Three Kootenay communities issue joint submission to the AKBLG to address homelessness and public safety concerns

Photo: Samantha Holomay, Flickr, Colin Dacre

Nelson, Castlegar and Trail municipal councils have issued a joint resolution to the Association of Kootenay Boundary Local Governments (AKBLG) to be presented for consideration at the upcoming convention in April.

All three municipalities have cited a lack of resources for mental heath resources and addiction treatment as crucial issues that have contributed greatly to the increase of their street populations.

Trail council has endorsed the motion that was discussed during a March 10 meeting.

The proposal states that the current system in southeastern B.C. does not have enough detoxification or supporting housing services, which they stated has forced residents to leave their communities to seek proper treatment.

The collaborative task force seeks to develop a regional homeless strategy and increase funding for public safety and policing from direct grants through government programs.

The resolution also asks that there be more funding put towards community safety and crime prevention plans under the Reaching Home program for specialized policing units and mental health response teams.

Just this week, the B.C. government announced that they would be putting $230 million towards policing over the next three years across the province to bulk up specialized units and rural police forces.

The resolution will be considered during the AKBLG convention and, if accepted, will be forwarded for consideration at the Union of B.C. Municipalities (UBCM) convention. The AKBLG's 92nd annual AGM and Convention is scheduled to occur April 25-27 in Kimberly at the Kimberly Conference Centre.