Dream Rally go in Kelowna Saturday, will affect traffic

Downtown Kelowna will be filled with exotic and luxury cars for the return of the Okanagan Dream Rally Saturday.

The event, featuring over 250 vehicles, will require some road closures and parking restrictions in the downtown core.

Water Street will be closed to traffic between Sunset Drive and Cawston Avenue July from 6-11 a.m. for rally participant registration. Parking will also be restricted along Water Street from Cawston Avenue to the Queensway during that time.

The event is open to the public and people can visit the downtown core to view the vehicles before they leave the downtown core.

Only local traffic will be permitted from 6-10 a.m., with full closures taking affect from 10:15-10:45 a.m.

The Water Street Boat Launch will remain open during that time, but the City of Kelowna warns there may be potential delays and advises the public to instead use the Cook Road and Sutherland boat launches during that time.

Rally participants will be leaving the staging area at 10:15 a.m. to travel from Cawston Avenue to Highway 97 via Water Street, Lawrence Avenue and Abbott Street.

Flaggers and traffic control personnel will be station at cross streets as the rally passes, and the RCMP will also be at the intersection of Abbott Street and Highway 97 to hold traffic while the drivers turn west onto the W.R. Bennet Bridge.

The rally participants are expected to have left the downtown area by around 10:30 a.m., with road closures and parking restrictions to be lifted at 11 a.m., though the city warns there may still be traffic disruption until around noon to accomodate the event teardown.

The Okanagan Dream Rally has not been held since 2022.