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New Museums boss at home
Okanagan Edge Staff - Mar 28, 2024 - People in Business

Photo: Contributed

Kelowna Museums Society has found its new executive director.

Jillian Povarchook is back in Kelowna after working at the Museum of Vancouver for 12 years, during which time she earned her master’s of museum education. She is a Kelowna native whose specialties are collections management, public programming and visitor experience.

“I am thrilled to bring these skills back to the city of my youth and lead KMS into an exciting new chapter, one in which we preserve and celebrate our community’s rich cultural heritage and explore the possibilities of its future,”  Povarchook said in a message to museum newsletter subscribers.

“Together with this dedicated team, I am committed to delivering engaging experiences and fostering a deeper connection with our visitors.”

Pushor Mitchell gets new look
Okanagan Edge Staff - Mar 28, 2024 - Biz Releases

Photo: Contributed

Pushor Mitchell LLP is busy celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, but it is also looking forward to the next half century.

The Kelowna law firm on Thursday revealed a new logo and a recommitment to serving its clients first.

“While the brand is new, our values of striving for excellence, supporting community, doing the right thing and putting people first remain core to Pushor Mitchell and its team of lawyers and staff,” managing partner Joni Metherell said in a press release.

“The firm will continue to provide and enhance its wide-ranging legal services across our many areas of practice.”

Pushor Mitchell is B.C.’s largest law firm outside Greater Vancouver and offers a variety of services across a wide range of practice areas for both individual and business clients, and files both big and small.

“In addition to providing trusted advice to clients, the firm has built lasting relationships with charitable, athletic and cultural organizations throughout the Okanagan, helping the community to thrive,” chief operating officer Kara James said.

“Pushor Mitchell is exceptionally proud of this work, and we look forward to continuing to support many of our incredible local community organizations throughout 2024.”

Plenty of wine still available
Sarah Crookall - Mar 28, 2024 - Biz Releases

South Okanagan wineries have started opening and expanding their tasting rooms for the season, eager to welcome visitors after a tough few months.

The harsh cold earlier this winter is expected to affect the majority of crops for the Okanagan wine industry this season, following the year prior’s pattern in damaging grapes.

But wineries are not out of stock for this spring.

“People can expect to see a full portfolio for our tasting menu,” Lakeside Cellars tasting room supervisor Angela Thorp said. “We have lots of wine available for all of our visitors to Osoyoos. We encourage people to support the wine industry, especially this year, just to get it out there that we really are open for business and wanting to support everybody and our community.”

Burrowing Owl Estate Winery’s vice president shared a similar sentiment, eager for people to taste the 2022 vintage.

“We’re just starting to bottle some of those 2022 reds now,” Kerri McNolty said. “So we’re looking forward to releasing some of those wines and sharing them with our guests this year.

“We have a good supply of wine on hand from the previous years that we look forward to sharing with our guests this summer.”

Following the mid-January cold snap, a report conducted by the wine industry projected wine grapes and production to be 97% to 99% lower than usual in 2024. The cold may have killed off almost all the buds.

The report said the financial damage for wineries and vineyards could be $346 million or as much as $445 million when costs from industry suppliers, logistics providers and distributors are included.

“We did see some reduced supply, and our grapes from the cold snap that we had in December of 2022. But luckily, we still had a good crop last year,” McNolty added.

“We definitely have had a challenging winter. And at the moment, we’re remaining cautiously optimistic, we’re not going to know the full impact of the winter we’ve had until we have bud-break in April.”

Many wineries are waiting until spring and summer to know whether they’ve only lost out on grapes for the most recent growing season or will need to entirely pull out their vines and replant.

Wineries are hoping add a little bit of extra to the industry by hosting new and different events.

“The wine tournament tourism industry is huge in Osoyoos. It brings in a lot of clientele and that’s why we are trying to add a little bit of extra to the industry this year,” Thorp said.

“We’re having all these events. So it makes us more like a community. We have people from our visitors coming or our hospitality guests as well as our locals.”

Lakeside Cellars will be hosting everything from candle making workshops to yoga, live music nights and floral workshops. The wine shops are hoping that tourism season kicks off earlier this year than before.

“Every year is an important year for BC wineries,” McNolty said. “I think that we are really fortunate that we have really loyal consumers in the BC wine industry and really loyal British Columbians who are really proud of the industry and really proud of the products and the services that we have to offer.

“We just hope that people will take the opportunity to come to the Okanagan and come and see what all of these fabulous wineries have to offer.”

New releases are expected to show up in wine shops throughout April and May.

Towne Theatre renos begin
Darren Handschuh - Mar 28, 2024 - Biz Releases

Photo: Darren Handschuh

Vernon’s historic Towne Theatre will be closed for several weeks as it undergoes more renovations.

Originally opened as a dance hall in 1929, the Towne Theatre—then called The Capitol—was converted to a cinema and opened its doors on Nov. 7, 1938, with the film Valley of the Giants.

For nearly a century the theatre has changed hands several times, and it has become a beloved institution.

At risk of closure in 2021, the community rallied to save the venue by raising money for the Okanagan Screen Arts Society to take over its management.

The society invested in renovations shortly after taking over and now, starting in April, more renos are planned.

Scott John, volunteer managing director for the theatre, said when the society took over, the long-term plan was to make the theatre a venue for live events.

A stage was installed, and now the society will be renovating the rest of the auditorium.

“We have already renovated the lobby and did a bunch of infrastructure stuff that is invisible to people, technology-wise, and now we are adding a bunch of infrastructure to the auditorium,” John said, adding there will also be cosmetic upgrades to the space.

John said in 2016 live acts in the downtown core was “actually identified as a gap in the Greater Vernon Cultural Plan.”

He said acts looking for a medium-sized venue would bypass Vernon in the past. But now the theatre is a viable option—the Towne holds more than 300 people—bringing more people to the downtown core.

The auditorium renovations will include lighting, a speaker system, replacing the acoustic system, the curtains and more. New technology will be installed to support a wider array of rental possibilities for live events.

The reno budget is around $200,000 and is being funded through the Regional District North Okanagan, a BC Gaming grant, BC Arts and Culture, and the society.

The theatre will close April 2 for the renovations that are expected to be completed by May 13.

Local Teamsters locked out
Rob Gibson - Mar 28, 2024 - Biz Releases

Photo: Rob Gibson

Employees at GFL Environmental’s Kelowna facility have been locked out as contract negotiations continue.

Unionized GFL employees are represented by the Teamsters Canada Local 213, which was informed March 21 they would be locked out, starting this week.

Teamsters spokesperson Rob Cook said this is the first agreement since local GFL employees joined the union, so they are trying to get it right.

“We’ve been in active negotiations with these guys for quite some time,” Cook said.

Cook said the membership rejected the company’s latest offer and is now manning the picket line in front of the GFL facility on McCarthy Road at the north edge of the city.

“We were very perplexed as to why we were served a lockout notice,” Cook said. “So it wasn’t by choice for us to go on strike. But we had no real options at that point.”

GFL Environmental has waste processing facilities and mobile field service operations across the province. They handle household hazardous waste that includes the collecting, processing and recycling of items like motor oil, mining waste, paints, solvents, pesticides and medical waste. GFL holds numerous other waste management contracts in B.C.

The company is headquartered in Ontario and is the fourth largest “diversified environmental services company in North America,” according to its website. It is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

Cook said the unionized GFL employees in Kelowna are looking for wages comparable to other environmental service companies.

“We very much appreciate all the support we’ve been given by people driving by and other Teamsters,” he said.

Cook said the union is in active negotiations with the company and it is actively trying to find a resolution.

Castanet reached out to GFL Environmental for comment and will update this story if a response is provided.

Uber Eats expands in Interior
Okanagan Edge Staff - Mar 27, 2024 - Biz Releases

Photo: Contributed

Uber Eats is now available in two more Thompson-Okanagan cities.

The online food ordering and delivery behemoth announced its arrival in 11 B.C. cities on Wednesday, including Lake Country and Salmon Arm.

That means residents there can now order delivery from their favourite restaurants, and they can also stock up on items like groceries, alcohol, pet supplies and more without leaving their homes.

To celebrate its arrival in Lake Country and Salmon Arm, Uber Eats is offering a special deal of $0 delivery fees in those cities for a limited time.

Uber Eats says 44% of Canadians have reported using delivery apps to order food and essential items.

Demolition signals project start
Wayne Moore - Mar 27, 2024 - Biz Releases

Construction crews have begun the process of demolishing a large portion of Dilworth Shopping Centre on Highway 97.

The demolition of the strip mall near the Leckie Road intersection has been expected for some time after more than a dozen businesses west of Staples were informed they had to be out by the end of July last year.

The termination of lease was issued after city council approved a redevelopment plan that would see construction of four six-storey residential buildings on that portion of the property. Council gave its approval in May 2022.

According to information from Peterson Group, which owns the property, it will take about three months to complete the demolition. The development project, along with 490 residential units, will also include about 15,000 square feet of commercial space.

According to Peterson Group the development will be built out in two phases. The first phase would include two buildings on the southwest portion of the property facing Highway 97. The second phase, including the final two buildings, would front Baron Road.

Rutland six-storey proposed
Wayne Moore - Mar 27, 2024 - Biz Releases

Image: Contributed

A new infill development is proposed for the Rutland area.

Developers have consolidated two properties at 375 and 395 Rutland Rd. on the corner with Mugford Road for a six-storey mixed-use project. They are seeking both rezoning and development permits.

The building just at the edge of the Rutland urban centre would include commercial tenants on the main floor and five floors of residential units. In all there would be 65 units, including eight studio, 50 one-bedroom and seven two-bedroom homes.

It would include two levels of underground parking and a total of 69 stalls, including 55 residential, eight visitor and six commercial spaces. An additional 70 short-term, long-term and commercial bicycle stalls would also be made available.

Individual balconies and a shared rooftop amenity space are also contemplated.

Staff will review the plans before city council is asked to weigh in on the plan.

New plans for old building
Wayne Moore - Mar 27, 2024 - Biz Releases

Image: McKinley Studios

Nearly three years after construction halted on the former Keg site at Lawrence Avenue and Water Street in downtown Kelowna, new plans for property have finally emerged.

Site owner Mark Anthony Group has submitted plans to the city for a 12-storey luxury boutique hotel.

Plans obtained by Castanet include a ground floor restaurant, rooftop lounge and 72-room hotel.

“Our vision is to create a dynamic space that serves as a beacon of the region’s hospitality, catering to both residents and visitors to the Okanagan Valley,” the project summary states.

“Featuring an iconic dining experience and rooftop lounge with access to breathtaking views, the hotel will become the ‘place to be’ reflecting the spirit and vibrancy of the Okanagan’s renowned wine country, bolstered by Mark Anthony Group’s deep culinary expertise.

“The design concept celebrates the existing heritage facade while introducing a fresh architectural language in a manner that is both sensitive and contemporary.”

The application concludes saying the site is “truly a landmark opportunity” that will continue to tell the story of the city’s past and future.

Original project

The original proposal approved by city council in 2020 included rezoning the property to a liquor primary/retail liquor sales zone to accommodate a wine bar, lounge, roof top deck, interpretive centre and tasting room, education centre and lab, and a wine shop. The total capacity was for 625 patrons.

The site was demolished except for the original brick facade built as part of the original building in 1910. However, in July 2021, construction abruptly stopped when they were unable to obtain a liquor licence from the province. The lack of activity at one of the city’s signature intersections has been a topic of discussion since then.

The application before the city would require an official community plan amendment to change the downtown building height map to the highest category, a setback and parking variance to co-ordinate with off-site valet parking.

Staff will review the proposal before it is forwarded to council for consideration.

Realtor returns from Nunavut
Okanagan Edge Staff - Mar 26, 2024 - People in Business

Photo: HM Commercial

From West Kelowna to Iqaluit and back again.

That basically sums up the journey for Geoffrey Oliver, who has joined Kelowna’s HM Commercial Realty as a commercial Realtor.

Oliver grew up on the Paynter Farm in West Kelowna and began his working career as a chartered accountant at Crowe MacKay in Vancouver. That led to a partnership with their Nunavut affiliate, Lester Landau, in Iqaluit, where he also worked as a director with the territorial government.

Oliver has also served as chief financial officer for Lift Auto Group, which means he is well versed in finance, tax, accounting, real estate, human resources, leadership and management, and strategic governance.

Since his return to the Okanagan, he has become a volunteer for Okanagan Chartered Professional Accountants and serves as a member of West Kelowna’s agricultural advisory committee.

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