Kelowna, BC
City in British Columbia
Canada
Kelowna, BC boosts response to winter needs of homeless residents with thermal shelter pilot
City officials acquired 27 portable, insulated shelters for this first-in-Canada pilot. Partner organizations distribute the shelters to unhoused residents during periods of extreme cold weather. Each shelter uses the body heat of its inhabitants to increase temperatures by up to 18 degrees Celsius. Recipients set up shelters in a designated outdoor area and return the shelters for distribution during future weather emergencies.
Kelowna, BC
Canada
Kelowna, BC improves responses to snow removal issues with its Snowbot and update tool
Snowbot provides estimates of snow and ice removal timelines based on user addresses. This feature is housed within the existing chat service and accessible from any city webpage. A planned Snowbot update will support resident requests for removal services. Kelowna offers updates on current removal priorities within its four-tier scheme on its snow removal page. The city also encouraged resident interest in snow removal practices with a naming contest for its new snow blower.
Kelowna, BC
Canada
Kelowna, BC develops culturally appropriate recovery services with Indigenous Harm Reduction pilot
The knknxtəwix̌ - We Walk Hand in Hand - program received CAD 662,433 from the national Substance Use and Addictions Program. This two-year pilot recruits Indigenous community members with substance use experiences as peer navigators. These trained mentors work with social work clients of similar backgrounds on harm reduction techniques. Kelowna will also develop a mobile Indigenous Harm Reduction Team and a decolonizing substance use day program.
Kelowna, BC
Canada
Kelowna, BC collaborates with Microsoft on a monitoring platform for regional flood threats
City officials pursued a method for predicting overflows of waterways like Mission Creek during seasonal melts and storms. The partnership resulted in a platform built with Azure IoT Hub and Azure Stream Analytics. Historical data in 24 categories like precipitation and lake levels are merged with real-time information from local water meters into a single dashboard. Kelowna can prepare for flooding days in advance thanks to accurate water level modeling.
Kelowna, BC
Canada
Kelowna, BC improves response to springtime snow melt with advanced monitoring equipment
Four new stations along Mill Creek and Mission Creek predict the likelihood of flooding in Kelowna. Each station gathers real-time water levels, temperature, and other climate conditions. City officials are alerted by the monitoring system when blockages or localized flooding occur. The newly installed stations use the previous winter's snowpack for more accurate allocation of flood mitigation resources like sandbags.
Kelowna, BC
Canada
Kelowna, BC evaluates chatbot capabilities using COVID-19 questions to Kelowna Citybot
The Citybot answers keyword requests and questions related to the pandemic. Residents click the bot logo on the city's website and find a search bar along with frequently asked questions. Developers designed Citybot with conversational capabilities that point users to the right resources. This project will determine if the chatbot can be adapted for automated form completion, voice activation, and more complex questions.
Kelowna, BC
Canada
Kelowna, BC celebrates GIS Day by producing a Minecraft version of the city with open data
The city's Information Services team used more than 150 datasets to create a Kelowna world for the popular video game. Minecraft players can explore and build within a 3-D model of the city that includes realistic streets, waterways, and parks. In four simple steps, the Kelowna Minecraft world can be added to a user's computer. Kelowna pursued this project to encourage open data portal use and interest by young residents in GIS.
Kelowna, BC
Canada