Tourism Kelowna expects to open doors by middle of next year
Construction on Tourism Kelowna's new waterfront visitor centre is moving along.
CEO Lisanne Ballantyne says they're on time, and on budget.
"We were fortunate to get all the permits and the approvals in place, and began excavation (over) two weeks ago. So what's been taking place so far is the underground work – running utilities in, and getting the site prepped," she said.
"Happy to say that's going well, it's on schedule and on time."
She says if the weather holds up, they'll be able to pour a foundation later this week.
That would allow work to continue through the winter, so that the centre could open sooner rather than later.
"It's tricky during a major build in a four-season environment to really pin down a date. We would be thrilled if the building was operational and serving the public as soon as the spring and summer tourism season starts," said Ballantyne.
"But we do know it will be built by mid-2018."
The new visitor's centre will sit on the water at the bottom of the Queensway, between Stuart and Kerry Parks.
That location didn't come without controversy from the public, but was backed up by city council, who agreed that the visitor's centre needs a lot more pedestrian traffic than the current location near Harvey and Ellis.
