Parks development funding strategy
Background
In 2018, Council directed staff to prepare a Parks Development Funding Program based on the Park Funding Strategy Report and the Park Development Report from 2017. The program was developed through 2019, and in June 2019 Council directed staff to engage on Model A – Full Implementation presented in that report. Staff undertook public and stakeholder engagement from late June to early September based on Model A.
The funding strategy identifies how the City will fund parks development so that neighbourhood, community, recreation and linear parks keep pace with Kelowna's population growth.
Until now, the rate of developing parks into useable spaces has not kept up with the City's rate of growth. As a result, there is a growing deficit of developed parks, which is insufficient to serve Kelowna's residents. A funding strategy will help align parkland acquisition with park development.
Cost
The cost to implement this strategy would be about $12.1 million per year over the next 10 years and would be shared between development cost charges, taxation and parks revenues. This is about $9.1 million more per year than our existing budget.
Prioritization and timeline
Prioritizing parks and public spaces aligns with Council's new priorities, the community vision set out through Imagine Kelowna, and the "big moves" guiding development of the updated Official Community Plan.
Parks will be chosen for development based on growth projections, the 10-Year Capital Plan, Servicing Plan, and growth nodes identified in the Official Community Plan. Changes would happen over the next 10 years.