The change in the location of the visitor information centre in Keremeos has left many in the community concerned.
The Similkameen Country Development Association currently provides the info centre service and relocated to the Similkameen Recreation Centre after the March meeting of the Regional District of Okanagan Similkameen (RDOS) board of directors.
That meeting saw the service agreement between the two undergo significant changes, including additional stricter stipulations on where funds the RDOS provides go, and an overall reduction in how much the RDOS and the Village of Keremeos pay the SCDA to run the info centre.
Members of the public have voiced their discontent over the move on social media and at the Village of Keremeos' May 6 council meeting.
The loudest concern and one even echoed by some tourists who passed through the region and shared on social media, is the difficulty finding the new location for information.
Although the village's Mayor Jason Wiebe stated at the May 6 meeting, that any questions about the service agreement for the info centre should be directed to the RDOS, it was the village's decision not to renew the lease agreement for the info centre building at Memorial Park that is seen to have kicked off the debacle.
Two competing press releases about the issue have since been released by the SCDA and the Village of Keremeos.
Due to many of the discussions occurring within closed meetings, which aren't public under the Community Charter if there is anything to do with legal, labour relations or property negotiations, what information the two parties are able to share is limited.
What the two do seem to agree on are the following:
* That the decision not to renew the lease was made by the village's council during a closed meeting ahead of the lease's Dec. 31 expiration.
* That members of the SCDA attended the meeting and discussed the issue with council.
* That there was a follow-up conversation between the SCDA's vice-chair and Mayor Wiebe about a possible month-to-month lease.
* That following that conversation, the SCDA began to pack-up and remove their materials from the info centre ahead of the lease's expiration.
* That written confirmation of the village's decision was not provided to the SCDA prior to the lease expiring.
The SCDA is claiming that the council did not provide any clear support of the month-to-month extension, and the village is claiming that the SCDA began to remove items from the info cenre, before that suggestion could be considered by the full council.
The village's statement also states that during the closed meeting, the council said renewing the lease would be possible if the SCDA addressed certain concerns held by the village, or made an agreement with the village to address those concerns.
The exact issues the village has were not specified in the statement but are likely tied to the SCDA not being a federally registered board of trade, commonly known as a Chamber of Commerce.
The facility in question, on Seventh Avenue, was funded in part through the provincial government's Towns for Tomorrow program. A 2007 release announcing the funding stated the building, deemed a community resource centre, would provide visitor information centres, public washrooms, a community kitchen and a home for the local Chamber of Commerce.
The release from the SCDA ended by speaking on the topic of not being a Chamber, which up until recent years it advertised itself as. The SCDA reiterated that it is not a registered board of trade but it is an advocate for local businesses without requiring those businesses to pay exorbitant Chamber fees.
"We also feel it鈥檚 important to acknowledge the unique dynamics of small-town life, where individuals often wear multiple hats: as elected officials, business owners, non-profit leaders or volunteers," the SCDA wrote. "We recognize that speaking up on behalf of the local business community and raising concerns with local government can create discomfort."
The village noted in its statement that it plans to update the request for proposals the RDOS issues after the current service agreement for providing visitor information expires, to also include Chamber of Commerce services, and base those services out of the Seventh Avenue building.
As mentioned at the March 6 RDOS board meeting and repeated in the recent Village statement is that the RDOS has been asked to conduct a review of the service provided by the SCDA by the Village. On May 6, Wiebe said off-hand that the review could take up to 18 months.
The revised service agreement with the SCDA for the information centre is currently set to expire Dec. 31, 2027.
A delegation of members of the community is currently set to present and speak to the Village of Keremeos council at their June 2 meeting on the topic.
