The City of Kelowna is responding to a group of residents’ concerns about crimes taking place in and around their apartment building in downtown Kelowna.
Residents are saying there has been a rash of property crimes around their homes, which they attribute to the clients of the nearby Doyle Avenue shelter.
“I have a tremendous amount of empathy for the situation they are in and I share their frustration,” said Darren Caul, City of Kelowna’s community safety director.
“Anytime there is a new shelter or supportive housing site opens up, we work very closely with the site operators and these site operators have done an excellent job of trying to mitigate any the risks or impacts that may occur in the neighbouring community.”
The City of Kelowna along with Kelowna RCMP keep track of crime statistics around shelters. They say the statistical impact of the Doyle Shelter location is minimal.
“We have not seen any significant increase in reported crime around this site,” said Caul.
“I emphasize the word ‘reported’ because we know people don’t always report (crimes to the police). I encourage residents to report because if the police don’t know they dont go.”
Kelowna RCMP was unavailable for an interview but did supply a statement.
Cpl. Tammy Lobb wrote, “It is deeply concerning for us to hear that citizens in our community are frustrated and scared in their neighbourhood.
“The Kelowna RCMP Community Safety Unit works closely with staff at the shelters and our foot and bike patrol officers proactively patrol these areas not only checking on the well-being of clients but also liaising with local residents and businesses about any concerns they may have.”
The residents would like to see more action taken and are planning to bring their concerns to Kelowna’s city council.