Canada's other half

[Stryker]

Originally Posted by Architype

Why is this thread all about Universities, when it's supposed to be about something else?

honestly it baffles me, I started the thread and it seems like its gone well beyond the bounds.


Who know though, I had no idea where this thread might end up.

[Hali87]

Originally Posted by 240glt

So yes, Vernon does have a lot of that stuff. No Bentley dealerships though. But Bentleys are terrible, unreliable cars for pretentious people with too much money who want to look more important than they really are, so I don't think many will care about that

I find Vernon (and also Kamloops) to feel a bit more urbane and interesting than Kelowna, which I find kind feels kind of artificial and resort-towny. The combined population of Vernon-Kelowna-Penticton is enough to support a lot more than an isolated town/city the size of Vernon without any of the other nearby cities. I get the impression this corridor has a higher level of wealth and more retirees than the Canadian average, so that also helps to support things like cultural institutions and leisure activities such as golf and skiing/snowboarding (the latter of which I can vouch for - some of the best mountains in Canada for winter sports are clustered around the Okanagan Valley).

[ssiguy]

The Okanagan has a far amount of wealthy Albertans or tourists as many condos are time-shares which are strictly the domain of the wealthy but the city's themselves are anything but. Kelowna is a decidedly poor city when it comes to wages and moving the Okanagan means having to pay the "sun tax". An expression in Vancouver and The Coast which means moving to the Okanagan for the sun will cost you in low wages. This is from Vancouver which isn't exactly a high income city to begin with.

Kelowna is a drab uninteresting, and boring retirement village that thinks strip malls is good urban planning. A soulless place that just happens to have a beautiful setting.
I really like Vernon and Penticton but Kelowna has a well deserved reputation as big suburban sprawling bible thumping mess.

Kamloops on the other hand is kind of a cool little place and seems like more of a real city than Kelowna will ever be. Nanaimo of course is a great little place with a very nice downtown and funky, laidback populace.

[BretttheRiderFan]

Describing Kelowna as "decidedly poor" may be stretching the truth a bit.

[240glt]

^ While there may be a lot of money in Kelowna it is hardly a rich city.. most summer tourists won't see that though

http://www.city-data.com/canada/Kelo...ty-income.html

Once you get past the vacation homes, beaches, wineries and golf courses, the average resident doesn't generate all that much income

[MolsonExport]

I lived in Kelowna (early 90s). Rutland sucked. Parts of nearby Winfield, even more so.

[BretttheRiderFan]

Not being a "rich city" does not make a city "decidedly poor".

[240glt]

^ you're missing the point completely I thnk

[BretttheRiderFan]

Not really sure what the point is honestly. Kelowna is slightly below the provincial average as far as incomes go.

Does that make it poor? No.

Maybe from a warped Albertan point of view.

Then again, there are people who live in Grande Prairie who tell me Edmonton is "poor". It's all about perspective I guess.

[240glt]

Umm.. I grew up in the North Okanagan. I am intimately familiar with the area

It is not destitute poor.. but it is economicaly depressed. Don't believe me ? Go try and find a quality, good paying job there. Or talk to some of the many 20-somethings, find how they're doing there.

I'm moving back in 10-12 years, but by then I'll be semi-retired. I can't wait to go back, but I'd never go back if I had to rely on a full time income to survive

[BretttheRiderFan]

Economically depressed is also a very "Albertan" way of describing the area...this seems to be a pretty common way of describing most regions of BC among the Alberta diaspora though. In reality when you look at the numbers, Kelowna is slightly below average. Sure, there are plenty of good paying jobs there, but it's not comparable to what exists here. I just personally find describing Kelowna as "poor" or "economically depressed" a bit over the top.

[240glt]

Maybe the BC expats in Alberta know a thing or two more about the economic conditions of the area than those whose experience there is limited to summer holidays or a ski trip

I am not running down the area.. But there is a reality there that many are not aware of or have had little exposure to

[BretttheRiderFan]

I love how you assume to know the extent of my knowledge about the Okanagan and Kelowna.

Perhaps a lot of BC expats have an overly negative perception of their home without actually examining the statistics behind the statements they make?

[240glt]

Ok.. Then what is your exposure to the area ?

For me, it's 20 years of living there, dozens of friends living there since I left, parents still living in my childhood home, and about 4-6 trips back a year. That's what I base my comments on.

You ?

[BretttheRiderFan]

Well, I do have quite a bit of family in the area and have spent a lot of time there.

However, that's not really factoring into my comments that the city isn't "poor" or "economically depressed".

Statistics are.

[240glt]

Come on now. We both know that statistics are only but one measure and there are plenty of other factors to consider

Those stats I posted are but a snapshot. Statistics can be construed in may different ways

I'd say I have a much more intimate knowledge of the area, based on what I'm reading

[BretttheRiderFan]

Anecdotal evidence isn't nearly as effective a tool of examining the incomes of people in an area as actually looking at the incomes of people in an area though.

[BretttheRiderFan]

In any case I'll drop it since my real issue was just with the language chosen. Not going to go too far defending Kelowna or the Okanagan.

[isaidso]

Is that area around Mission really as poor as the data indicates. Income levels always seem to be substantially below the BC average.

[240glt]

Originally Posted by BretttheRiderFan

Anecdotal evidence isn't nearly as effective a tool of examining the incomes of people in an area as actually looking at the incomes of people in an area though.

In this case I'd say first hand experience goes much further than reviewing statistics on the internet does