The district will take back the wheel of the houseboat information kiosk now that it’s been set adrift by the local chamber.
Council agreed to write a letter to the Sicamous and District Chamber of Commerce stating that if they’re not going to use the boat/information centre, the municipality will. This motion stemmed from another letter, from resident Amy Boutwell, in which she expresses her dismay that the boat is not once again being used as a visitor information centre this summer.
“We are known as the ‘Houseboat Capital of the World.’ Why is the houseboat not being used as a unique location for the information centre to promote this,” writes Boutwell.
Council also supported a reply being sent to Boutwell, explaining the decision not to use the houseboat kiosk this year is the chamber’s.
In April, council reviewed the district’s fee-for-service agreement with the chamber for the operation of the visitor information centre at the municipal hall, as well as the houseboat kiosk.
The chamber had offered three funding options, including one, for $50,000, that would have the chamber run the VIC year-round, and the houseboat kiosk from the May long-weekend to Labour Day. Council, however, opted for the least costly proposal: $37,000 to operate only the VIC.
Along with the proposals, the chamber provided statistics as to how the VIC and the houseboat kiosk were being utilized. These showed the number of people visiting kiosk had dropped by 60 per cent from the year prior, and that more people were stopping at the VIC.
Responding to Boutwell’s letter, Coun. Todd Kyllo noted the houseboat represents a big donation to the district, with a lot of money and infrastructure around it.
“If the chamber is not going to use it, then I think the district needs to use it for something,” said Kyllo. “I know before the chamber used it, they had advertising slats in there for people to put up. People could walk through and it would get locked up at night. Just to let it sit empty, I don’t agree with that.”