ROTHENBURGER: Why mayor isn’t in a conflict of interest over 48 Victoria St. West

The big point of contention, however, is his notice of motion to investigate relocating the storage facility for the homeless currently located at 48 Victoria Street West.

That address will be familiar to anyone who drives past it, as there are often large groups of homeless congregated outside. It’s been in operation since 2018 — owned by the City and managed by the Kamloops Aboriginal Friendship Society.

It provides storage bins, a washroom (which is frequently out of order), laundry, shower, cellphone charging and sometimes sandwiches. Before its current use, it was the office for the Graffiti Task Force; before that it was the home of the City’s parking and bylaws department, and once upon a time it was a gas station.

The place hasn’t been without some problems, including drug use on the premises. It was there that security officer Rick Eldridge got into a physical confrontation with a street person who wouldn’t move along, and ended up being charged with assault.

A year and a half ago, a woman was taken to hospital with serious burns after clothing caught fire in the washroom.

Its clients also tend to hog the picnic tables in the grassy area across the street when the weather is good.

Though he neglected to preface his motion with the usual “whereases” explaining its purpose, Mayor RHJ simply doesn’t think the location is working. He contends its high visibility stigmatizes the homeless and is dangerous due to the heavy traffic. It’s true that disagreements among clients sometimes spill out into the street.

“It’s a very dangerous spot,” he told me this week, besides which, he says the building is too small, and he was aware of the friendship society’s interest in possible changes.

“I’m not trying to close anything down.”

Some in the media (especially radio CHNL) and in social media jumped in, suggesting the mayor might be in a conflict of interest because he still owns a car lot further down the street, though it’s basically dormant right now. At least a couple of councillors weren’t sure what to think.
It strikes me that if the mayor is going to be accused of conflict of interest every time he proposes something for Victoria Street West — the epicentre for homeless activity in Kamloops — he’ll never be allowed to get anything done.

I’m reminded of a situation about three years ago when then-councillor Denis Walsh was involved in a council discussion over sidewalk patios. At the time, he was co-owner of The Vic coffee shop, which later got one of the patios.

Was he in conflict? Corporate officer Maria Mazotta ruled that he wasn’t, because the decision applied to businesses across the city and he had “an interest in common” with those businesses.

I agreed with her ruling. So there’s a case where a broad base of businesses, of which his was only one, may or may not benefit from a decision. Moving the homeless facility from 48 Victoria Street West might benefit businesses along the street but it would be a pretty indirect benefit.

It would be quite a challenge to show Hamer-Jackson would get any kind of personal advantage.

Then, CAO David Trawin settled the question by saying the mayor isn’t in a conflict because his business is outside the 100-metre rule. (Mayor RHJ jokes that maybe the entire council is in a conflict because they work in City Hall right across the street.)

Besides confirming with Trawin, and with his lawyer, before he gave his notice of motion that he’s not in a conflict, Hamer-Jackson spoke with several members of council about his intentions, so it wasn’t quite the surprise some have contended.

He’s also spoken with the friendship centre and has a meeting scheduled next week with executive director Cal Albright.

Of course, councillors could just shut the mayor down by zipping their lips and declining to second his motion when next they meet. By the way, though it’s rare for a mayor to make a motion, there’s nothing stopping it.

“If it gets turned down, it gets turned down.”

AROUND THE HORSESHOE: This week’s council meeting lasted an hour longer than it needed to as council got hung up on details of the sidewalk patio issue. Coun. Katie Neustaeter thought the patio decision shouldn’t be made without a study into the bigger picture. Coun. Kelly Hall wanted it studied in the context of some kind of beautification plan. (We might ask what the Downtown Plan is for.) Coun. Nancy Bepple finally broke the log jam by taking council through the staff recommendations point by point and explaining how to get untracked…. There’s no shortage of former politicians writing about City Hall right now, including an ex-mayor (that would be me) and a couple of former mayoral contenders. Sadie Hunter is writing a weekly column for CFJC Today and Arjun Singh has begun writing occasionally for Kamloops This Week. The more the better.

Mel Rothenburger is a former mayor of Kamloops and a retired newspaper editor. He is a regular contributor to CFJC Today, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, and is a former director on the Thompson-Nicola Regional District board. He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.

by Mel Rothenburger

ROTHENBURGER: Why mayor isn’t in a conflict of interest over 48 Victoria St. West

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