The Regional District of Okanagan Similkameen will decide if $14,000 of the taxpayer's money should go towards an Okanagan River cleaning deal between the district, the Penticton Indian Band and the city.
(SHANNON QUESNEL / iNFOnews.ca)
August 13, 2013 - 1:21 PM
PENTICTON - Regional leadership will decide if more taxpayer dollars are needed to keep the Okanagan River channel clean from trash.
On the table is a 5.5 year agreement between Penticton Indian Band, the City of Penticton and the Regional District of Okanagan Similkameen. The regional district's share of the maintenaince cost would be $5,833 for 2013 and $14,000 for every year after. The agreement would also mean no fee to use the channel or the resources of the band to enter the channel. The money will also pay to upkeep the band's portion of the Kettle Valley Railway trail used by residents and tourists.
If the regional district votes to fund the maintenance cost at Thursday's board meeting it will formalize an informal partnership it had with the band and the city since before 2009. The band has been spending $40,000 annually to maintain their portion of the KVR and the channel with no help from the city or the regional district.
Earlier this year the band tried a $2 per person environmental fee to assist with costs but this was rejected by the public.
To contact a reporter for this story, to send photos or videos, email Shannon Quesnel at squesnel@infotelnews.ca, call 250-488-3065 or tweet @shannonquesnel1
News from © iNFOnews, 2013