Kelowna, B.C.,. city council will float an idea that, if implemented, would benefit recreational users who live within city boundaries.
Called the ‘Resident First Program’, the concept would have non-city residents paying more to access recreational services and facilities.
A staff report, which will be presented to council on Monday, states: “A resident-first program enables a municipality to prioritize the customer experience of its residents.”
“As residents pay taxes and contribute to the funding of facilities and programs, granting priority access, discounts or rewards for patronage ensures that the primary stakeholders have opportunities to derive enhanced benefit from the services and amenities they substantially fund. ”
“I am OK with reaping some of those benefits,” said Kelowna resident Isley Overby.
The idea isn’t new but is picking up some steam ahead of the replacement of the aging Parkinson Rec Centre with what will be a multi-million dollar, state-of-the-art facility.
Kelowna would be far from being the first to implement such a measure. There are numerous jurisdictions that already do this across Canada and B.C.
They include Vernon, Trail and Delta where two-tier pricing is in effect.
In Vernon, the adult drop-in cost for locals is set at $8.40 compared to $16.80 for people outside of the region.
In Trail, drop-in costs $7.45 for area residents while non-residents pay $14.95.
In Delta, non-residents pay $8.50, only slightly higher than the $7.45 that locals are charged.
“It’s a bit of a conundrum there,” said Lake Country resident Jeremy Stark. “You gather taxes within Kelowna to use services within Kelowna…but the flip side is Lake Country doesn’t really have really any services, we don’t have gyms, we don’t have pools.”
According to the staff report, in 2024 the vast majority of recreational users in Kelowna were locals.
The report states that Kelowna residents accounted for 72 per cent of all drop-ins compared to 28 per cent for non-residents.
Council will dive into the issue next week to decide if the ‘Resident First Program’ warrants further examination.