University District & Quail Ridge.

How University District & Quail Ridge took shape

The University District grew around a campus that opened in 1993 as Okanagan College's north Kelowna site and became UBC Okanagan in 2005. Quail Ridge developed beside the Quail golf course, built in 1994. Today the area mixes rental and condo buildings near campus with golf course homes, beside the airport.

The benchland north of Glenmore and west of the airport is syilx territory, and UBC's campus history notes these slopes were harvesting grounds for game, berries and wild plants long before any buildings. Settlers later used the land for cattle ranching and grain. The modern story starts in 1993, when Okanagan College opened a new campus here, built as four brick buildings around a courtyard on a former quarry site. The college later became Okanagan University College. In 2004 the province announced the college would be dissolved, and in September 2005 its north Kelowna campus reopened as UBC Okanagan with 3,500 students. Growth was fast. 78 million, with Roberts Lake and a nearby pond to be protected as natural areas.

Just north of campus, golf lands took shape at the same time. The Quail Course, designed by Les Furber, was built in 1994, and a second course, the Bear, was designed by Jack Nicklaus. Homes grew up around the fairways, and the Quail Ridge Residents' Association incorporated in December 2000. Closer to campus, a village centre has been planned for years around Academy Way, where a 451 unit rental project was proposed in 2024. UBC itself plans a neighbourhood of up to 1,500 mainly rental homes on University Way by 2040. Road links keep improving too. The Hollywood Road extension from John Hindle Drive to Sexsmith Road began construction in September 2026.

1. 1993Okanagan College opens its new north Kelowna campus on a former quarry site. Source
2. 2005UBC acquires the campus; classes begin in September with 3,500 students. Source
3. 2010UBC buys 103.6 hectares from the City of Kelowna for $8.78 million. Source

The homes & their setting

Quail Ridge homes grew up around the golf courses from the mid 1990s onward (the Quail Course dates to 1994 and the residents' association to 2000), with single family homes and golf course strata complexes. Near campus the stock is newer: condo, townhome and purpose built rental buildings, with more rental coming. Many buildings are strata, so check bylaws on rentals and fees.

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

• UBC Okanagan original core — The four brick buildings around a courtyard, built in 1993 for Okanagan College on a former quarry site. History source
• Roberts Lake — Protected as a natural area under the 2010 UBC land purchase agreement with the City. History source
• The Quail and The Bear — Two golf courses (Les Furber, 1994, and Jack Nicklaus) that shaped Quail Ridge. History source