B.C. to get 1st new municipality in 15 years as Okanagan Falls residents vote to incorporate
Residents of community south of Penticton narrowly vote to incorporate, preliminary results show
The residents of Okanagan Falls, B.C., have narrowly voted in favour of creating a new municipality to represent the community in the southern Interior, preliminary referendum results on Saturday show.
Okanagan Falls, located approximately 60 kilometres south of Kelowna and 260 km east of Vancouver, dubs itself the "heart of wine country" and is home to around 2,700 residents.
Of them, 1,100 voted in the referendum, with 53 per cent in favour of incorporation, according to initial results.
The area is currently part of the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen (RDOS), one of 27 regional governments in B.C. that co-ordinate services like sewage and regional parks, and where elected directors represent sparsely-populated areas.
With a successful vote to incorporate, pending official confirmation on Wednesday, Okanagan Falls will eventually become B.C.'s 162nd municipality, and have an elected mayor and council to represent it.
Matt Taylor, the regional district director for Area D — which includes Okanagan Falls — was in favour of incorporation, and said he was very pleased for the community.
"It's been a difficult decision, but it's made now," he told CBC News. "I would really like to extend my thanks to everyone for participating in this decision, because it's such an important milestone in the community's history."
The preliminary referendum results show that of the 1,100 people who voted, 588 were in favour of incorporation, while 512 were opposed.
Taylor says that the ball is now in the court of the Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs, and the province will provide the community with its next steps by the end of next week.
"Those next steps, they are determined in large part by the province," he said. "We respectfully have to wait, and they've guided us well through the process so far."
In a statement, Municipal Affairs Minister Ravi Kahlon said it had been 15 years since B.C.'s most recent municipality was incorporated, which was Sun Peaks.
"Over the coming months, the province looks forward to working with the regional district, the Osoyoos Indian Band and community representatives to continue to advance the transition of Okanagan Falls to municipal governance," he said.
"There are many issues that will need to be considered as we work towards this transition."
Incorporation floated in 1974
Taylor says the idea of incorporation has been around in the community as far back as 1974, and multiple feasibility studies have been conducted on the topic in the past.
In 1989, 76 per cent of voters rejected the idea of incorporation, with the RDOS saying in a 2023 document that the key concerns for voters at the time were around the costs of incorporation, given the new municipality would be responsible for its own roads and administration.
Taylor says future leaders in Okanagan Falls will have to be mindful of people who are worried about municipal finances, overspending and ballooning budgets.
"The council that comes in needs to demonstrate their fiscal responsibility," he said. "And I think, as well, there's concerns about growth and wanting to maintain the character of the community.
"We want to be careful and not just pursue any and every opportunity for growth and development."
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