Kelowna - The 2023 Canadian City Parks Report

We’ve switched to biennial data gathering for the city profiles — The data available here was collected in early 2022 and originally published in last year’s Canadian City Parks Report.

City Profile

Kelowna

2022

British Columbia

Population: 144,576

Kelowna is above average for percentage of parkland that is natural area at 75%.
Kelowna is one of 67% of cities with a climate change action plan that includes parks.
Kelowna is one of 57% of cities that has a seniors strategy that includes parks.

Kelowna’s 2040 Official Community Plan includes a Reconciliation and Celebration of Indigenous Culture policy for parks, with a goal of including “spaces in parks that provide opportunities for reconciliation with Indigenous peoples of Canada, and celebrate Indigenous culture, particularly syilx/Okanagan culture.”
The city is collaborating with the Municipal Natural Assets Initiative to implement management practices that best integrate species-at-risk and critical habitat considerations within the city's parks and natural areas, using GIS tracking and monitoring.
The city is investing $31.1 million into developing new parks and public spaces, as well as improvements to existing parks. More than half of the funds are sourced from Parks Development Cost Charges, which are collected from land developers whenever a project increases density in the city.

8.8

ha of parks & green space / 1000 people

Total parks and green space

Total hectares of parkland and green space that is publicly accessible and owned, leased, or under a management agreement by the municipality. This number should capture all parks and green spaces that are perceived/used by residents similarly to parkland.

Specifically, it should include:

Actively managed parkland
Natural parkland/areas
Other municipally owned, managed, or leased open spaces that are used as public green space

Excludes:

Golf courses
School yards, if owned/maintained by the municipality
Active (open) cemeteries
Sports stadia
Parking lots
Institutional and other publicly owned green space
Other parks/green spaces that are not owned, managed or leased by the municipality (e.g. privately owned public spaces)

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1268 ha total

75%

of parkland is natural area

Natural parkland

A natural area is a green space which receives a relatively low level of maintenance and supports natural or naturalizing vegetation. Natural areas may be publicly accessible (e.g. via trail networks) or areas with limited/little public access.

Natural areas may include:

trails or walkways
washrooms
environmentally sensitive/protected areas
stormwater ponds/water bodies located within natural areas

Excludes:

parking lots
actively managed parkland

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949 ha total

25%

of parkland is actively managed

Actively managed parkland

Total hectares of parkland that is actively maintained by the municipality for community use. These parks often contain built and natural amenities such as: park furniture, planted trees/beds, sports fields, playgrounds, and mown grass.

Includes:

plazas and “grey” spaces used for public recreation, when maintained by the parks department
small ponds/water bodies located within actively managed park spaces

Excludes:

natural areas
hazard lands
school yards
active (open) cemeteries
golf courses
sports stadia
parking lots

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319 ha total

of total city land is parkland

21,777 ha of total city area

974

ha of institutional & other public green space

Dog parks

Off-leash dog areas

Includes both standalone dog parks and off-leash dog areas within parks.

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Community gardens/urban farms

Community gardens/urban farms are food-growing gardens available for the public to use that may require membership. This includes community orchards.

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Playgrounds

A playground refers to an area with purpose-built children’s playground equipment present, and may have just one single item of equipment or several items located together.

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Public washrooms

Total number of permanent public washrooms in parks that are open year-round or seasonally. Excludes portable toilets.

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6 winterized public washrooms

Mixed

Parkland provision goal (distance to park / ha per 1000 people)

Recreation Parks - serve 45,000 people within a radius of 5 km Community Parks - serve 12,000 people within 3 km Neighbourhood Parks - serve 2,000 people within 1 km

Parkland Map

View Kelowna’s parkland map

$96

Parks operating expenditures / person

Operating expenditures (actuals)

Direct operating expenditures (not including revenues) for 2021 for maintaining parks and natural areas. This number will be used with your current year population to understand operating budget spent per person.

Includes:

planting and maintenance of trees in park/natural areas
graffiti & vandalism repair
management, administration & operational staff salaries
consultant/contractor costs
parks horticultural plantings
maintenance of closed cemeteries if carried out from the parks operating budget
parks litter pickup & waste disposal
inspection and maintenance of splash pads, playgrounds & outdoor fitness equipment
maintenance & replacement of park furniture
public toilets where maintained from parks budget
sports field maintenance
snow clearing and ice control for parks & natural areas
any other parks/green space maintenance costs except cemetery costs where the cemetery is "active"

Excludes: golf courses, swimming pools, indoor recreation facilities/halls, forestry, and zoos.

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$13,823,500 total

$13,102,597

Parks capital expenditures

Capital expenditures (actuals)

Capital expenditure for all capital items related to land improvement works completed during the 2021 financial year.

It includes:

Both new and renewal work
Capital items carried forward from previous years
Salaries and wages for all staff involved in the design, planning and delivery of capital projects.

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$21,000

Total philanthropy/sponsorships

Total amount donated to the city through philanthropic sources or corporate sponsorship in 2021 to fund park-based projects.

Excludes:

general revenue generated by the city (e.g. through user fees, park bench dedication programs, etc.)
provincial/federal government grants

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2.7

Volunteers / 1000 people

Volunteers

Includes only volunteers who have worked directly with the municipality (not external organizations). Programming refers to publicly accessible activities and events (e.g., yoga classes, nature walks, park cleanups, farmer's markets, festivals, celebrations, etc.). Programming does not include any large commercial activities, such as a private party.

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385 total park volunteers