Reid Hamer-Jackson is one of five candidates running for mayor of Kamloops (Image Credit: CFJC Today)

By Chad Klassen

REID HAMER-JACKSON

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Oct 5, 2022 | 2:34 PM

KAMLOOPS — Reid Hamer-Jackson is beyond tired of dealing with the homeless situation along West Victoria Street and some of the vandalism that’s come with it.

“For about three years, I’ve been getting up at three o’clock, four o’clock in the morning to find out that a lot of people — some commit crimes because they’re locked out of the shelters. They can’t get into the shelters when it’s very cold out,” he said. “What are you going to do at three in the morning, four in the morning when you can’t get into a shelter? You’re going to break into a vehicle. You’re going to do whatever it takes to survive.”

Hamer-Jackson’s business, TRU Market Auto, is right across the street from the Emerald Centre, a homeless shelter, as well as Rosethorn House, a supportive housing facility run by the Canadian Mental Health Association.

Hamer-Jackson wants more recovery beds.

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“We’ve got to change our vision [of] building drug houses and start looking into doing recovery,” he noted.

He’s pushed for a recovery centre on the outskirts of the city in Rayleigh, hoping people can turn their lives around. The motion has been turned down by council twice now. It’s part of the reason why he’s running for mayor.

“When I talked to a senior project manager for BC Housing, he said ‘Reid, it’s above my pay grade, but it sounds like a good idea. We need your mayor and council on board.’ It’s been four years and the biggest stumbling block has been the mayor and council,” Hamer-Jackson lamented.

Hamer-Jackson, with no political experience and running for the citizens, decided against running for council, where there are five open seats. He feels the mayor’s chair, despite holding a single vote, holds a little more power to make change.

“From what I’ve seen, I’ve watched council meetings, I see that a mayor has a lot of influence and I really think someone needs to lead,” he said. “The people that are running right now, I don’t see them being leaders. They’ve been in politics, they’ve had four years to do this.”

At the end of the day, Hamer-Jackson wants to help get Kamloops back.

“I’d like to see a vibrant city, a place where people are safe to come out of their houses, a place where your city hall doesn’t have three break-ins and the mayor’s necklace is missing or five smashed windows to the tune of $10,000. A vision of a place where the North Shore corridor, it’s not 30 businesses boarded up. It’s 30 businesses vibrant.”