The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen will not proceed with an electoral area boundary review.
At the board meeting on June 19, the regional district board rejected the plan because of the staff time involved that would have to be taken from other projects.
A report from Matt Hatch, RDOS executive assistant, had an estimated staff time of 1,830 hours for this project.
In order to accommodate those hours, six projects, requiring a total of 1,696 staff hours, would be pushed ahead to 2026.
The projects forced back would have included a review of fire service bylaws and levels of service bylaws, a review of the regional district’s transit service bylaws, a parts trails and recreation service review, investigating and facilitating a regional district property to keep or sell, determining if the board should establish an economic development committee and developing and piloting an electoral area committee for six months.
Members of the regional district board said the electoral areas boundary review is not right at present.
“I don’t think it would be advisable to proceed at this time,” said Director and Princeton Mayor Spencer Coyne.
“I don’t think this is the time and place do do this review,” said Subrina Monteith, director for for Electoral Area I. However, Monteith said she would like a review of service areas within the regional district.
The proposal for the review was brought forward by Director Tim Roberts, who had concerns about neighbourhoods within his own rural Keremeos area where their only access roads came through a neighbouring electoral area.
Matt Taylor, director for Electoral Area D, said the timing is wrong for this project. He said the work would be best started at the beginning of a board’s term, since he said he suspected it would take a long time to complete.
A motion not to proceed with the boundary review was approved by the regional district board.
