Access to a popular Kelowna beach access point is about to get a major upgrade.
Kelowna council has endorsed a $115,000 proposal to further develop the Poplar Point #1 Beach Access adjacent to Knox Mountain Park.
The access trail leads to a secluded lakefront beachfront that is the site of Paul’s Tomb and also cliff jumping off the rocky Okanagan Lake shoreline.
But the access path and entrance is unsigned and ambitious, and the trail itself is in need of improvements, according to a city manager report.
The anticipated upgrade work would include improving the trail and pathway steps, clean-up of the pebble-rock beach, install a garbage can, and improve fencing and signage.
The property is located at 264 Poplar Point Dr., which has a pullout that allows four-spaces for parking.
The topography is such that the park area has vertical separation and vegetation screening between the beach waterfront and the nearest neighbours.
“The primary appeal of this beach access is its natural beauty, therefore the proposed work would be minimal so as not to interfere with this,” stated the report.
Further improvements to the park site, as with many parks awaiting development completion in the city, is awaiting funding from the city’s 10-year parks capital plan, but in the interim the city feels improving access, particularly for waterfront parkland, will assist with increasing public use.