March 23, 2011

City of Kamloops

7 Victoria Street West

Kamloops, BC

V2C 1A2

Attention : Mayor and Council

Re: Official Community Plan Amendment and Zoning By-law Amendments

I write in opposition to the proposed amendment of Kamplan: A Community Plan for Kamloops 2004 and to the City of Kamloops Zoning By-law No. 5-1-2001. I have reviewed the Kamplan Document online and looked at the amount of time that was spent to establish the community plan starting in November of 2001 and continuing with consultations and public meetings until its adoption in May/June 2005. I respect the amount of time and consultation that was put into this document and think that amending it without the same amount of time and consultation is both shortsighted and disrespectful of the research that was done over those years.

I find it somewhat confusing that the stated vision is for strong and diverse neighbourhoods which encourage healthy and active lifestyles. In addition the comprehensive development plans for all new development areas are to address the need for schools, parks and community facilities. This amendment would seem to fly in the face of that vision by changing the land use definition from Parkland and Open Space to Urban.

In the Quality of Life Section IV, 1.12 Neighbourhood Parks section 1.12.4 states “ in areas where a substantial amount of infilling is anticipated neighbourhood park sites should be provided with priority for sites adjacent to existing park or school grounds.”

In my review of the Kamplan document the area identified as 697 Cowan Street would seem to meet the criteria as a priority neighbourhood park site. It is adjacent to South Kamloops Secondary School and it is within what I believe to be the Central Core described in the document as an area anticipated to have substantial infilling.

The area has been used in the 20+ years that I have lived in the neighbourhood by very young children and their parents, pre-teens as well as teens and a substantial number of adults. It has been used for any number of activities including tennis, road hockey, learning to ride tricycles and bicycles. I believe that it would be far better left as a park albeit with some improvements and or maintenance which has been lacking in the last few years.I have heard the area described as a “dilapidated tennis court” which I would not agree with, rather I would refer to it as a tennis court that could use some TLC but it is far from dilapidated. When I first moved to this neighbourhood I had young children and my children were the first new children on my street in a number of years, now my children are the older ones and the street has a new crop of young people. They all, young and old, have found their way to this recreation area and will sorely miss it if it is taken away from them.

Parkland and Greenspace are already vanishing commodities that we will never be able to get back and I believe that it is the responsibility of communities and governments to maintain these areas whenever possible.

Thank you for your consideration of this letter.

L. Kym Hoffman

648 Penzer Street

Kamloops, B.C. V2C 3G5