Kelownasa国际传媒檚 community safety director says a tweet by Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre showing the tent city along the Rail Trail is disheartening.
sa国际传媒淏ecause this issue is one that cities across the province and in fact across the country are having to deal with,sa国际传媒� said Darren Caul.
Poilievre retweeted a video showing tents along Weddell Place, next to the Rail Trail.
READ MORE: Kelownasa国际传媒檚 tent city garners national attention after Poilievre tweet
sa国际传媒淭hatsa国际传媒檚 what makes a 50-second video so disappointingsa国际传媒nd unfair,sa国际传媒� Caul added.
He pointed out that the city continues to work tirelessly with BC Housing and its not-for-profit partners to find housing solutions for people experiencing homelessness.
sa国际传媒淭he unfortunate reality is that since opening that site two years ago, the number of people who are visibly sheltering outside in our community has quadrupled.sa国际传媒�
Caul said the city also has a legal obligation to provide overnight shelter space when there are not enough beds.
There are approximately 100 people sheltering outdoors on a nightly basis at the site, and previously individuals have had to leave the area during the day.
sa国际传媒淚t is no longer feasible nor is it frankly desirable to require daily decampment,sa国际传媒� said Caul.
Health, safety and security maintenance projects are done daily by health and social service workers, as well as RCMP and bylaw officers, to remove items that would compromise safety and security, Caul explained.
sa国际传媒淚tsa国际传媒檚 about preventing entrenched encampments, which require legal injunction and sweeping law enforcement action as we see occur in other cities.sa国际传媒�
He pointed out that Kelowna has not had to take those steps, - other than relocating a camp from the 200 block of Leon Avenue in 2019 as it was deemed an unsafe situation.
Caul said you can visit the Weddell Place site almost anytime and see health and social workers, bylaw and RCMP officers, and community volunteers.
sa国际传媒淚sa国际传媒檒l make the point again that any video fails to show all of the care, control and work of not only the City of Kelowna, but community volunteers and our not-for-profit and provincial health partners thatsa国际传媒檚 going on behind the scenes.sa国际传媒�
Caul added that the video is obviously not an accurate depiction of what our community has to offer.
READ MORE: Ending homeless in Kelowna, and the rest of Canada, sa国际传媒榙aunting undertakingsa国际传媒�
gary.barnes@kelownacapnews.com
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