Today’s Council Meeting started with a Public Hearing regarding a zoning amendment for 230 Maple Street to allow for the operation of a Convenience Store at the service station which would allow the owner to provide coffee and refreshments to commercial vehicle drivers. The only person to question Council was Gord Redlack owner of Wine Country Doors who wanted to know if the amendment referred to the whole of the M1 Commercial Zone. He was advised that it did but only for Service Stations and that there was only one station in that area.
Joanne Bray and Lynn Thompson of the Oliver Lions Club spoke to Council in support of the 30th Annual Purina Walk for Dogs, Sunday May 31st in Lions Park. Coincidentally this day marks the 30 year anniversary of the original Sod Turning Ceremony for Lions Park. For those of you who have not attended this event, it’s a great opportunity to support funding for training ‘Service Dogs’ which are given free to Canadians with specific disabilities. Once trained, these guide dogs provide security and freedom for people with vision impairment, deafness, Autism, physical disabilities, potential for seizures or those who are in danger due to Type 1 Diabetes. This is a real group effort and there are prizes for those who raise $150, $500, $1,000 and $1,500. Regardless of whether or not you own a dog, come out and support this very worthy cause and meet some very nice dogs. And remember, there may be someone in our community who needs this type of aid. Registration will be at 11:45 am and the walk starts at 12:15.
Lori Motluk, Acute Health Services Administrator for the South Okanagan presented an update on the Interior Health Authority activities. A new $325 Million Patient Care Tower is planned for Penticton Regional Hospital. This facility will feature state of the art medical care for the South Okanagan and should be operational by 2019. Funding of $122 million will be provided by the Okanagan-Similkameen RHD and $20 million coming from the South Okanagan Similkameen Medical Foundation. Lori commented on a partnership with the new Okanagan Correctional Center situated in Senkulmen Business Park north of Oliver and also noted that our own SOGH has been a pioneer in using state of the art computerized patient record compilation. The writer has received advanced medical care at our hospital and can attest to the quality of treatment and the attention to a patient’s needs.
Betty Brown and Oliver Parks Manager Carol Sheridan were joined by Marie Goyet to give a presentation on the Healthy Communities Initiative and the Oliver Healthy Community Coalition. The focus is to work at the population level and create a healthy community environment and encourage community initiatives which support this aim. This is all about personal fitness and decreasing chronic diseases and the alarming trend of obesity in all age groups but especially young people. The presenters noted that in the not too distant future the age of mortality will drop significantly as we ‘do less’, ‘eat more’ and consume junk food. This becomes very evident when comparing pictures of the skinny Camp Vernon Cadets from the ‘forties’ with the young Cadets of today who have visible folds of flesh over their belts! The Oliver coalition is looking for an Oliver representative to sit on the Mental Health Advisory Committee.
The Oliver Fire Regulations Bylaw presently authorizes the Fire Chief to issue special permits for open burning of agricultural pruning on properties ½ Acre and larger. Because we now have a curb-side collection of yard waste and this waste is accepted at the land-fill free of charge, the minimum size has been increased to 2 Acres to ensure that only agricultural pruning will be burnt within Town boundaries. There will be a notice posted in the Oliver Chronicle prior to adoption of the amendment.