West Kelowna adopts new Master Plans for Parks and Recreational Trails

The City of West Kelowna is pleased to announce the adoption of two crucial strategic plans that will shape the future of our community’s outdoor spaces: the Parks Master Plan and the Recreational Trails Master Plan.

After a comprehensive two-year process involving extensive public engagement and technical analysis, these adopted plans represent a significant milestone in our ongoing efforts to enhance and expand our parks and recreational trail networks. Read the Recreational Trails Master Plan.

Engaging with our community during these processes was vital to understanding current community needs, priorities, and ideas. Thank you to everyone who participated and shared their ideas. Find out more about the Parks Master Plan.

What we did:

Updating the Plan

Since the Recreational Trails Master Plan was last updated in 2013, West Kelowna has grown, the world has changed, and the community has shared new ideas. This process updated the plan to reflect the West Kelowna of today and provide guidance for the decade and beyond.

The diagram below summarizes the three phases that guided the development of the Plan and the activities within each phase.

• Read the Recreational Trails Master Plan
• See highlights of community input

Why It Matters:

The City is committed to maintaining and enhancing the quality of our recreational trails to serve community members of all ages and abilities, while respecting the natural beauty that surrounds West Kelowna.

To support this commitment, the updated Recreational Trails Master Plan will guide the development and enhancement of our trails to ensure they meet the needs of all residents. The purpose of the Recreational Trails Master Plan will be to outline the overall direction, and recommend actionable steps for planning, developing, operating, and investing in West Kelowna's recreational trails network over a long-term (10-year) horizon.

Understanding what our residents value is integral to current needs, priorities and ideas. The planning process incorporated community feedback alongside technical analysis to ensure that the final recommendations reflect what matters most to our residents.

Technical Analysis was also essential in shaping the plan. This included evaluating environmental impacts, current usage patterns, and future growth to ensure feasibility and sustainability.

While the Recreational Trails Master Plan focuses on the recreational trails owned and operated by the City of West Kelowna, it is part of a larger connected system. Although this plan does not specifically address networks beyond West Kelowna’s trails, it is developed with consideration of the broader context.

What We Heard:

Through two rounds of public engagement, we gathered insights on priorities for the future of recreational trails in West Kelowna. Themes are identified below.

• View more highlights from Rounds 1 and 2 of Community Input

What it Means:

Plan Recommendations

The Recreational Trails Master Plan provides a set of recommendations for implementing the ideas, values, and priorities generated through the planning process.

These recommendations are designed to ensure that our recreational trails remain high-quality, safe, and functional, catering to the diverse interests and abilities of all users. They support a cohesive approach to the planning, development, management, and operation of the trails network over the next decade. Rather than focusing on specific locations, the recommendations provide overarching guidance for the entire network.

These recommendations are provided for Council, staff, partners, and the community to consider within the context of ongoing community planning and budgeting.

Highlights

Each of these recommendations plays a crucial role in shaping the future of our trails. For more details on each recommendation, please click the links to view the specific sections of the report.

1. Trail Planning and Development Recommendations

This section includes recommendations to support cohesive planning, development, management, and operation of recreational trails over the next decade. These recommendations are not specific to a single location but provide guidance for the network overall.

View Trail Planning and Development Recommendations.

2. Trail Management Recommendations

Recommendations for physical maintenance, along with clear guidance on permitted uses and sharing of the network, are outlined to ensure the network continues to provide long-term community benefit.

View Trail Management Recommendations.

3. Capital Project Recommendations

The recommendations in this section include projects focused on addressing key connections that have a recreation focus. All projects identified will require further planning and analysis, budget development, and may require land acquisition.

View Capital Project Recommendations.