Summerland, British Columbia
Encyclopedia
Summerland is a community on the west side of Okanagan Lake
Okanagan Lake
Okanagan Lake is a large, deep lake in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia. The lake is 135 km long, between 4 and 5 km wide, and has a surface area of 351 km². The lake's maximum depth is 232 meters near Grant Island...
in the interior of British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The district is between Peachland
Peachland, British Columbia
Peachland is a district municipality of approximately 5000 residents in the Okanagan Valley, on the west side of Okanagan Lake in British Columbia, Canada. It was founded in 1899 by John Moore Robinson, although the region had long been home to the Okanagan people...
to the north and Penticton to the south. The largest centre in the region is Kelowna
Kelowna
Kelowna is a city on Okanagan Lake in the Okanagan Valley, in the southern interior of British Columbia, Canada. Its name derives from a Okanagan language term for "grizzly bear"...
, approximately 50 km to the north (via Highway 97), and Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
is approximately 425 km (264.1 mi) away to the west.
Electoral representatives
The current Mayor is Janice Perino.- The district's (2007 federal) Member of Parliament is Stockwell DayStockwell DayStockwell Burt Day, Jr., PC, MP is a former Canadian politician, and a member of the Conservative Party of Canada. He is a former cabinet minister in Alberta, and a former leader of the Canadian Alliance. Day was MP for the riding of Okanagan—Coquihalla in British Columbia and the president of...
, currently President of the Treasury Board and Minister for the Asia-Pacific Gateway in the Conservative Government of Stephen Harper. Its (provincial) Member of Legislative Assembly is Liberal cabinet minister; Bill BarisoffBill BarisoffBill Barisoff is a BC Liberal Member of the Legislative Assembly in the Province of British Columbia, Canada. Born in Oliver, he represents the riding of Penticton, which he has held since 1996, when he defeated former MLA Bill Barlee by a narrow margin....
.
History
In 2006, the District of Summerland celebrated its centennial as an incorporated municipality in 1906, yet the history of settlement in the Summerland area extends beyond that time. Summerland's first inhabitants were the Okanagan Salish with the Nation's boundaries extending from Kamloops to southern Washington State. The area known as "Nicola Prairie" was notably named after the Grand Chief Nicola.A published map of the Okanagan Valley in 1827 includes only three sites for the entire Okanagan Valley; Nicola Prairie; Lone Tree (north end of Summerland); and Sandy Cove (across the lake from present day Kelowna). Summerland's proud and diverse past includes hunting and fur trading, ranching, orchards and fruit industries, transportation hubs and more recently, tourism. Immigration to the Summerland area commenced in the late 1880's when the first settlers arrived and began diverting water to irrigate orchards. The first commercial orchard was planted in the 1890's in Trout Creek, where a water license was issued to irrigate 1,000 acres.
The first settlement identified on maps of the Okanagan Valley was Priest Encampment located on the shores of Garnett Lake. Later development began on the shores of Okanagan Lake. The upper benches continued to be an important transportation route and a number of small communities were constructed or were planned for development. They included Upper Trout Creek, Balcomo, the Prairie Valley Townsite, Mineola and Appledale. In 1892 Upper Trout Creek was established.
Summerland's former name was Trout Creek. In the 1890's George Barclay operated the largest cattle ranch in Trout Creek. In 1902 Sir Thomas Shaughnessy bought the Barclay Ranch and formed Summerland; incorporation was not completed until 1906. By the 1920's the present location of downtown Summerland was developed and the earlier areas on the upper benches were not utilized or forgotten. Downtown Summerland (Siwash Flat) was originally part of the Penticton Indian Reserve #3 (exchanged between 1904-06 following a mutually agreeable land deal). The subject lands eventually became known as West Summerland.
Present day Lower Town was the original town site of Summerland. In the early 1900's the Summerland Development Company with Sir Thomas Shaughnessy (President) and J.M. Robinson (Manager) primarily responsible for the initial decisions on its development. From the Company, the community received water, septic tanks, electricity, a post office, a school and a sawmill. Settlers from across the prairies, eastern Canada and England were drawn to the Summerland area.
By 1907, Summerland had access to Peachland and Penticton with a well-established road system, and a ferry service connecting the community with the eastern shore of Okanagan Lake (Naramata). West Summerland (present day Downtown Summerland) experienced increased importance also in part due to a 1922 fire which destroyed many of the lakeside buildings in Lower Town.
Geography
Summerland is located within the Thompson-Okanagan Plateau ecoregion. This is one of the warmest and driest ecoregions in Canada. It is characterized by rolling plateaus and major valley systems of the Okanagan, Thompson and Nicola rivers. The mean annual temperature of the major valleys is approximately 10°C with a summer mean of 21°C and a winter mean of -3.5°C; however, winter months are often very temperate and cold weather usually lasts no more than a few weeks, while summer months often see drought with high daytime and cool nighttime temperatures. In the summer of 2003, a severe drought nearly rendered the town's reservoir incapable of ensuring a water supply through to the beginning of the next annual replenishment cycle. Since then, awareness of the real need for water conservation measures has begun to be taken seriously, and permanent water use restrictions are now in place.The immediate ecosystem consists of grasslands in a matrix of bluebunch wheat grass and sagebrush amongst scattered Ponderosa pines. The region has a gently rolling surface covered mainly by glacial deposits. Summerland is home to an extinct volcano, known locally as Giant's Head Mountain - so-named for its gigantic facial profile as viewed from the southeast. This "hill" dominates the town's land features and provides an hour's hike to the top for an expansive view up and down the Okanagan Valley.
The range of representative wildlife around Summerland includes mule deer, Canada geese, California quail, ravens, coyotes, blue grouse, bald eagles, and black widow spiders. Back into the hills surrounding Summerland there live black bear, white-tailed deer, moose, cougars and bobcats, California big-horn sheep, mountain goats, and rattlesnakes.
Education
There are two Elementary Schools (Giants Head and Trout Creek), one Middle School (Summerland Middle), and one Secondary School (Summerland Secondary) which comprise Summerland's public school system. Summerland currently has one private school (a Montesorri school, after The Glenfir School shut down in March of 2011.Tourism
Summerland is popular because of its idyllic situation on Okanagan Lake and sandy beaches, a playground for three major Canadian population centres (VancouverVancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
, Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
). Both tourism and tourist attractions were once a major industry, but are quickly disappearing under pressure from residential subdivision developers. Agriculture, featuring fresh tree fruits (peaches, cherries, apples and pears), and canneries, were the economic engine of the region until the late 20th Century, when focus shifted away from tree fruits and over to grape production in support of the wine industry. Now, Summerland finds itself home to several world renowned wineries, and despite being in an arid desert climate, has several golf courses. Summerland is also home to the historic Kettle Valley Steam Railway
Kettle Valley Steam Railway
The Kettle Valley Steam Railway is a heritage railway near Summerland, British Columbia.The KVSR operates excursion trains over the only remaining section of the Kettle Valley Railway through beautiful vistas, orchards, vineyards, and over the tall Trout Creek Trestle. Trains depart at 10:30 and...
.
Contemporary issues
As in most of the Okanagan Valley, Summerland's real estate market is currently growing at an alarming rate. One contentious issue concerning the majority of long established residents is the town's ongoing loss of its "small town atmosphere" and its resulting affordability as rapid expansion proceeds in response to pressure from real estate developers wishing to build luxury housing and recreation playgrounds for, and then lure, still more retirees to Summerland. Among citizens' concerns are issues regarding appropriate allocation of limited water supplies, sustainable and responsible land use, escalating cost of living, steadily diminishing availability of affordable housing, impending tax increases in order to sponsor growth infrastructure costs, scarce good employment opportunities, and the soaring local cost of meeting the demands and special needs of an increasingly unbalanced age and economic demographic. Still, others believe that expansion should simply proceed in order to capitalize on current market trends and demands. Service industry jobs which should follow would bring great prosperity and thus provide benefits to the community into the immediate future. Any negative long term consequences would be for future generations to redress.Many local species, such as the Tiger Salamander, are now endangered due to the loss of habitat to expanding residential, recreational, and vineyard development. Other areas of environmental concern include the general deterioration in the quality of the Okanagan Valley's atmosphere due to population growth and subsequent increase in the number of vehicles as well as frequent advisories to boil water due to inconsistency in water quality at the source.