Kamloops tightens rules on homeless encampments; still averse to Kelowna approach

There will soon be fewer places to set up encampments for the homeless in Kamloops as city hall tightens its rules, but it’s still staying clear of Kelowna’s approach.

City council voted to add more rules to its homeless encampment policy, writing in restrictions on areas around schools and playgrounds, while large, open parks are now prohibited.

City hall has long preferred homeless encampments along riverbanks near downtown and along Schubert Drive, but it’s not uncommon to find tents set up in other places throughout the city, particularly in low-lying areas.

It’s a change that means encampments within 50 metres from schools or four metres from roads are against the rules to address public safety, while encampments in nature parks like Kenna Cartwright or Peterson Creek are banned out of concern for potential wildfires.

“It doesn’t matter whether it’s within the temporary overnight sheltering guidelines. Those are prohibited areas, they’re not allowed to camp there. They will be moved along,” fire chief Ken Uzeloc said.

Uzeloc said city officials will now “deal with” encampments along riverbanks when there’s a call without waiting for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO). Digging by homeless people and the ressulting erosion along the rivers has been a growing issue in Kamloops, but he said the federal department has not been responding to those concerns quickly enough.

The fire chief said the city will still notify the the federal department, but bylaw officers will no longer wait for DFO to respond before taking action.

While the updated bylaw squeezes encampments into smaller areas, Kamloops Coun. Mike O’Reilly said there’s still too much space available, stretching emergency services thin. He drew a comparison to Kelowna’s approach, where encampments are more heavily regulated and the largest one is in a managed, central space in the city’s North End.

“They’re up the entire Overlanders (Park), they’re down Fortune Drive, they’re in Pioneer Park —everywhere,” O’Reilly said. “When we have it spread out so much, how are we able to staff up without the taxpayer wearing that?”

Staff told council the bylaw department attempts to work with homeless people before taking direct enforcement action, but areas that are a high-risk, especially for fires, will be a “higher priority,” but the bylaw department won’t be asking for more funds. Council also heard the Kelowna approach isn’t without costs.

“It is an outdoor shelter. BC Housing does not fund outdoor shelters, so (the City of Kelowna) is funding it directly,” the city’s social, housing and community development manager, Natasha Hartson, said.

She said large, “entrenched” homeless encampments are very different and are more difficult to manage once they grow.

That’s a problem other cities have faced, like Penticton with it’s Fairview encampment, which has grown on Crown land and created a difficult tension point between city hall and the province. It’s now heading to court as the province aims to evict the encampment, but it comes after Penticton city council turned down a new BC Housing project meant to province homes to those in that encampment.

One Kamloops city councillor fears something similar could grow in Kamloops as a consequence of the new rules.

“I think it is a concern for me we’ll be moving people into smaller areas and we may end up with a large-scale encampment,” Coun. Nancy Bepple said at a June 23 council meeting.

Bepple said other cities like Prince George, Surrey and Nanaimo have seen much larger, centralized encampments, but Kamloops has so far seen smaller, scattered camps.

Council voted in favour of the new policy in a 7-1 vote, with Bepple voting against it and Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson wasn’t present for the June 23 meeting. It passed the first three readings, but it will be finalized at a subsequent meeting.