Lake Country family can stop rail-trail plans in their tracks

LAKE COUNTRY – A Lake Country family has the ability to derail plans for a public recreation path on a section of CN railway near their property.

The Day family is worried about the proposed rail-trail corridor that would connect Coldstream to Kelowna. Local governments are hoping to turn the abandoned Vernon to Kelowna railway into a public recreation path. But former Kelowna City Councillor Colin Day and his family have the ability to derail at least part of those plans.

READ MORE: Okanagan Indian Band taking legal action over rail-trail land

“We received the right of first refusal and also a restrictive covenant that this section of land could only be used for rail,” explains Day.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: <span style="font-family:'Georgia', 'serif';color:#333333;">"We received the right of first refusal and also a restrictive covenant that this section of land could only be used for rail," explains Day.</span>

Day is thinking about using his right of first refusal to buy the section of tracks near his property. He says he wants to maintain the privacy and security of his home on Crawford Road in Oyama.

“Our family meets here and has Christmas dinner and that type of thing,” says Day. “I guess they’re emotional about it because it’s family property.”

If Day does buy the nearly 700 foot section of track that bisects his property, he doesn’t know if he would then sell it to local governments. He was granted the rights from CN about five years ago as part of an agreement to resolve a decades-old land dispute.

“The railroad track wasn’t exactly where it was supposed to be on the right of way so we agreed that we would do an exchange,” says Day.

READ MORE: Lake Country Mayor dispels what he labels rail trail misinformation

Lake Country residents will mark a ballot on April 25, with a referendum asking taxpayers to authorize borrowing more than $2.6 million dollars to help buy the rail line through Lake Country.

“I understand they have a problem, it runs right through their property, but it would be a great loss of [the recreation corridor] didn’t come to our community,” says Deborah Steele, a Lake Country resident and neighbour of Day.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: <span style="font-family:'Georgia', 'serif';color:#333333;">"I understand they have a problem, it runs right through their property, but it would be a great loss of [the recreation corridor] didn't come to our community," says Deborah</span><span style="font-family:'Georgia', 'serif';color:#1f497d;"> </span><span style="font-family:'Georgia', 'serif';color:#333333;">Steele, a Lake Country resident and neighbour of Day.</span>

Vernon resident Dean Roosevelt agrees with Steele and says he would use the rail trail.

“I think it’s very progressive and very enlightening because I’ve seen this done in other jurisdictions and it’s generated way more income and revenue, tourism and that than they even envisioned in the start,” says Roosevelt.

While Day’s family thinks the recreational corridor is a good idea, they’re arguing for an alternative route through the area.

“The west-side of Wood Lake already has Highway 97 that the province is going to gift to the municipality,” says Day.

Day is one of two property owners in Lake Country who have a right of refusal to purchase sections of the railway near their homes. We tried to reach the second property owner but they were not available.