COLUMBIA STREET WEST – City takes six motels off its nuisance property list

Six motels have been removed from the City’s nuisance property list. The Columbia Street West motels were among 10 listed as nuisance properties in December, allowing the City to crack down on maintenance and security issues after crime spiked in the area.

The Community Services Division, along with the RCMP’s Crime Prevention Unit and Kamloops Fire Rescue, have been working with the motels and a hotel to complete Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) assessments.

The CPTED assessments have provided recommendations to property owners for improvements to the security and aesthetics of their individual properties, allowing them to work towards being removed from the nuisance property monitoring list.

“With the co-operation of the businesses and partner agencies, the City has seen a dramatic change to the upkeep and processes of the properties assessed, and as a result, service calls for the area have dropped significantly in a short period of time,” a City news release said today (March 23, 2021).

Kevin Beeton, the City’s community services supervisor, said it proves that “a combined effort” can resolve problems.

Recommendations from the CPTED reports vary for each property but include elements such as:

• lighting improvements
• access control—locking doors and gates
• landscape and property maintenance—clean parking lots and removing items stored on balconies or entrance ways
• robbery prevention—lock out auto crime signage, height strips on doors, video surveillance, limiting cash on hand, and improve lobby to exterior sightlines
• property fencing to limit persons using the area for shortcuts

The following properties have been removed from the nuisance property monitor list:

• Best Western Plus (660 Columbia Street West)
• Panorama Inn & Suites (610 Columbia Street West)
• Grandview Motel (463 Grandview Terrace)
• Ramada by Wyndham (555 Columbia Street West)
• Columbia Motor Inn (575 Columbia Street West)
• Knights Inn (625 Columbia Street West)

Other properties on the original list included the Acadian Motor Inn at 1390 Columbia Street, Hospitality Inn (450/ 500 Columbia Street West), Star Lodge (775 Columbia Street West), and Desert Inn (755/765 Columbia Street West).