Tuesday, October 14, 2014

What happened to Kelowna's KLO's Heritage 577 acres of ALR property? Developed into high rise towers!

On our many trips to Kelowna we've always taken it for granted that their 'KLO Road' sign was an acronym for ..... Kelowna Lake ..... Orchard??????.    Almost right on two out of four, not including 'Road'.

The answer is quite interesting when looking-back to the early 1900's where forward-looking community 'councils' saw the need to hold onto farmland long term for locally grown food.   Today's City Councils appears to be working hand in hand with developers and provincial politicians to bury prime Agriculture Land under highrise buildings and parking lots and at the same time, fine tune family home footprints into sprawling monster homes.   WARNING:  Drought in California Food prices to RISE, and Kelownians?? still turn a blind eye.

The answer? Council has gone for Higher property taxes through densification versus low taxation via ALR properties, so far.
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The meaning of:
KLO

In May, 1904, the Kelowna Land and Orchard Company purchased 6700 acres southeast of Kelowna for subdivision.  The company reserved 577 acres for its own agricultural operation.  The first fruit trees were planted in 1905 and by 1912 the orchard covered 200 acres.  - Kelowna - Self Guided Tours  1860 - 2007

Municipalities in British Columbia have been encouraged to keep track, hold onto, claw back their Heritage upbringing through the recognition of green spaces, street names and Buildings.  Another way would be to provide documentation (maps) showing the lay of the land back then, survey pins (GPS geocache) of exactly where the outer limits of the 6700 acres.  Is it either side of the KLO road?  More fun would be to discover Where the highly coveted 577 acres that were once reserved by the KLO Company?    Already trashed..... to make way for Condos?

The Long Green Line - hypothetical

There is a Heritage registry Website, which includes the Kelowna Land and Orchard Company Manager's Residence, sitting high upon the brow of the hill overlooking Okanagan Lake, and a logical explanation to the history of a three road intersection, complete with an original, antiquated, gas station with the massive in swinging Doors.



What is even more interesting is the Heritage site list of these other buildings: 

1 comment:

  1. please try to remember those developers realllly, really need to make all that money on condos and mega houses, so they can contribute to the political coffers of the b.c. lieberal party.

    Who cares if the country can't feed itself because its best agricultural land is under blacktop. Those on at the top of the "food chain" made their profits, the rest can starve.

    Half of Richmond went under black top yet most of the land was some of the most fertile in the world. Politicians simply have no vision. They can only see as far as the next election and future generations be dammed.

    the pioneering officials who set aside this land, originally better understood what happened when people couldn't grow food. the current crop of politicians need to be sent to have a real good look around at areas in the world, where water no longer is available. Entire civilizations have fallen once the water disappeared. If they don't get it now, the voters better find politicians who do.

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