It was past midnight on Jan. 22 before Lake Country council decided to move forward a major development proposed by O鈥橰ourke Family Vineyard.
After five-and-a-half hours of public hearings and a regular meeting, council voted to give third reading to rezoning amendments for the Carrs Landing properties.
It was standing room only for the Tuesday (Jan. 21) public hearing, which also included a separate application for zoning changes to properties on Bottom Wood Lake Road. The regular meeting included items other than the O'Rourke application.
O鈥橰ourke vineyard borders Commonage, Carr鈥檚 Landing, and Barkley roads. It involves several lots and includes plans for an amphitheatre, food and liquor establishments, a retail store, a winery, a cidery, tourist accommodations, a children鈥檚 camp, and employee housing. The district has been working with the O鈥橰ourke family on zoning for the project for several years.
Michael Leitch, project manager, emphasized its potential to boost the local economy, noting the project will create jobs, bring in tourism, and benefit Lake Country residents.
Ex Nihilo Vineyards owner Jeff Harder echoed Leitch鈥檚 comments. 鈥淚鈥檝e traveled to a lot of other wine regions in the world, and there is nothing like this. They鈥檙e building to give back to the community,鈥� he said.
Brad Pelletier, Senior VP of Westbild, the parent company of Predator Ridge, called the project a transformational asset.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know of anywhere else in the province that鈥檚 seen this level of investment in this corridor - when you think of us, Sparkling Hills, the Okanagan Gondola 鈥� for tourism. People jump on airplanes for these things.鈥�
Barkley Rd. resident Tom Obradovich also supported the O鈥橰ourke鈥檚 plans. 鈥淵ou should be proud to have this facility in your community,鈥� he told council. 鈥淚 think the winery is world-class and second to none. You鈥檙e looking a gift horse in the mouth.鈥�
Not everyone shared the enthusiasm, however. Larry Hayes, who said he had supported the winery from the beginning, shared a different perspective.
鈥淎ll I鈥檓 hearing is the beautiful stuff about the winery,鈥� he said. 鈥淲ell, I can tell you that I鈥檓 on the other side of the tracks, where I鈥檝e got a gravel pit, a rock-crushing pit, and machinery with beepers going all day long.鈥�
Another Barkley Rd. resident, Edwin Blaschuk, expressed frustration over ongoing construction traffic and noise. He also raised concerns about wildfire risks, noting fires in 2017, 2023, and 2024 in Lake Country.
鈥淚 want to know how the O鈥橰ourke family is going to fight a fire. How are they going to evacuate 1,200 people and 500 cars?鈥�
Resident Terrance Day described the project as 鈥渆ver-changing鈥� and raised concerns about the potential impact of events that might be hosted on the property. He also noted that part of the project is already under construction and questioned whether the council has the authority to deny further rezoning.
鈥淚s there a legal basis for shutting this thing down at this stage?鈥� He noted the massive development will have a profound effect on Carrs Landing.
Before giving third reading to the rezoning changes, a motion was introduced to defer the application until questions raised during the public hearing could be addressed by staff. However, Mayor Blair Ireland pointed out that these questions were unrelated to land use鈥攖he specific matter council was voting on. The motion to defer was defeated.
