At its meeting on Monday, most city councillors agreed with a proposed crackdown on aggressive panhandling.
But over a two-and-a-half hour debate, Kelowna's buskers were the main sticking point.
Bylaw's changes would see only Festival Kelowna's licensed buskers able to perform, and only at 12 specific busk stops, when playing in the downtown core.
Those changes were approved by a 6-3 vote.
Councillor Brad Sieben voted against the proposal, saying that while he understood the rationale behind most of the decisions, it appeared that many in the public did not.
"Very much of this report is saying here's what we're going to do, but it doesn't say why. I think that's been a real void in this report. 155 complaints about buskers (from 2010-2017), I didn't know that until the question was posed. That's significant," he said.
"Does it mean you scrap the whole program? No, but what's the nature of it?"
Councillor Ryan Donn was opposed, and particularly outspoken on the issue.
He says council's vote to review the busker program rings hollow, citing an earlier presentation on changes to BC's Building Code.
"You don't consult after you pass a bylaw, you consult before. So I'll be voting against this, it's ridiculous," he said.
"You don't consult after the fact of a bylaw. We just put in an energy code, that's essentially going (to) consult for a year, but for the musicians - 'you know what, no, let's consult with you after we pass your rules.' It's ridiculous."
Mayor Colin Basran spoke in favour, saying the city will be following a path set by many other cities, many of which were voted as the country's most cultured.
"The top two cities on the list were Calgary and Victoria. Guess what, Calgary and Victoria have a buskers licensing or identification program. These are the most cultured cities in Canada," he said.
"Not to mention we've got Vancouver, Montreal, Banff, Fredricton, Toronto, Chilliwack - all of them have permits, or license, or application process for buskers, so that then they can work with a community and make it a great experience."
But council also voted to initiate a full review of the buskers program, and include reps from Festivals Kelowna and the local arts community.
The panhandling changes clarified places people can't be when asking for change, which include standing near banks, liquor stores, and street medians in the middle of traffic.
It also bans people from soliciting donations of recyclables in front of bottle depots.
Originally, bylaw was proposing to fine "Good Samaritans" who gave money to people begging in traffic, or bottles to people outside the depots.
Council voted to delay that decision, and put the fines on hold.