Get involved to shape the evolution of Urban Centres and Transit Corridors

News Release

The City of Kelowna is asking the community to provide input on two significant projects aimed at elevating the overall quality of life in Kelowna's urban areas through enhanced amenities, public space, housing diversity, and transportation options. Between March 12 and April 6, residents are invited to provide ideas in person or online on what would contribute to making these areas great places to live, work or visit.

The two projects under consideration are:

• Thriving Urban Centres: A comprehensive framework designed to guide planning decisions across five key Urban Centres: Rutland, Pandosy, Downtown, Midtown, and Capri-Landmark.

• Transit Supportive Corridor Planning Pilot: An initiative to explore pre-zoning and new design guidelines along select Transit Supportive Corridors (TSCs) to allow for more housing adjacent to frequent transit.

Urban Centres – Rutland, Pandosy, Downtown, Midtown, and Capri-Landmark – are major components of Kelowna's 2040 Official Community Plan (OCP), envisioned as vibrant hubs that will serve our city’s growing population and evolving needs.

“Kelowna’s Urban Centres are the heart of our community, where people live, work, and play. By focusing on these areas, we can create vibrant, sustainable neighbourhoods that are well-connected and offer a high quality of life,” said Tracy Guidi, Urban Centres Project Lead. “Public input is crucial in this process because it ensures that the aspirations of the community are reflected in plans for these dynamic areas.”

Several interactive and informational displays will be appearing around the City over the next few weeks and staff will be hosting in-person information sessions at each location so that residents can learn more about what’s being explored for Urban Centres and Transit Supportive Corridors.

Kelowna’s Transit Supportive Corridors support more housing choice, a greater mix of uses, and increased transit service. They provide critical connections to and from Kelowna’s Urban Centres.

“Providing more housing in our community is important – a healthy supply of housing will help meet current and future housing needs and transit corridors are a vitally important for supporting the homes we need,” said Ahmed Mustafa, Transit Corridor Project Lead. “Public input, coupled with technical analysis, existing policies, best practices, and financial feasibility, will inform the recommendations for both projects.”

Visit Get Involved to learn about Urban Centres and the Transit Corridor projects, find event info, and share your input.