PENTICTON — Council has already made up its mind, but that didn’t stop hundreds of Penticton residents from standing shoulder-to-shoulder around a piece of public land destined to be a private marina and waterslide park.
An estimated 1,000 Penticton residents formed a human chain around the Skaha Lake park Sunday.
Opponents say they don’t want to see publicly-owned land turned into a private development.
READ MORE: Penticton waterslide park moves forward despite vocal opposition
Penticton mayor, Andrew Jakubeit, says he stands by the project, adding the water park and marina expansion will enhance the Skaha waterfront experience.
The 30-day window for the project to be put back on council’s agenda has expired.
Protest organizers say more than a dozen trees in the park are destined to come down.
“Over 25 gorgeous mature trees were tagged with yellow ribbon to mark their loss, all the sadder to see in their splendid autumn colours,” says Lisa Martin.
She says the fact that an estimated 1,000 opponents to the park showed up Sunday proves that opposition against the development is still strong.
“This is the fourth and by far best attended event that has been organized by registered society “Save Skaha Park”, in their fight against commercializing our public parkland and is a strong indication of the huge and continually mounting opposition to this unpopular project,” says Martin.
READ MORE: Penticton water park developer dispels misinformation
Construction of the water park will begin in 2018.
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