Was approached by a downtown business the other day regarding criminal activity in the city centre. These folks were entirely frustrated in a spike they are seeing. They have recently had windows broken, and their outside walls grafittied.
Deb Delyzer, from the Look Boutique downtown, had much worse happen when she was not only robbed but sprayed with a strange substance. Much of her inventory got the spraying as well, and she will now have to close for months to get her store restocked.
I know there are a couple of intiatives ongoing to help address the issue:
- The RCMP has downtown foot patrols.
- The Mayor and the city manager have held a meeting with the RCMP leadership, the bylaws supervisor, the crime prevention officer, and the Kamloops Central Business Improvement Area (KCBIA) president and manager to discuss the issue.
- The KCBIA is looking at starting a security coop that would pool participating member's money to hire (a) security guard(s)
- The KCBIA summer time ambassador patrol and city bylaw's officers are on the lookout for suspicious activity.
- Outreach workers from the ASK wellness centre and other agencies offer assistance to street people downtown. These folks often get preyed on by hard core criminals and perhaps even get roped into criminal activity.
The question: is there other things to consider?
Would be happy to hear any feedback.
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