Westbank, British Columbia

This article is about the community in Canada. For the territory in the Middle East, see West Bank. For other uses, see West Bank (disambiguation).
Location of Westbank, British Columbia

Westbank is one of the communities within the City of West Kelowna in the province of British Columbia. It is 12 km to the west of Kelowna. Other communities in West Kelowna include Casa Loma, West Kelowna Estates, Shannon Lake, Smith Creek, Glenrosa, Rose Valley and Lakeview Heights. Westbank sits to the south of West Kelowna.

Westbank was for many years an unincorporated area within the Central Okanagan Regional District. In December 2007, following a governance referendum, it became a neighbourhood within what is now the City of West Kelowna. It has no legal borders since it is a neighbourhood and opinions vary as to exactly where Westbank begins and ends. As of January 2020, the City of West Kelowna has a total population of about 35,818.[1]

A post office was opened in 1902 and was named for its location on Okanagan Lake. The name was suggested by John Davidson who arrived in the district in 1892.[2]: 292 

Self-Government municipal regulatory powers have been given by treaty to the Westbank First Nation (WFN).[3][4] Westbank First Nation spans 5,340 acres of Reservation land, separated into five land parcels.[5]

Local attractions

The Westbank area has numerous orchards, wineries, golf courses, and is a twenty-minute drive from the former Crystal Mountain Ski Resort. To the south of Westbank are the towns of Peachland and Summerland, and the city of Penticton.

Recreation

There are three public beach accesses along Okanagan Lake.

There are four public launches into the Okanagan Lake.

References

  1. ^ "Population Estimates - Province of British Columbia".
  2. ^ Akrigg, G.P.V.; Akrigg, Helen B. (1986), British Columbia Place Names (3rd, 1997 ed.), Vancouver: UBC Press, ISBN 0-7748-0636-2
  3. ^ Incompleted, illiberal and Expensive: A Review of Treaty ... - Page 74 "In Westbank, a suburb of Kelowna, the Westbank self-government agreement gives such governmental powers to the Westbank Nation so that its few hundred members govern several thousand non-aboriginals (i.e., Canadian citizens) who ..."
  4. ^ "Agreement between Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada and Westbank First Nation".
  5. ^ "Westbank First Nation Government - Quick Facts".

49°49′45″N 119°37′45″W / 49.82917°N 119.62917°W / 49.82917; -119.62917