In the spring, David Askew, owner of Askew’s Foods, and I prepared a document proposing the city-owned Ross Street parking lot be redeveloped into mixed use, including commercial and housing.
This was before we knew the city was putting forward an application to remove 118 acres of agricultural land from the Agricultural Land Reserve land near Piccadilly Mall.
We now see our proposal as more pressing than ever. Should this ALR application succeed, the focus needs to be placed on strengthening the downtown immediately.
Also, we have learned that community groups in the past have proposed that the city owned field behind the school district office by Centenoka Mall be sold. This is also a prime site for a larger scale, mixed-use development and would benefit the downtown as it’s within walking distance.
The city heard through the official community plan (OCP) input sessions that Salmon Arm community members want smart growth: this is what smart growth looks like, not sprawling development on agricultural land.
Salmon Arm’s public recreational facilities are in desperate need of an upgrade and the city currently doesn’t have the funding to make improvements. Instead of subsidizing free parking downtown on land assessed at over $8 million, we believe the city should sell the land for high-density residential and commercial use. By owning these sites, the city is making a choice not to monetize their assets and are getting no return on them.
Mayor and council talk about running Salmon Arm like a business, the city is desperate for funds and it has these valuable properties that are being underutilized. While a free parking lot may be seen to support the downtown, it’s actually very limiting as it’s taking one of the best locations for new commercial and high-density residential.
We were told by the city that they didn’t include our proposal in the draft OCP because they didn’t see significant public support, but where is the public support for this ALR exclusion application?
Claire Askew
