Ask the residents who live in the apartment complexes around the site of the new store Costco is proposing and you get a lot of negative responses. But there's a lot of support too with some relishing the chance to have the outlet just walking distance from home.
"I'm not impressed," said one woman. "Trying to get across here is a nightmare now."
She's referring to Baron Road which rounds a bend just before a crosswalk some area residents are afraid to use.
"This is not built for a big Costco," said another senior out walking, "because they're so busy."
"I don't like it. It's too close to my home," said yet another. But that's exactly why some can't wait for it to open.
"I could walk over and walk home," said one Costco fan out walking her dog.
And the strata council for Bristol Gardens, an apartment building that would overlook the new Costco is supporting the project.
"They put out a petition and a lot of people signed it," acknowledged one resident.
"Traffic and parking. Mainly traffic," stated Kelowna City Councillor Charlie Hodge. He said those issues will take centre stage in the online public hearing Tuesday.
"Every development we deal with, traffic is an issue," he said. The question is, will those issues be enough for city council to reject the proposal.
"How much of a concern is it safety-wise," he ponders, "and we have to weight it out and that's a difficult thing."
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