Developers are looking closely at Summerland as a site for some significant projects.
Municipal planner Ian McIntosh said there has been a growing interest in the community over the past year, for more than simply building residential single family homes.
“People are asking questions,” McIntosh said. “They’re asking about projects of significance.”
McIntosh said the questions have been about projects including residential developments and commercial projects.
In August, developers and members of municipal council signed an agreement for the Wharton Street development, a proposed five-storey residential, commercial and institutional project to be built on Wharton Street between Kelly Avenue and Prairie Valley Road.
Before this large-scale project can proceed, the developers will first need a development permit and a building permit.
At the time, Randy Gibson, one of the developers, said the target for groundbreaking is February, 2013, with the first building completed early in 2014.
The project is worth between $90 and $120 million.
An earlier proposal for the property had attracted much attention when a developer had expressed interest in the site. At that time, an agreement was not signed and the plan expired in January, 2011.
Another site which has attracted some attention is on Lakeshore Drive.
In October, a bid was accepted on a former cannery building on Lakeshore Drive. Earlier, a plan had been in the works to put two eight-storey residential buildings, over a commercial and parking building, on the site.
At the time of the sale, McIntosh said he expected a new development proposal would come forward for this location.
Mayor Janice Perrino said the next proposal for the Lakeshore Drive site will likely be on a smaller scale, but will still contain a mix of residential and commercial spaces.