Orchard EstatesThe September Vote

Orchard Estates · Strata KAS1686 · Kelowna

The special meeting is approved.

This September, owners vote on two of the building rules we have questioned for years. A number of owners signed a formal request to bring them to a vote.

There are two separate questions. You can support either one, both, or neither.

One small dog, or one cat One electric barbecue

The exact date will come in council's official notice. Watch your mail and the mailroom board.

Why we're doing this

Why we're bringing this to a vote

For a long time this building has said no to dogs and cats and no to any barbecue. The pet ban has been on the books for close to thirty years, and the barbecue ban came later. A lot has changed since then.

A number of owners felt it was time to let owners decide this ourselves, instead of having it settled for us. So rather than argue about it, we used the proper process in the Strata Property Act to put it to a fair vote. That's all this is. A calm, by-the-book chance for owners to weigh in.

It isn't about forcing anything on anyone. There are two separate questions, you decide each one on its own, and the building lives with whatever owners choose. If you're happy with the rules exactly as they are, you can vote that way. This just makes sure the decision is actually ours to make.

  1. The rules have stood for years. A ban on dogs and cats, and on any barbecue, largely unchanged for decades.
  2. A number of owners signed a formal request. Using Section 43 of the Strata Property Act, owners asked for a proper vote.
  3. A special meeting was approved. Owners vote this September, and each question needs a 3/4 vote to pass.
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On the ballot

Two questions. Two separate votes.

Here is exactly what is on the table, and each question is voted on its own.

Question 1 · Pets

One small pet per home

  • One dog no taller than 14 inches at the shoulder, or one cat.
  • Visiting pets are welcome, and you can pet-sit for up to 14 days.
  • Every current rule stays: leashes, cleanup, noise, damage, and removal if a pet becomes a problem.
  • Registration includes a vet's confirmation of a dog's height.
This is stricter than BC's own standard. The provincial default already allows one dog or one cat with no size limit at all.
Question 2 · Barbecue

One electric barbecue

  • One CSA-approved electric barbecue on your balcony or patio.
  • Clearance from walls and overhangs, kept clean, never left unattended.
  • A fire extinguisher kept within reach.
  • Council can pause use during a fire ban or an insurance change.
Gas, propane, charcoal and wood all stay banned. This is only about a plug-in electric grill, and nothing with an open flame.
Read the exact wording of both resolutions

This is the exact wording owners signed and will vote on. The bylaw numbers below follow the updated bylaw schedule proposed for the August meeting. If that schedule is not adopted, the same changes apply to the current bylaws (pets under Bylaws 3(3) to 3(6), barbecues under Bylaw 3(7)), and the strata's lawyer conforms the numbering without changing the substance.

Resolution 1 · Resident pets, visiting pets and temporary care

BE IT RESOLVED by a 3/4 vote that The Owners, Strata Plan KAS 1686 amend the bylaws as follows:

1. Bylaw 4(1) is amended by adding the following paragraph:(c) either one dog that does not exceed 14 inches (35.5 centimetres) in height at the shoulder when fully grown, or one domestic cat.

2. Bylaw 4(2) is deleted and replaced with the following:(2) A resident may permit a visitor to bring one dog or one cat into the resident's strata lot, and may care for one dog or one cat belonging to another person for up to 14 consecutive days in any 60 day period. A dog under this subsection is subject to the same height limit as Bylaw 4(1)(c). An animal present under this subsection is subject to Bylaws 4(3) through 4(9) and to Bylaw 4(11), must be registered under Bylaw 4(10) if it remains more than 7 consecutive days, and remains the responsibility of the resident as if it were the resident's own animal.

3. Bylaw 4 is amended by adding the following subsections:(10) Before bringing a dog or cat onto the property, the resident must register it with the strata corporation by providing the resident's name and strata lot number, the animal's name, species, age and physical description, a current Regional District of Central Okanagan licence number in the case of a dog, written confirmation from a veterinarian of the dog's height at the shoulder or, for a dog not yet fully grown, its expected adult height, and an emergency caregiver contact. Registration is a matter of providing the information listed above rather than council approval.(11) On common property, limited common property or land that is a common asset, a dog must be on a fixed leash no longer than 2 metres and under the immediate control of a competent person, and a cat must be in a secure carrier. A resident animal may pass through common property only for direct entry and exit, and must not be left unattended or tethered on common property, a balcony or a patio.(12) Bylaw 4 does not apply to the extent that it conflicts with the Strata Property Act, the Guide Dog and Service Dog Act, the Human Rights Code or any other enactment. Council must consider any disability related accommodation request individually and confidentially, to the point of undue hardship.

4. Bylaws 4(3) through 4(9) are unchanged. The existing exotic animal prohibition and the control, cleanup, liability, nuisance, noise and removal provisions continue to apply in full.

5. The strata council shall register this amendment in the Land Title Office. Any two members of council may execute the documents required to register it.

Resolution 2 · Exterior cooking

BE IT RESOLVED by a 3/4 vote that The Owners, Strata Plan KAS 1686 amend the bylaws by deleting Bylaw 3(10) and replacing it with the following:

(10)(a) A resident may use one CSA approved electric barbecue on a balcony, patio or area of limited common property designated for the exclusive use of that strata lot, provided the use is permitted by law and by the strata corporation's insurance policy.(b) The appliance must be used outdoors in a well ventilated location, on a stable non combustible surface, and in accordance with all manufacturer clearances from walls, windows, doors, overhangs and combustible material.(c) The appliance must be kept clean and in good repair, must not be left unattended while energised or hot, and a suitable fire extinguisher must be immediately accessible.(d) Gas, propane, charcoal, wood and pellet appliances, deep fryers, fire tables and other open flame devices remain prohibited unless owners later approve a bylaw expressly permitting them.(e) Council may suspend exterior cooking during a fire ban, emergency, unsafe condition or material change in the strata corporation's insurance, and may make reasonable rules for safe use consistent with this bylaw.(f) This bylaw does not prevent a function approved by council on the main front deck.(g) A resident is responsible for the strata corporation's reasonable actual costs arising from a proven contravention, subject to the Strata Property Act.

The strata council shall register this amendment in the Land Title Office. Any two members of council may execute the documents required to register it.

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Why it matters

This touches every owner, pet or no pet.

You do not need to want a dog for these rules to affect you. Here is where it shows up.

When you go to sell or rent

A buyer without a pet can still buy here. A buyer with a dog cannot even book a showing. Allowing one small pet turns nobody away. A total ban turns away everyone who has one, before they ever walk through the door.

When family comes to visit

The current ban also blocks visiting pets. That means the grandkids' dog has to stay in the car, and you cannot pet-sit for a friend for a weekend, even if you will never own a pet yourself.

Getting to know your neighbours

A dog on a leash in the yard is how neighbours end up talking. People who walk a pet are outside and moving every day, and they tend to get to know each other. In a quiet building, that is a good thing.

The yard we already pay for

We have a large private fenced yard that almost nobody uses. The parkade door locks behind you, and the side gate only opens one way, out. A simple change to the front-gate lock would turn space we already pay for into a real amenity, and a safe place to let a small dog out.

The fenced side yard running along the building toward the front. The back corner of the yard with the bench under tall pine trees.
From the side of the building around to the quiet back corner.
The back-left corner of the yard with the bench and ornamental grasses. The lawn running along the whole back of the building to the far corner.
The back of the yard, from the corner all the way across to the far end.
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The facts

Only numbers we can stand behind.

Every chart below links to its original source. If we could not source it, it is not on this page.

Pets are mainstream in Canada

More than half of Canadian adults own a pet. Among owners, dogs and cats are close.

Canadian adults who own a pet56%
Of owners: have a dog62%
Of owners: have a cat53%
Source: Canadian Food Inspection Agency / Ekos Research, 2023 national survey (n=2,076). View source

Cats actually outnumber dogs

A cat is one of the two options in this proposal. Nationally, cats are the more common pet.

Pet cats in Canada8.2 million
Pet dogs in Canada7.2 million
Source: Canadian Animal Health Institute, 2024 pet population survey. View source

Close to home

Even here in Kelowna, dog ownership is common.

Kelowna residents who own a dog38%
Source: City of Kelowna resident survey, 2016 (n=386). Local, but a decade old. View source

Why electric, and only electric

In residential grill fires, the fuel makes the difference. We are only asking for electric. Every kind of flame stays banned.

Gas fuel79%
Charcoal or other solid fuel18%
Electricunder 2%
Share of residential grill fires by power source. Source: U.S. Fire Administration (FEMA), Grill Fires on Residential Properties. More than three in four are gas-fuelled, and propane hose leaks are the leading cause (NFPA). View source

What actually drives strata insurance costs

A common worry is that pets push up our insurance. The provincial review that looked at what drives BC strata premiums does not list pets at all. The big cost is water.

Water damage, share of BC strata claim costsabout 46%
Pets listed as a cost drivernot listed
Source: BC Financial Services Authority, "Strengthening Foundations: A Report on the State of Strata Property Insurance in British Columbia," 2020. Pet liability sits on the owner's own policy, not the building's. View source

One thing you will not find here: a promise that pets raise your unit's value by some percentage. No Canadian study proves a number like that, so we will not pretend one exists. What we can say plainly is the buyer-pool point above: a ban only ever subtracts buyers, it never adds any.

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Ron's story

A real lost sale, right here.

“I had a buyer ready to go. They walked away for one reason: they had a pet, and our rules said no. They told me they would have bought if the rule changed.”

Ron GouldOwner, Unit 201, Orchard Estates

That is not a statistic from somewhere else. That is a sale lost in our own building, over the exact rule we are voting on. Ron has offered to stand up and tell the story himself at the meeting.

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Research library

Check any of it yourself.

Here are the original sources behind this page, each with a plain note on what it says. Every link opens the real document.

BC's standard pet bylaw

The province's own default allows one dog or one cat, with no size limit. Our proposal is stricter than this.

Government of British Columbia

Strata Property Act, section 123

Pets already living here are grandfathered in, and guide and service dogs are always allowed, whatever a bylaw says.

BC Laws (Queen's Printer)

Canadian pet ownership, 2023

56% of Canadian adults own a pet. Among owners, 62% have a dog and 53% have a cat.

Canadian Food Inspection Agency / Ekos Research

Canada's pet population, 2024

8.2 million pet cats and 7.2 million pet dogs. Cats are the more common pet nationally.

Canadian Animal Health Institute

City of Kelowna dog study, 2016

38% of Kelowna residents surveyed owned a dog. A local number, though now a decade old.

City of Kelowna (NRG Research)

BC strata insurance review, 2020

Water damage is about 46% of strata claim costs. Pets are not listed as a cost driver.

BC Financial Services Authority

BH v Creekside Estates, 2016 BCHRT 100

A BC tribunal upheld a 14-inch-at-the-shoulder dog limit at a Vernon strata. The same limit we are proposing.

BC Human Rights Tribunal (via CanLII)

Grill fires by fuel type

Gas fuels account for nearly four in five residential grill fires. Electric grills account for under 2%.

U.S. Fire Administration (FEMA)

The leading cause of grill fires

Propane hose leaks and breaks are the leading factor in gas grill fires. Electric has no propane and no flame.

NFPA (via CT State Fire Prevention)

Electric barbecues on balconies

A BC fire service confirms electric barbecues can be used on an apartment balcony, and a strata may ban propane while allowing them.

City of Pitt Meadows Fire and Rescue

How much damage do pets really cause

In a review of tenancy decisions, pet damage was less than the deposit already held in more than 82% of cases.

First United

Barbecue fires in BC

BC recorded 55 barbecue fires in 2021. Safe use, clearances and supervision are what the proposal builds in.

Technical Safety BC

About this building

Your building's bylaws are public. Once they are filed, they are registered with the Land Title Office, and anyone can order the current registered set.

The official meeting notice, with the exact resolution wording and the date, comes from the strata council through Associated Property Management. Watch for it in your mail and on the mailroom board. Owners can also request the building's own records, like past minutes and financial statements, through the council or the property manager.

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Questions and answers

The things owners keep asking.

Plain answers to the questions that come up at the door. The same answers Rusty gives below.

Will this allow big dogs?

No. One dog no taller than 14 inches at the shoulder, or one cat. That is stricter than BC's own standard, which allows a dog of any size.

Is 14 inches an arbitrary line?

It is an objective line a vet can measure, and a BC tribunal has already upheld a 14-inch limit at a Vernon strata (BH v Creekside Estates, 2016 BCHRT 100).

What if I already have a pet?

BC law grandfathers pets already living here before a bylaw passes (Strata Property Act, section 123). They can stay.

What about service dogs?

Service dogs and guide dogs are always allowed by law, no matter what a bylaw says (section 123).

Will our insurance go up?

No published BC source lists pets as a strata insurance cost driver. What drives premiums is water damage, about 46% of claim costs, and catastrophe risk (BCFSA 2020). Pet liability sits on the owner's own policy, not the building's.

Won't pets cause damage?

All the leash, cleanup, damage, noise and removal rules stay exactly as written. And a BC review found pet damage was less than the deposit already held in more than 82% of cases.

What about barbecue smoke or fire?

We are only asking for electric, which removes the propane cylinder and the open flame. More than three in four grill fires are gas. Gas, propane, charcoal and wood all stay banned.

Can I still rent my unit long-term?

Yes. Long-term rentals are allowed, you just file a Form K, and BC law protects them. Only short-term vacation rentals like Airbnb and VRBO are banned in the bylaw rewrite.

Does allowing pets raise my property value?

We will not promise a number, because no Canadian study proves one. What we do know is simpler: a total ban turns away every buyer who has a pet, before they even book a showing.

Do I have to vote yes?

No. They are two separate votes, and you can support either one, both, or neither. This just means owners get to decide it properly.

When is the meeting?

A special general meeting this September. The exact date will come in council's official notice. Each item needs a 3/4 vote to pass.

Who is behind this?

A number of owners signed a formal request to bring it to a vote. Questions can go to Andy Parker, Unit 102, 780-838-2268.

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Ask Rusty

Have a question? Rusty's got answers.

Type a word or tap a question, and Rusty shows you the answer we have already written and checked.

A quick note: Rusty is not a chatbot, and he does not make anything up. Every answer here was written by owners and checked against the sources in the research library. He only shows what has already been approved.
Rusty didn't find a match for that word. Try another, or scroll the FAQ above.
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The meeting, and how to help

Your vote is the whole thing.

  • A special general meeting this September. The exact date comes in council's official notice, so watch your mail and the mailroom board.
  • Each question needs a 3/4 vote to pass. The two are counted separately, so support either one, both, or neither.
  • Cannot make it in person? You can assign a proxy so your vote still counts. If you want a hand setting one up, just ask.

Talk it through

Have a question, or want to see the exact wording? Reach out any time.

Andy Parker
Unit 102

Happy to get on a call.

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