COUNCIL – ‘Supplementary items’ budget list coming up for discussion
A projected tax hike of 10.81 per cent per cent could go higher if Kamloops City council approves some of the eight supplementary budget items that will come before it on Tuesday, Feb. 20.
The items will also be the subject of a public input meeting that evening. Public input will also be collected online through Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024.
According to the City’s website, the eight items were “set apart from the rest of the provisional budget because they either represent a change to the level of a service currently provided or they offer something completely new.”
Some of the items come from staff or council while others are from the public. Four of them would be added to the 2024 budget if they’re approved.
Among them is a capital expense of $126,000 and operating costs of $953,000 for a special SUV staffed with two medical responders for Kamloops Fire Rescue.
Currently, the fire department responds to medical emergencies with its firefighting equipment, often arriving on the scene ahead of ambulances. “KFR has seen a dramatic increase in medical calls for service over the past few years, now accounting for over 60 per cent of all call volume received.”
Another item would create an annual ongoing operating cost of $136,000 to provide additional funding for funding agreements with local organizations.
Redesigning the Heritage House parking area to “create a flexible, multi-purpose space” would cost $50,000 for development of a project proposal for future consideration.
Improving the technology on garbage trucks would be a $202,000 cost for capital and $69,750 for operating between this year and 2026.
Other items would start in future years.
The priciest item on the list, at $3.1 million, is for completion of streetscaping the 500-block of Victoria Street in 2026.
Increasing the drainage capital plan by $2 million beginning next year would allow construction of additional risk mitigation projects. “Not increasing funding would defer projects 10 or more years and increase the risk that a major rainfall or flood event will cause significant damage to infrastructure, public, and/or private property.”
A pedestrian pathway between the Hidden Valley mobile home park on Rose Hill Road, and Valleyview Drive, would cost $2 million, and a long-planned sidewalk on Todd Road in Barnhartvale would cost $1.7 million.
The budget information session will be 7 to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 20 in the Sports Centre Lounge at the McArthur Island Sport and Event Centre.
ArmchairMayor.ca 
Nitazenes are coming. Better prep for 4 more full-time SUVs. 4-5 hits of narcan required at minimum in order to bring back the individual for further drug use the next day (or same day if revived early enough in the day).
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$1 million to staff one single ambulance for the fire department annually, that seems like a poor return on investment. Why not give this money directly to BC Ambulance service for an additional ambulance and crew who are better trained, more experienced and cheaper than fire department members. Moreover, why would we need additional staffing for the fire department to essentially be ambulance attendants? Presently, the fire department only attends medical emergencies if they don’t have a more pressing situation at hand. Why not just have 2 crew members attend a medical emergency (as opposed to the entire crew) and have the remaining crew members perform whatever nonemergency they were already performing? This would require zero additional staff and save the city close to a $million in salaries. If we did this we could have an ambulance at every firehall, we’d save $’s and we’d get far greater service.
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60% of KFR responses are related to overdosing drug addicts. Why are Kamloops taxpayers bankrolling any of that in the first place? A million dollars??? There are millions and millions of hidden expenses that we are being forced to pay to underwrite addictions.
Drug addicts should have one free naloxone injection. Any further injections come with an immediate detention, apprehension under the mental health act, prison or forced treatment.
When will taxpayers wake up and refuse to spend millions and billions more on supporting drug addicts in BC? Working people can’t find a family doctor. Working people are charged for ambulance rides. This is crazy!!
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It costs $100,000 per year to house a person in jail, this doesn’t include court costs. Apprehension and forced treatment are even more expensive. The only cheaper way to address the overdosing addict than what we are presently doing is to let them die, is this what you want? Things will only get worse in the coming years as the new street drugs sweeping across N.America are even more lethal, so we can expect the costs associated to continue to climb. I’m not ready to just give up on these people and I’m leaning towards forced treatment more so every day, but it’s going to be expensive.
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It’s not a question of if I want them to die because guess what, they’re already dying! Of course I don’t want them to die but that sentiment doesn’t make a lick of difference.
This needs to be an election issue. Decriminalization has failed. The costs are outrageous and our communities have been degraded significantly for it. If we’re paying, we need to see results and see our streets back to how they used to be.
Taxpayers are being fleeced and getting nothing in return for our hard earned money. Service providers and officials are not being honest, and at worst are lying outright. It’s only going to get worse if the people in charge are allowed to keep doing this.
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I think some of the responsibility for the increase in overdose and related calls, has to be the organizations and services that allow substance abuse to continue by supporting the homeless lifestyle. It’s like they encourage that behaviour. It inevitably spills out into the streets where it impacts us all very negatively. I don’t know what can be done, but I know it’s fundamentally not right to place that expense on taxpayers. I am loathe to vote conservative but I don’t see any other choice. BC United has a history of supporting decrim and the NDPBC, well enough said. This needs to be an election issue. I don’t want an 11% tax increase because of all the money that’s going to these druggies.
When you add up all the impacts, the crime and theft, the vast amount of medical calls, police calls, vandalism, the loss of business and damage to property, the drug supply, we are probably talking at least half of the entire budget for the year in direct and indirect costs. Maybe more. This can’t continue. As a taxpayer, it’s a nasty thing to be working, only to take my labour and use my taxes for the direct support of drug addict lifestyles.
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Did I read that right, 3.1 millions for the “streetscaping” of the 500-block of Victoria Street? Are they gone completely mad at 1st and Victoria? If that is indeed the case a riot should follow to stop it.
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Good to see the special SUV idea I pitched frequently a way back is about to become reality. But it shouldn’t have to be a special item. The money for it could’ve been found amongst savings from the lavishly spending of various City’s departments.
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