largest trades trainer in the province after BCIT in Burnaby.

Steve Moores, dean of trades and apprenticeship the college welcomed the Bartle and Gibson donation, saying it shows the company, and by extension the industry, has confidence in the education OC students are getting.

Bartle and Gibson, a wholly owner Western Canadian company, that was started in 1944 and has 30 branches across the West.

Its first store in the Okanagan opened in West

Kelowna in 1997 and that was followed that with a Kelowna store in 2007.

The new 35,000-squarefoot West Kelowna store

on Stevens Road opened Friday with a trade show featuring Bartle and Gibson suppliers.

Bartle and Gibson president and CEO Robert Whitty show Okanagan College dean of trades and apprenticeships Steve Moores around the companies new West Kelowna store.

IMAGE: ALISTAIR WATERS/CAPITAL NEWS

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Strapping in at the Westbank First Nation CAR SEATS WERE DONATED TO THE WFN AS PART OF A CHILD SAFETY INITIATIVE

By Carli Berry The children of Westbank First Nation residents will be a little safer when travelling in their families’ vehicles.

Car seats have been delivered to nine communities in the Central and South Okanagan this month, as part of the Child Safety Initiative.>> Kelsey Lindley, of community services with the Westbank First Nation, carries a car seat into the WFN Health and Wellness building, as part of a child safetly initutive in the Central Okanagan, Tuesday, Nov. 7.

IMAGE: CARLI BERRY/CAPITAL NEWS

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November 2017 | What’s Up Westside X15

Child Safety Initiative addresses need for car seat safety in the communities “We don’t want families to ever have to choose between purchasing a car

seat and their child safety when finances are tight,” said Reanne Holden-Ama-

Most B.C. parents don’t know if their kids’ carseats are safe: BCAA ASSOCIATION’S RESEARCH SUGGESTS ONLY ONE-QUARTER GET THEIR CARSEATS CHECKED BY AN EXPERT More than 50 per cent of B.C. parents aren’t checking regularly that their kids’ carseats are installed properly, according to a BCAA study released Thursday.

The report suggests two-thirds of parents install their carseats themselves and only one-quarter get them checked by a certified expert.

Parents should be regularly checking the carseat position and condition with the wiggle test: • Hold carseat at the belt path and give it a side-to-side wiggle.

Carseat should not move sideways more than 2.5 cm.

• Look for signs of wear and tear such as frayed harnesses, torn padding and cracks in the shell. Clean out everyday crumbs and dirt from around the straps and buckle.

According to BCAA, a correct carseat for the child’s age and size is crucial, but only 17 per cent of parents are sure their child’s seat is the right size.

While the association says second-hand seats can be used, it’s important that parents know the seats’ exact history. Even if it hasn’t been involved in a collision, it could have been recalled or have expired.

“Just because it looks good doesn’t mean it’s safe,” BCAA community impact senior manager Shawn Pettipas. “Not knowing the full history of a second-hand carseat means parents can’t be absolutely certain of the seat’s condition and this can put their kid at risk.”

Despite that, the study suggests 29 per cent of parents with second-hand carseats admit that they don’t know their full history. Almost one-fifth of parents use them second-hand.

To make sure kids are properly secured, parents should: • Adjust harness straps to the correct height: Rear-facing (below child’s shoulders) or forward-facing (above the shoulders).

• Fasten both harness strap latches (both have been clicked into the buckle).

• Harness straps should be snug (only room for one finger or less between harness and child’s collarbone).

• Chest clip should be positioned at the child’s armpit level.

To get more information or to find a carseat installation clinic, go to www.bcaa.com/carseats.

do, manager of community investment with United Way. This was the first year the WFN received seats, but the program has been ongoing for the past three years, said Holden-Amado.

The car seats are delivered to residents based on their needs and the program started when there was a recognized need for safety in the communities. Seats were also delivered to Kelowna Community Resources and Lake Country Health Planning.

The WFN received seven out of 84 car seats, which were provided by Costco at a discounted rate. Budget Rentals provided a moving

truck.

“It’s been expanding every year… next year we’re hoping to expand to the North Okanagan,” said Marianne Dahl, marketing and events manager for United Way CSO. Car seats are given out as part of a WFN health program, so all postnatal mothers have a car seat when leaving the hospital, so partnering with the initiative makes sense as they are donated instead of purchased, said Maria Reed, director of community services for WFN. The plan is held by United Way, the KGH Foundation and the Central Okanagan Foundation.

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