File Photo (Image Credit: CFJC Today)

By James Peters

City Budget

Council chooses alternative approval process for new Kamloops RCMP headquarters

Jun 10, 2025 | 5:39 PM

KAMLOOPS — Kamloops council agrees the community needs a new RCMP headquarters and borrowing up to $150 million is the best way to pay for it. At its regular meeting Tuesday (June 10), the debate was around how to gain public assent.

Ultimately, council voted 7-2 to send the question to the Kamloops residents through the alternative approval process (AAP), also known as counter petition.

Staff told councillors several major projects are scheduled to be fully paid off in coming years. That means new projects can be added onto the city’s borrowing without requiring additional taxation to service those debts.

Council was shown a list of projects totalling about $200 million, though three-quarters of that total would be set aside for the new RCMP building.

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Sharpest debate on the issue took place over whether the city should authorize an AAP — requiring those opposed to the borrowing to sign a petition — or a traditional ‘yes-or-no’ referendum.

Councillor Katie Neustaeter argued in favour of the referendum, saying Kamloops residents need to have their say on the police headquarters.

“I do think a referendum would be more appropriate for that particular project and that should be pulled out of what we’re looking at, partially because we haven’t had the opportunity for community feedback in any way,” said Neustaeter. “I do think that’s an important part of the process and we have skipped over that, in some ways, if we go straight to AAP.”

In 2024, council chose AAP to gain assent for the first phase of its Build Kamloops program. If 10 per cent of voters oppose borrowing within a 30-day window, the city would be forced to either launch a referendum or kill the initiative.

The estimated cost to hold a stand-alone referendum is $200,000, though that would be greatly reduced if it could be combined with the next municipal vote, which is scheduled for October, 2026.

Councillor Stephen Karpuk argued the cost savings of waiting would be eclipsed by ever-increasing construction costs.

“If we’re [spending] $200,000 on a referendum to save it for next year but we’re going to spend $15- to $20-million more because it’s going to cost that much more to build it in a year-and-a-half, that makes no economic sense,” said Karpuk. “We’re here for good governance. We were elected to provide governance and make hard decisions.”

Councillor Neustaeter was joined by Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson in opposing the AAP.

A full list of projects proposed to be funded by debt can be found here.

Dates for the 30-day AAP window have not been finalized.