Mosaic Books in downtown Kelowna, B.C., has experienced its fair share of disruptions over the years, many caused by repeat offenders.
“Our business downtown has been plagued with this for so long, we’ve just kind of given up,” said Mosaic Books owner Michael Neill.
Neill explained that shoplifting, loitering, and property damage are among the regular issues impacting his business and many others across the city.
“It’s been very frustrating,” Neill told Global News. “So much so, staff have a binder with photos of the repeat offenders and a description of the offence. This has been our book of shame, I guess. An incident book,” he added. “So that we can at least let the staff know who they’re looking for.”
Despite these challenges, Neill has newfound hope that better days may be ahead as the City of Kelowna pushes for meaningful judicial changes at the provincial and federal levels.
The city recently sent a 14-page letter to both levels of government titled *Chronic Offenders – Closing the Revolving Door*.
“Municipalities cannot deal with this on their own,” said Kelowna Mayor Tom Dyas.
The document is very Kelowna-specific. It states that in 2024, 15 offenders accounted for 1,335 police files generated at the Kelowna RCMP detachment. The letter also highlights a fourfold increase in non-compliance with bail conditions in the past five years.
The report reveals significant gaps regarding British Columbia’s charge rate, including in Kelowna. While the national charge rate has declined by 11 percent over the past decade, B.C.’s rate has plummeted by 43 percent. In Kelowna, charges are down by 48.5 percent, while incidents of crime have risen by 5.5 percent during the same period.
“What’s happening is we’re not holding those individuals accountable,” Dyas said.
One of the key calls for action in the letter involves increasing the number of Crown prosecutors. The city is asking the province to assign at least five more prosecutors in Kelowna to keep up with growing demand.
The city is also amplifying its calls for bail reform and wants the province to introduce mandatory compassionate care.
“As a community, we have worked towards creating an avenue forward for those individuals who want to find a better way,” Dyas said. “Examples would be tiny homes, our supportive housing, also our social network. But there’s a group of individuals who need more care, and it is not compassionate to leave them on our streets.”
Neill is hopeful that the badly-needed changes can be implemented to help turn the page for everyone who works and lives in the city.
“I’m just so happy to hear about this and read about this,” Neill said. “It’s long overdue.”
https://globalnews.ca/news/11460407/city-of-kelowna-action-crime-public-safety/