The second annual Walk the Beach, an event that promotes public access to Kelowna's waterfront, was a success this past weekend.
“We had about a hundred people,” says Walk Organizer Brenda Bachmann. “A lot of people learned about the beach, where they can walk, where they can’t, and what people do to block people from walking the beach. We actually had to go out onto the road on several occasions because people would’ve gotten wet while being along the foreshore.”
While public access to Okanagan Lake’s foreshore, the space between the high and low watermark, is permitted by provincial law, Bachmann has seen a number of different ways that homeowners try and keep people out, such as fences, hedges, and rock barriers, and that’s just a start.
“Last year we saw a dock where, as soon as you got close, sprinklers would turn on,” says Bachmann. “The homeowners said it was for birds, but I’m skeptical.”
Bachmann says the City hasn’t cracked down on these obstructions yet, but she plans on bringing it up with mayoral candidates for the upcoming municipal election.
“What we would really like to do is to have somebody from the City leaning on the province and letting them know that this is an issue here and we need somebody to assist with it.”
Bachmann says the City would benefit from receiving a natural resources officer, who could monitor and enforce the lakeshore to keep it safe and open for both homeowners and the public.