SUMMERLAND REVIEW THE VOICE OF OUR COMMUNITY SINCE 1908
VOLUME
65
-
ISSUE
NO.
41
•
S U M M E R L A N D,
B.C.
WWW.SUMMERLANDREVIEW.COM
• T H U R S D AY,
OC TOBER
11,
2012
•
20
PA G E S
•
$1.15
INCLUDING
HST
Legion tax cut granted
WHAT’S INSIDE:
by John Arendt
Top student A Summerland Secondary School graduate has received a national award for academic excellence.
Page 9 Family changes The structure of Canadian families is changing, according to the results of the latest census.
Page 3 Budget cuts A proposal from the municipality’s finance department calls for a five per cent cut in departmental expenses.
Page 10 Authors read Summerland authors will read from their works at a special event at the Summerland Library later this month.
Page 19 On the ice The Summerland Steam had a pair of Junior B hockey games on the Thanksgiving weekend.
Page 16
YOUR SMILE Some people are not paid what they are worth. For this they should be grateful.
Locomotive history
John Arendt Summerland Review
The Kettle Valley Steam Railway’s 100-year-old locomotive pulled into the station on Saturday for a special heritage celebration. The locomotive, constructed in 1912, was one of the most powerful locomotives in Canada when it was built.
The Summerland Legion will have a reduction in its taxes next year as municipal council granted an exemption on the non-profit portion of the Legion’s tax bill. The taxes from the commercial portion of the Legion remain unchanged. This works out to a 35 per cent reduction in the total taxes the Legion must pay. Coun. Bruce Hallquist said this is the only change to permissive tax exemptions for the coming year. Mayor Janice Perrino said permissive tax exemptions are granted if non-profit organizations apply and prove a need. “We felt there was a need,” Hallquist added. The Legion has been struggling financially in recent years, he said. The money from the exemption will go to the operations of the Legion. Hallquist said exemptions are not granted permanently and in the early 2000s, many exemptions were phased out. While the Legion receives lottery funding, Coun. Robert Hacking said that money is not used to fund its normal operations. Coun. Martin Van Alphen said the tax exemption is necessary. “We need to assist them,” he said. “They do so much for our community. The bylaws to grant general statutory tax exemptions and specific tax exemptions for 2013 were given first three readings. They were passed unanimously. Coun. Lloyd Christopherson was not present for the resolution.
Cannery building changes hands Development proposal expected for lakefront site by John Arendt A bid has been accepted on a former cannery building on Lakeshore Drive, reopening the possibility of a development there. Municipal planner Ian
McIntosh said a successful bid has been received by the receiver. He added that he expects a new development proposal to come forward as a result. Before the building went into receivership, the previous owner had proposed using the site for two eight-storey residential buildings, over a commercial and parking
building. The zoning to allow this development was at third reading but had not been completed. The land is in the CT-1 Tourist Commercial zone. While details for the site are not yet available, McIntosh said there is a plan in the works. “They do have a concept in general terms,” he said. “We have to see
something more specific.” While the new concept will include commercial and residential spaces, McIntosh does not expect it would conflict with the Wharton Street project. “From what I understand, they will not be competing with each other. They will be complimentary,” he said.
Mayor Janice Perrino said she is pleased to see the change in ownership. “We’re very excited about looking at the redevelopment of this property,” she said. She said the next proposal for the site will be on a smaller scale, but will contain a mix of commercial and residential spaces.