Lakeview Heights.

How Lakeview Heights took shape

Lakeview Heights grew on benches below Mount Boucherie that were once pasture for the Allison family. After the Second World War a 486 hectare Veterans Land Act subdivision opened it to settlement, with a water system from 1949. Grapes arrived in 1961, and it is now the heart of the Westside Wine Trail.

The benches between Okanagan Lake and Mount Boucherie are part of syilx territory. Mount Boucherie is an ancient volcano, and its volcanic and glacial soils matter here more than anywhere else on the Westside. The mountain is named for Isidore Boucherie, a French settler who ranched on it in the late 1800s. The province first listed it as Bouchier Mountain and set the current spelling in 1955. Susan Allison arrived on this shore in 1872, the first settler woman on the west bank according to the Westbank Museum, and the Allisons left after losing 1,000 cattle in the winter of 1880 to 1881. An Allison house from 1872 is preserved at Quails' Gate Winery. Later the old Allison pasture became the preferred place to settle returning veterans. After the Second World War, a 486 hectare Veterans Land Act subdivision was laid out.

A Lakeview water system was created in 1949, and the Lakeview Irrigation District was incorporated in 1951. Local accounts say the Lakeview Heights name came from a 1951 naming contest. In 1961 orchardist Dick Stewart planted grapes below the mountain, and his family went on to found Quails' Gate. Vineyards planted in 1966 became Mission Hill Family Estate, bought by Anthony von Mandl in 1981. Those plantings are the roots of today's Westside Wine Trail along Boucherie Road. The neighbourhood now mixes 1970s to 1990s family homes with newer view builds. The old Lakeview Heights Community Hall is gone, one of the heritage losses the Westbank Museum has flagged. The area now draws on the Rose Valley water system, and the 2023 Official Community Plan names Lakeview Heights one of five neighbourhood centres.

1. 1949Lakeview water system created. Source
2. 1951Lakeview Irrigation District incorporated. Source
3. 1955Bouchier Mountain officially renamed Mount Boucherie on October 6. Source

The homes & their setting

Postwar Veterans Land Act lots gave way over time to 1970s to 1990s family homes, hillside lake view homes and newer custom builds near the vineyards, plus some townhomes. Mostly freehold.

Building age, tenure, amenities and permitted uses vary by address. Explore the actual property documents with Elaine and the appropriate specialists.

Places with a story

• Allison House (1872) — Early settler house of the Allison family, preserved at Quails' Gate Winery. History source
• Mount Boucherie — Ancient volcano named for rancher Isidore Boucherie; the city began assessing it for its heritage register in 2015. History source
• Quails' Gate and Mission Hill vineyards — Grape plantings of 1961 and 1966 that started West Kelowna's wine industry. History source