Plans to transform a parcel of land into a tiny home community for the homeless in Penticton, B.C., have been put on hold.
“I applaud council for listening,” said area resident Stacy Rempel.
The proposed site is along Dartmouth Road near Dartmouth Drive.
It’s largely an industrial area, with the Wiltse residential neighbourhood about a kilometre and a half away.
Concerned about what she calls the lack of public consultation, Rempel started an online petition, which garnered hundreds of names.
The public outcry led to city council choosing to delay a vote to issue a temporary use permit to get the project off the ground.
In a 5-1 vote, council instead deferred the decision to Dec. 2.
“I would like to you know spend a little more time with the people getting their opinion on this,” said city councillor Jason Reynen.
It was Oct. 24 when residents and businesses within 100 metres of the site were notified of the plans.
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“We got the letter at 4:30 on a Friday, you couldn’t even call city hall,” said Penny Otke. “We were completely blindsided by it.”
Otke owns a business right across the proposed site. She also lives above the shop.
“I’m very glad that they are delaying it and getting more input from the residents and businesses impacted in this area,” Otke said.
According to Penticton’s mayor, the city had to act fast.
“Should we have had a fuller consultation with the public, we would have liked to,” said Mayor Julius Bloomfield. “We were under time constraints, some serious time constraints.”
Those time constraints involve provincial funding which may no longer be available, putting the project in jeopardy.
“We had been advised by the provincial government that the funding may not be available on Dec. 2,” Bloomfield said. “So we run a risk of deferring because the funding may not exist anymore.”
B.’C. Housing Minister Christine Boyle confirmed the possibility, stating in an email to Global News, “If the City is not able to approve this temporary use permit, then we will have to explore re-allocating the funding to another community.”
Boyle went on to say “There are many communities that have asked for this program just like Penticton.”
Despite not knowing whether the funding will be available, the city plans on holding information sessions for residents between now and Dec. 2 on the tiny home project, which is part of the province’s Heart and Hearth initiative.
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