Fintry Queen owner wants council onboard with Penticton project | iNFOnews | Thompson-Okanagan's News Source
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Penticton News

Fintry Queen owner wants council onboard with Penticton project

MV Fintry Queen owner Andy Schwab thinks Penticton will be the perfect home for the new vessel.
Image Credit: MV Fintry Queen

PENTICTON - The owner of the Fintry Queen might have to wait for city council's reaction about his idea of parking and operating the 325-person boat from a spot near the Kiwanis Walking Pier.

The waterfront advisory committee had an in-camera session last week with the Fintry Queen up for discussion. No details from the meeting were available.

The Kiwanis Club of Penticton has already given the concept their initial approval. While the city owns the pier, the club did the fundraising for it and it is a point of pride with its members.

"Well, if somebody has a business plan for Penticton best of luck to them," past president Peter Armstrong said. He gathered the opinions of other club members at a recent meeting and people are onboard with the notion.

Owner Andy Schwab said while he is optimistic he is still on "pins and needles"

"It would be a marvelous thing for Penticton and the ship. If we get the green light, we'll go full bore."

Schwab said even if council gave the OK it would still take months for engineering plans, environmental studies and site preparation.

Schwab said he would pay an estimated $250,000 out of his own pocket for the dock and cover the costs of the electrical, water and sewer hookups.

The boat is currently parked in Kelowna. Schwab said he's got the expertise to make the business work. The vessel can have 325 people on board and it operates like a mobile restaurant. It can also provide tours to and from different spots on Okanagan Lake and even shorten the distance from say Summerland to Naramata by cutting right across the water.

To contact a reporter for this story, to send photos or videos, email Shannon Quesnel at squesnel@infotelnews.ca, call 250-488-3065, tweet @shannonquesnel1 or @InfoNewsPentict

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