(Image Credit: CFJC News)

By Sydney Chisholm

Kamloops budget

Healthy City of Kamloops supplemental list comes at a price to taxpayers

Mar 8, 2023 | 4:14 PM

KAMLOOPS – A large Kamloops marquee sign and additional city fleet vehicles were among the ten supplemental budget items put in front of Kamloops Council Tuesday (Mar. 8) – all of which were given the thumbs up.

The approvals will contribute 1.85 per cent to this year’s total tax increase of 6.8 per cent per average household.

Despite opposition from the mayor, Kamloops council voted in favour of expanding the community service officer program from 25 to 30 officers plus four crew leaders.

“Hiring 30 more CSOs is going to help the city,” City Councillor Dale Bass told CFJC News. “It’s not going to fix the problems facing the city but it’s going to help.”

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Kamloops Fire Rescue is also getting new bodies. Ten more firefighters will be brought on to ensure the Westsyde station – which is currently staffed with a two-person crew — will have four people for each shift.

“We have to have more firefighters, we simply need that,” Bass said. “That will be a big boost for the Westsyde-[Batchelor Heights] area.”

Also on the northern side of the river, the council approved two beautification projects benefiting the Tranquille corridor.

Executive Director Jeremy Heighton says the North Shore Business Improvement Association has been pushing for this kind of funding for a long time, but its plans include a lot more than flowers and trees.

“The replacement of some of the really old planters on the North Shore corridors — which are actually safety concerns and are falling apart – that can be done under this,” Heighton explained. “The placement of more garbage bins to give less of a street clean-up and more of the targeted areas.”

Going forward, the city is allocating $250,000 to the Public Realm Improvement Fund, which will go toward smaller projects that benefit those living and working on the North Shore.

The largest ticket project approved was for $2.3 million, to upgrade the current Trans-Canada Highway —Pacific Way ramp. When finished, the road will have two left turning lanes. The off-ramp to Summit Drive will also see upgrades for $600,000.

The total taxation increase added by the supplemental budget items is 1.85 per cent.

“People are sending us emails saying, ‘We can’t afford a higher tax rate because everything costs us more money – but everything costs the city more money, too,” Bass said. “And unless they want to see services changed, dropped or decreased, they are gonna have to help us pay for it.”