MAYOR AND COUNCIL
Coun. Bill Sarai issued a public apology in early December for secretly recording a conversation between himself and Kamloops Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson, who had earlier received the recording with no indication it was Sarai who had created it.
Sarai said his actions were “unprofessional and unacceptable” but not illegal in the apology. The matter was investigated by the RCMP but no charges were recommended.
The apology prompted Hamer-Jackson to call for sanctions placed against him to be lifted, but council quickly adjourned the special council meeting after a brief rebuttal by Coun. Kelly Hall, who said the measures taken against the mayor had nothing to do with Sarai’s actions.
Meanwhile, a report on a code of conduct investigation into Hamer-Jackson says the mayor breached council’s code of conduct and the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
The report addresses an incident from March 2024, in which the mayor collected and shared photos of individuals, including one image that showed a sex act. Hamer-Jackson had planned on including some of the images in a slideshow for a presentation to the Kamloops Chamber of Commerce, but was prevented from doing so.
CRIME
While break-ins to businesses were down, break-ins to residences were up in the third quarter of 2024 according to crime statistics reported by the RCMP to council in early December.
In the same period from 2023 to 2024, break-ins to businesses were down 55 percent, but break-ins to residences increased by 65 percent. The year-over-year stats also showed a large decrease in the number of thefts from motor vehicles, down 61 percent to 148 in the third quarter.
There were also more shoplifting offences recorded, up 13 percent to 362 in the third quarter of 2024.
HOUSING AND DEVELOPMENTS
The City of Kamloops presented its housing needs report to council in December. The report indicates that 7,856 new units are required to be built from 2021 to 2026, and 23,228 new units are required to be built from 2021 to 2044. But media reports indicate the city will fall short of its 2026 goal, with the city’s community planning manager, Stephen Bentley, telling Castanet Kamloops that only about 2,000 new units have been built.
The call for public submissions has been pushed back for a six-storey housing development in Valleyview, which has seen opposition from a group of nearby residents. A bylaw approving the rezoning has been held until it is approved by the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure.
The development would span the addresses of 2001, 2013 and 2019 on Glenwood Drive. The developer, A&T Project Developments, is seeking the rezoning of those properties in order to proceed.
Meanwhile, council gave the nod to sending out a notice of the city’s intent to issue a development permit for a new apartment building in Dufferin. The three-storey 34-unit build is slated to rise on Pacific Way, just across Hillside Drive from Aberdeen Mall.
A multi-unit development in Pineview Valley will soon have a public hearing, after council approved two readings of a zoning bylaw for a new building at 1920 Copperhead Dr. The development includes 120 townhouse units and 60 units of apartments.
UTILITY RATES
Council also approved a 15 percent increase on water rates and five percent for sewer rates. For the average home, that amounts to about a $68 increase annually for water and $25 for sewer.
Annual fees for solid waste collection have also been increased, depending on cart size, with increases ranging from $4 to $24 annually.
All of those rate increases are now in effect.