FILE PHOTO - A concept drawing of the Vinterra subdivision at 1050 Spiller Rd. in Penticton is pictured in this submitted image. The Penticton Indian Band has expressed its support for a recent Penticton city council decision not to allow the rezoning of a subdivision proposal on Spiller Road that would have seen increased densification.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/Canada Horizons
February 22, 2021 - 4:18 PM
The Penticton Indian Band is praising Penticton city council’s decision not to allow a rezoning application that would allow for a proposed 300-plus unit residential subdivision on Spiller Road.
The band had expressed its opposition to the project earlier saying the development was located in an area considered important to its members for local game animals.
“We would like to thank those within the South Okanagan communities who took a stand against this development and who recognize the cultural and environmental importance of these lands; by working together we can ensure that all living things can continue to survive and thrive within syilyx territory,” PIB Chief Greg Gabriel said in a release issued Feb. 20.
The band also reiterated its support for the preservation of Sickle Point, located roughly midway along the western shore of Skaha Lake in Kaleden.
A recent alternate approval vote saw the community vote resoundingly against a tax initiative for up to $3.5 million to purchase the property.
Band councillor Timothy Lezard said the five-acre property has been utilized by members of the syilx Nation for hundreds of generations and was traditionally used as a camping and resting area,
The band continues to support a policy of no development for Sickle Point and continues to meet with Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen officials, local stakeholders and provincial and federal governments to protect and preserve Sickle Point, or ncaqeq?iwltn, in the syilx language (pronounced: n-suck-ul-kay-ul-tn).
The band met with Environment and Climate Change Minister George Heyman on Feb. 9 to discuss the removal of Sickle Point as a privately-owned property and its return to the Penticton Indian Band for future protection and preservation.
“We are pleased to work with the regional district and local stakeholders who share similar views: by working together we can ensure that these lands are returned to their rightful owners, the Syilx people, to be conserved and protected for all time,” Chief Gabriel said.
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