Eric Lee, like a lot of business owners in downtown Kelowna, feels powerless when theft and overdoses affect his two restaurants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lee owns Yuzu Bowl and Bistro as well as Sushi Sai, both on Ellis Street in downtown Kelowna. He said in the last year crime and homelessness in the downtown core have gotten much worse. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
At one point, he came into work to get ready to open the restaurant and found a man overdosing behind the building receiving CPR. Lee stepped in to help by calling an ambulance, and paramedics arrived to save the man\u2019s life.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shortly after the paramedics left, Lee said the man who had overdosed started using drugs again nearby.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI was really shocked because that’s what made him almost get killed. And he’s doing it again,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lee said people try to do drugs in his washrooms almost every day, people dine and dash every week, and overdoses outside happen often. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf somebody dines and dashes, there’s nothing I can do about it,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kelowna has a Downtown On Call team who patrol in red jackets. Lee said they’re helpful for dealing with people impeding business by loitering, but they can\u2019t do much when people break the law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey’re doing great, but it’s just like a bandage to cover up the problem. Their job is to ask them nicely to move their stuff, but they can’t enforce anything,\u201d he said. \u201cThen if they don’t listen, they call RCMP, which will take like two or three hours.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It’s only been a few years since Lee opened his restaurants, but he\u2019s seen crime and homelessness get significantly worse in Kelowna in a short time frame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEverybody is afraid to break the law, but there are some people who have nothing to lose and when they break the law, there’s no consequences. There’s no justice served. This is a big problem for us,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kelowna\u2019s crime rate and severity dropped in 2024, but Lee said that\u2019s because minor crimes don\u2019t get reported. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThese people are not punished. That’s why,\u201d he said. \u201cThese people get to get away with everything. My next door neighbour, they got their windows broken like three times or something.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lee said the crime problem downtown is treated like a natural disaster, like people can\u2019t do anything except react and repair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He expects the problem to get worse since the economy is struggling and the job market is getting tougher with Kelowna\u2019s unemployment rate recently hitting 11 per cent. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI am still empathetic to the people who are having problems right now,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople with no education and nothing to do. They can’t really survive this economy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He thinks there are things the government should do, like increase RCMP patrols in the downtown core, but the community shouldn\u2019t just wait for a solution to appear.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhen something happens, report right away instead of neglecting the problem or leaving somebody else to do it. In general everyone should work together, not just the government,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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