A parcel of waterfront land in the South Okanagan that’s said to be the last intact section of wetland along Skaha Lake will remain in its natural state.
Known as Sickle Point, the 4.8 acres are located in the unincorporated community of Kaleden, between the Kettle Valley Railway trail on the west and Skaha Lake on the east.
The community has been fighting to save it as natural wetlands.
“The property has been sold for conservation purposes,” said Save Sickle Point committee member Doreen Olson. “We’re thrilled.”
The announcement was made on social media late Tuesday evening by the group, which has been working to prevent the parcel of land from being developed.
“People would be having friends over and boats and cats and dogs, and it’s just so sensitive there that even one house would have basically been a disaster for that property,” said Olson.
While no details about the purchaser are being released, the social media posts credit the generosity and initiative of a Vancouver-based family with fond memories of their summers in Kaleden for the purchase.
All Olson would say is that “the property has been purchased by a single individual.”
The purchase price is also not being revealed in the foreclosure sale.
However, in January, the Regional District of Okanagan Similkameen (RDOS) and the Save Sickle Point committee announced that a $2.5 million conditional offer has been accepted by the sellers.
Olson said the purchase means site rehabilitation can now start.
“It has been degraded, but it’s still a viable wetland area, so it means that we can look forward to doing some rehabilitation, putting some plants back there and watching how they grow and making it look as much as it did in a natural state,” she said.
“It means the return of some species like the yellow-breasted chat, which is federally endangered.”
Olson also pointed out that conserving the land will mean maintaining the non-motorized status of the KVR trail.
“There’s no road access to the property,” she said. “It (KVR) would have been become a motorized used area, so people would l be driving their cars down there.”
The land will be considered private property for the next few months until the federal government approves it going into a land trust.
Steps after that include the creation of a strategic plan for restoration and rehabilitation, as well as the establishment of a ‘self-sustaining’ endowment fund, with the land trust to ensure Sickle Point will be cared for and well managed well.
“I think more people are becoming aware of the importance of nature and what it gives back to people,” said Olson, “and it was just a natural for this community to preserve that.”