Short answer
From 1085 Martin Avenue, Kelowna General Hospital is about 2.7 km away: a 6-minute drive, a 11-minute bike ride or about 26 minutes by bus, checked October 13, 2026. Okanagan College's Kelowna campus is a 6-minute drive and UBC Okanagan about 15 minutes by car. If you work shifts, ask how stalls are assigned: the City's permit report lists 27 residential stalls for 33 homes.
This guide is for you if
- You work at Kelowna General Hospital or elsewhere with Interior Health, or at UBC Okanagan, Okanagan College or an office downtown.
- Your hours are irregular, so a short, predictable commute and reliable parking matter more than a view.
- You may be moving to Kelowna for the job and buying for the first time in BC.
On this page
Commute times, by mode
The table shows each route as the trip planner measured it, without traffic adjustments for a particular shift. The bus trip uses BC Transit route 10 from the Bernard Avenue at Gordon Drive stop to Queensway Exchange, then a short walk on Pandosy Street.
| Destination | By car | By bike | By bus | On foot |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kelowna General Hospital, 2268 Pandosy Street | 6 min | 11 min | 26 min | 37 min |
| Okanagan College, Kelowna campus | 6 min | Not measured | Not measured | Not measured |
| UBC Okanagan | 15 min | Not measured | Not measured | Not measured |
| Downtown, Bernard Avenue and Water Street | 4 min | Not measured | Not measured | 22 min |
| Kelowna International Airport | 15 min | Not measured | Not measured | Not measured |
Parking, bikes and the car elevator
The City of Kelowna's June 22, 2026 report on development permit DP24-0017 describes 27 residential and 4 visitor stalls, with a car elevator serving the upper level of the parkade. A queuing study attached to the application estimated 5 trips an hour in the morning peak and 6 in the evening peak, and the report says that is unlikely to cause significant queuing in the lane.
Cyclists get 66 long-term and 6 short-term bike stalls and a bike wash and repair area, according to the same report, and it counts 9 bus stops within 300 metres on Gordon Drive and Bernard Avenue.
How stalls are assigned, and whether EV charging is included, has not been published. BCFSA explains that a stall is usually allocated either as limited common property or by a parking lease, and your rights differ between the two.
Shift work and the home itself
No floor plan can promise quiet or darkness, so check what you can. The plan drawings show where each bedroom sits relative to the living space and balcony. Ask the sales team for the window and acoustic specifications, which are not published on this site.
The gym and yoga studio are indoors on Level 2, so they are not weather-dependent, but the hours they can be used will be set by the strata. Visit the street at the times you leave and come home.
If you are moving to Kelowna for the job
New BC residents wait the rest of the month you become a BC resident, plus two more months before MSP coverage starts. People moving from another province keep their former plan during the wait. The newly built home exemption removes the tax on a new home worth up to $1,100,000, with a partial exemption up to $1,150,000. You need to be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, the home must be your principal residence, and you must move in within 92 days of registration and live there for the rest of the first year. It is not limited to first-time buyers.
If this is your first home, the first-time buyer guide covers the GST rebate, the FHSA and the Home Buyers' Plan.
If you might rent the home out later
In Kelowna, a short-term rental is a rental of under 90 consecutive days. Since June 1, 2026, the City's principal-residence requirement no longer applies to buildings approved for a short-term-rental subzone, and still applies in every other zone. 1085 Martin Avenue does not appear on the City's published list of eligible properties as of the City's page update on June 16, 2026. Strata bylaws can restrict rentals further, and a licence and provincial registration are required to operate legally. Serenity's strata bylaws have not been published.
For a long-term tenancy, the strata bylaws and BC's tenancy rules apply. For the speculation and vacancy tax, a home rented to a tenant for at least 6 months of the year is generally exempt.
Checklist
- Time the drive, bike or bus trip at your actual shift change before you commit.
- Ask how parking stalls are assigned and whether you can be sure of one.
- Ask whether EV charging is planned and how it would be billed.
- Look at where the bedroom sits on the plan and request the window and acoustic specifications.
- If you are new to BC, apply for MSP on arrival and keep your old plan during the wait.
- Read the rental bylaws if you may be posted elsewhere and need to rent the home out.
Where Serenity fits
Serenity's one-bedroom condos are about 660 sq ft and its two-bedroom condos about 955 to 960 sq ft. Every condo plan has a balcony and its own washer and dryer, and the two-bedroom plans add a second bathroom. Pricing, deposit schedule, occupancy date and per-plan availability have not been publicly released.
Sources
- 1.City of Kelowna: Report to Council, development permit DP24-0017 (June 22, 2026) (opens in a new tab)kelownapublishing.escribemeetings.com
- 2.BCFSA: Consumer Guide to Pre-sale Real Estate Purchases (opens in a new tab)bcfsa.ca
- 3.City of Kelowna: Short-term rentals (opens in a new tab)kelowna.ca
- 4.Government of BC: MSP coverage wait period (opens in a new tab)gov.bc.ca
- 5.Government of BC: Newly built home exemption (opens in a new tab)gov.bc.ca
- 6.Government of BC: Speculation and vacancy tax exemptions for individuals (opens in a new tab)gov.bc.ca
General information read from these sources on October 9, 2026. It is not legal, tax or financial advice; rules change, so confirm your own situation with a lawyer, notary or accountant.
