When Does Summerland Become Less Desirable?

The second question in the first workshop session was "At what stage does growth make Summerland a less desirable place to live?"

The combined answers from all the groups were:-

WHEN OR IF: -

• The small town feel is lost/There’s too many people/Town becomes less compact/Town gets larger
• There’s too many cars/Traffic congestion/Road safety declines
• The citizens no longer have a say in the growth of their town/The rate of growth is fast
• Air quality declines/Degraded environment/Loss of wildlife habitats
• The downtown becomes less viable
• Water restrictions or shortages occur/Water infrastructure becomes inadequate
• Housing costs are not affordable
• Building on hillsides/ Higher density housing which is ugly
• Undesirable development occurs – development should be pretty, green, use small amount of resources, be unique.
• Taxes become unreasonable and/or unaffordable
• "Kelowna-ization" occurs/Strip malls are constructed/Highway development occurs
• You can’t grow up and stay … or work and live in the same community
• Walkability is reduced/Walkways and bike trails are lost
• Loss of ALR, tourist campgrounds, post office, medical facilities,
• Loss of greenspace, especially downtown/Decline in ratio of green space area to residents
• When industrial land encroaches on green space
• Land use mix changes - higher industrial proportion