Residents of British Columbia’s first new municipality in 16 years will soon be voting for a mayor and council.
The B.C. government says Okanagan Falls residents will vote for a mayor and four councillors in the October local elections before becoming an municipality in November.
The government says it has issued the legal document, creating the District of Okanagan Falls, south of Penticton, B.C., and setting out key details, including its boundaries, council size and incorporation date.
Municipal Affairs Minister Christine Boyle said Wednesday that the announcement is an important milestone.
“Our government is committed to supporting a smooth and successful transition to local governance,” she said.
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The community with just under 2,300 people in British Columbia’s southern Interior voted to become a full municipality in March last year.
The Municipal Affairs Ministry said in a statement that it will assist incorporation with $1.8 million in funding to help pay for the election and other administrative costs.
The government said it will spend about $6.6 million in total to support the transition, which was done in close co-operation with the Osoyoos Indian Band.
The ministry says it will continue to work with the First Nation and the regional district, before and after the formal incorporation later this year.
The government says the area approved for incorporation lies within Osoyoos Indian Band territory and includes unresolved land claims going back to before Confederation.
The area also includes Osoyoos Indian Band’s historic Dog Lake Indian Reserve No. 2, which was created in 1877, alongside the nation’s permanent fishing village.
The statement from the ministry says that it will work with the new municipality to explore ways to recognize that history through local signage, but the final, legal name of the municipality is District of Okanagan Falls.
The province said it considered a dual English-Indigenous name for the municipality, one which retains “Okanagan Falls” as part of the name and recognizes the region’s shared history and future.
The Osoyoos Indian Band did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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