NDP Kamloops Centre Candidate on Homeless
“We need to do better to meet the needs of our community’s unhoused,” says Kamloops Centre NDP candidate, Kamal Grewal.
In response to the news that there will be no daytime drop-in services available in Kamloops with the impending closure of the Loop on Tranquille Road and the announced cessation of day services offered by the Mustard Seed, Grewal is concerned about the impact it will have on the vulnerable.
“We’ve seen the effect that extreme summer temperatures in Kamloops have had on the general population over the past few years. You can just imagine how difficult it will be for the unhoused or inadequately housed when there are no drop-in centres to provide basic services such as meals and links to other basic services,” Grewal said.
Social agencies have a key role to play in providing these services but “governments at both the municipal and provincial levels have a responsibility to meet these needs,” says Grewal.
The City of Kamloops announced that Council has authorized the securing of a North Shore site to provide the kind of services needed. “However, this initiative is just a beginning,” says Grewal. “There’s work still to be done to finalize the land purchase, and then a lengthy process of community engagement. Until this shelter is open, people in need are not being served.”
The NDP provincial government has made major investments in increasing social services for Kamloops. It has funded such facilities as Spero House and Way Home for youth; and it has initiated a poverty reduction plan.
“The city, however, also has a role to play, and that’s my primary concern,” added Grewal. “There’s a municipal failure here that is disconcerting and worrisome. It’s intolerable for a city with a population exceeding 100,000 to fail to provide these essential services.”