Will Kelowna electors approve or disapprove of reusing the pontoons, which kept the old Okanagan Lake Bridge afloat for 50 years, for a breakwater for the yacht basin?

If you approve, you don't need to do anything. But if you disapprove, the so-called alternative approval process has been triggered by the City, with a deadline to respond of August 7 at 4 p.m.

Council has approved a grand $5 million plan that would have the pontoons encircling the city's boat harbour, with $1 million of that to be spent on the project this year from reserve funds.

Voters are being asked to approve assumption of the liability for the new use of the pontoos.

The liability doesn't have a fixed or stated price or value that electors can evaluate, and that has Mayor Sharon Shepherd somewhat concerned.

However, "I read the wording and I think it's as clear as staff can make it," says Shepherd.

"My concern about putting it out to the public . . . was how the question was going to be read."

Elector response forms will be received at city hall up until the deadline, the Friday after the B.C. Day long weekend.

Shepherd said that staff will be putting together a question-and-answer document about the whole question to be posted on the city's web site.

"I'm encouraging people to get that information before making a decision to sign on against taking responsibility for the pontoons," Shepherd says

It might have failed at the ballot box in May, but we are trying it out anyway: iRanks! Instead of picking just one answer out of many in a standard poll question, you can rank your answers with iRank. Just pick a topic below and then click the green RANK NOW! button in the bottom right corner. Drag and drop your responses in the right window in the order you wish them to appear. You can even add responses we did not think of.