Crime, safety, housing at top of city’s list, says mayor of Kelowna

The mayor of Kelowna delivered his annual state of the city speech in front of nearly 300 people this week.

And, according to Tom Dyas, crime, safety, housing and infrastructure are top of mind for city council in 2024.

This spring, a report will go before council with five major task force recommendations, including a request to fund a $100,000 on-call program for businesses in Rutland.

“This would be similar to the highly successful red shirt downtown Kelowna on-call team,” Dyas said during his speech at the Coast Capril Hotel.

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“These discussions came out of discussions that we were having with members of the Uptown Rutland Business Association and also discussions that our MLAs had with members of the community.”

Council has laid out other priorities, which include affordable housing, transportation, homelessness, agriculture and climate action.

“Very proud of the senior leadership team, of council and also the initiatives,” said Dyas. “Some of the items on that shopping list were things that started in 2023 but will carry over into 2024 and maybe 2025, so we will be adding to that list and continuing to work hard to advance those items.”

According to the city, building permits totalling $1.76 billion were issued as the city continues to be one of the fastest-growing areas in the nation. However, with that growth also comes a rise in homelessness.

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“It’s a huge, complex problem with multiple factors that really go beyond the municipal level,” said Carmen Rempel, executive director of Kelowna’s Gospel Mission. “So what I see is our municipality doing their best within their scope.”

Rempel says the city has made big strides when it comes to getting more people off the streets in the last year, and hopes that will continue.

“We’re pretty optimistic,” said Rempel. “It’s not just a matter of stating priorities, but they’re willing to put resources and the political will behind them to actually see projects move forward.”

Dyas said he and city council are open to working with provincial or federal assistance to provide housing for those in need.

“If we can provide the land, and if the province or the federal government can supply some of the costs to build the structure,” said Dyas, “and now we’re able to put up to 30 per cent of affordable housing within that unit, that’s a win.”

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