KCU : Kamloops Citizens United

08/31/2026

𝐀𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐚 𝐌𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐱: 𝐀 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐬, 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐬
Since the 2024 Alternative Approval Process (AAP), knowing what we're building, what it will cost and what taxpayers will ultimately pay has become increasingly difficult.
With Council being asked Tuesday, September 1 to set the final direction for the Arena Multiplex, here's some information to consider.

𝟏. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐭𝐚𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐞?
During the 2024 AAP, the City's official public notice advised residents the estimated cost of the Arena Multiplex was $140 million, with a facility that would house up to four rinks.
Residents were asked to approve $125 million in borrowing for the project.
At the time, there was concern from some residents about “blank-cheque borrowing” as there were no plans or business case for the large project.

𝟐. 𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐝 $𝟏𝟕𝟓 𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦?
The report coming to Council Tuesday says an “initial base program budget of $175 million (in 2024 dollars)” was proposed during the project's early planning, before staff were instructed to establish the borrowing bylaw for the AAP.

𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐭𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 $𝟏𝟒𝟎 𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥 $𝟏𝟕𝟓 𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐛𝐚𝐬𝐞-𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐦 𝐛𝐮𝐝𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐝?

We have found no public record explaining what happened to the $175 million proposal, when or why it may have changed, or why the public was given the $140 million budget figure instead.

𝟑. 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐲, 𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭?
Council is now being asked to choose the final direction for the Arena Multiplex, with three development scenarios ranging from a $161.6 million base program to a future five-sheet multiplex costing up to $188.2 million.
Staff are recommending the $168.1 million option, with three NHL-sized rinks, a mini rink and library.
That's $28.1 million more than the $140 million estimate, and the scope has changed again.

The full $168.1 million isn't currently funded. The funding plan includes $125 million in borrowing, $4 million from reserves, a $4.5 million TNRD contribution and a $20 million fundraising and sponsorship target. It also requires another $8.1 million through future capital prioritization and $6.5 million for the recommended mini rink.

𝟒. 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐚𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫𝐬?
In 2024, the City estimated taxpayers would subsidize the multiplex by about $656,000 a year.

By July 2025, the City estimated annual operating costs of $4 million, with revenues of approximately $1.2 million - leaving a net operating cost of about $2.8 million a year.

The report doesn't say how much of the $2.8 million would be funded through taxation, but it appears taxpayers will pay more than originally projected.

Council is being asked to choose the final project scope without updated operating cost estimates for the options before them.
Staff say those numbers will come later.

𝟓. 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐁𝐮𝐝𝐠𝐞𝐭 - 𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐁𝐮𝐝𝐠𝐞𝐭?
The report promotes Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) - where the City, designers and contractors work together under a shared agreement - over the traditional model, where a project is designed and then tendered for construction.
It claims that more than 90% of traditionally delivered projects over $100 million exceed their budgets, while fewer than 10% of IPD projects do.
No source is provided for those figures.

But what does “under budget” really mean when the budget itself changes?

We saw this with the Kamloops Centre for the Arts. Residents were told the estimated project cost was $154 million when they were asked to approve the borrowing. The budget later increased to $166 million, and then again to $211 million.
The City later said the original $154 million figure did not include soft costs or an additional parkade - but those costs should have been known and included 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞
residents were asked to approve the borrowing.

The City now uses the $211 million budget as the benchmark, instead of the original $154 million budget - effectively erasing the $57 million increase.

𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐲 “𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐮𝐝𝐠𝐞𝐭” - 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐧 𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 - 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐚𝐥𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐬.

𝑁𝑜𝑡𝑒: 𝑇ℎ𝑒 "$25 𝑎𝑛𝑛𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑡𝑎𝑥 𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟 5 𝑦𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑠" 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝑠𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑒𝑛𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑡 𝑑𝑖𝑑 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑛 𝑎𝑛 𝑒𝑥𝑡𝑟𝑎 $25 𝑎 𝑦𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑜𝑛𝑙𝑦 𝑓𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑦𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑠. 𝐴𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 $25 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑎𝑑𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑒𝑎𝑐ℎ 𝑦𝑒𝑎𝑟, 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 $125 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑦𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑏𝑦 𝑌𝑒𝑎𝑟 5.
𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑑𝑜𝑒𝑠𝑛'𝑡 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑎𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑌𝑒𝑎𝑟 5 - 𝑖𝑡 𝑟𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑠 𝑏𝑢𝑖𝑙𝑡 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑜 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑦 𝑡𝑎𝑥𝑒𝑠 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑜𝑛.

Please share to help keep other residents informed.

Source links in comments.

08/24/2026

The Candidate Information Session was presented by former Golden Mayor Christina Benty and covered how local government works, the role of Mayor and Council, and what residents should expect from their elected representatives.

A good learning opportunity for voters too, though FYI, the video is 2-1/2 hours long.

A recording of the August 6, 2026, Candidate Information Session wi...

08/18/2026

The City of Kamloops publishes a Statement of Financial Information (SOFI) each year as part of its public financial disclosure requirements.

We've listed the 𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐛𝐲 𝐝𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐚𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭 from 2024 to 2025 among employees who held the same position throughout 2023, 2024, and 2025.

While the SOFI report does not explain the reasons for individual increases, it does provide transparency into employee remuneration at City Hall.

08/14/2026

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐊𝐚𝐦𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐩𝐬 𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐧𝐬 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝?

Kamloops Citizens United was formed in 2024 by concerned residents who felt there was a need for a civic watchdog group. Our purpose is to promote transparency and accountability at City Hall by sharing factual information that helps residents understand the actions and decisions of the current Council and City administration.

Many of our members prefer not to be publicly identified, particularly those with professional or business ties to the City who would rather not be associated with criticism of City Hall. From the beginning, Coley Ecker and Kathrine Blair-Wunderlich agreed to be the public faces of KCU, while the rest of the team continues to contribute behind the scenes.

Since becoming a council candidate, Kathrine has stepped back from her KCU management role, and no other election candidates are involved with KCU.

As a grassroots group, KCU members hold a variety of personal political views and are free to support the candidates of their choice.

While local media and social media political pages are profiling new council candidates, KCU remains focused on the people currently serving on Council and the decisions being made at City Hall.

We've chosen to support an informed election in a different way by creating two resources: a reading list of key municipal documents for candidates, and a voter directory that brings together publicly available candidate information in one place.

Everything KCU produces is the work of volunteers. Our team dedicates countless hours researching, reviewing City reports, attending meetings, verifying facts, corresponding with Council, City staff and other agencies, answering questions, and maintaining our website and social media.

We do this because we care about our community and the future of Kamloops. We believe residents deserve clear, factual information so they can form their own opinions.

Thank you to everyone who follows, asks questions, challenges us respectfully, and contributes to the conversation.

If you know someone who isn't on Facebook but is interested in what's happening at City Hall, please share our website with them. Link in the comments.

𝐀𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲.

08/10/2026

𝐖𝐡𝐨'𝐬 𝐅𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐋𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐄𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐬?
In 2017, BC changed the rules for local election campaign financing by banning contributions from corporations, unions and out-of-province donors, while also placing limits on individual campaign contributions. 𝐒𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧, 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐠𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬.

The records shown here are from the 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟐 𝐊𝐚𝐦𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐩𝐬 𝐌𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐥 𝐄𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. They show that multiple individuals connected to the same company each donated the maximum allowable amount to four of the same candidates. Many of those donations were also made on the same day. (Records are arranged by donation date and colour-coded.)

𝐀𝐥𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐥𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐥, this type of contribution pattern raises the question of whether it reflects the intent of the 2017 campaign finance rule changes that prohibit corporate contributions.

Because campaign contribution reports are not made public until after elections, voters don't know who contributed to candidates' campaigns before they cast their ballots.

𝐃𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐯𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐯𝐨𝐭𝐞?

Ask candidates whether they'll voluntarily disclose their campaign donations before Election Day.

𝐿𝑖𝑛𝑘 𝑡𝑜 𝐸𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝐵𝐶'𝑠 𝑆𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝐹𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑖𝑎𝑙 𝑅𝑒𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑃𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑏𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑆𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚 𝑖𝑛 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠.

08/04/2026

𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐓𝐚𝐱𝐞𝐬: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐮𝐧𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐈𝐬 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠

For years, we've been told rising property taxes were the result of inflation, population growth, and the fact that "everything costs more."

A new report from the Business Council of British Columbia points to another factor.

It found that 𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 much faster than inflation and population growth.

📈 𝐁𝐂 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐭𝐚𝐱𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐮𝐩 𝟏𝟏𝟎% 𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟎 – 𝐧𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐨𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐝𝐚.
📈𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐫-𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐥 𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐦, 𝐁𝐂 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐭𝐚𝐱𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝟑𝟕%.

✔ 𝟖𝟖% 𝐨𝐟 𝐁𝐂 𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬, 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐊𝐚𝐦𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐩𝐬, 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐨𝐩𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡.
✔ 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐚𝐩 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐥 𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐜𝐲𝐜𝐥𝐞.

The report only includes data through 2024 and does not reflect increases since then, such as Kamloops' 20% increase in management remuneration in 2025.

𝐈𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐞𝐬, 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐭𝐚𝐱 𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐟𝐞𝐰 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬?

𝐁𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐯𝐨𝐭𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫, 𝐚𝐬𝐤 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 - 𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐫𝐞-𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧:

𝐇𝐎𝐖 they'll reduce spending.
𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 they'll prioritize.
𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄 they'll find savings.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐬 𝐪𝐮𝐨 𝐢𝐬𝐧'𝐭 𝐬𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞. 𝐊𝐚𝐦𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐩𝐬 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐬 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐭𝐚𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐛𝐲 𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥.

Link to report in comments.

07/31/2026

𝐖𝐞'𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐊𝐚𝐦𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐩𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐥 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐥 𝐂𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭.

Councillors make decisions involving many millions of taxpayer dollars that affect property taxes, utility bills, City services, and the future of Kamloops.

𝐁𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐯𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲, 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐚𝐥𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐚 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐝 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐲'𝐬 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠-𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐦 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐬, 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐣𝐨𝐫 𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐞𝐬 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲.

The Reading Checklist includes many of the key documents needed to build that foundation.

Many matters that come before Council are accompanied by reports and recommendations from City staff.
Familiarity with these key documents helps councillors critically evaluate those recommendations – 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐩𝐭 𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦.

𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝐭𝐚𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫𝐬.

Effective councillors:

✔ Evaluate recommendations independently
✔ Review and research supporting information
✔ Ask informed, tough questions
✔ Understand the costs, risks, and long-term impacts
✔ Make informed decisions in the best interests of taxpayers

𝐊𝐂𝐔 𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐊𝐚𝐦𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐩𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐥 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐩𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐥𝐲 𝐛𝐲 𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟏, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔. (Two months.)

A printable version with clickable links is available here:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1G4JVh_i6TiBb-xZYT7yW_RNC8yEjsU8-/view?usp=sharing

𝐖𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐚𝐬 𝐚𝐧 𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐯𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞.

𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬:
Brian Andrews: https://www.facebook.com/AndrewsForKamloops/
Rob Bertrand: https://www.facebook.com/robforkamloops
Kathrine Blair-Wunderlich: https://www.facebook.com/KathrineBW2026
Dennis Giesbrecht: https://www.facebook.com/Thisiskamloops
Troy Lowen:
Joe Mauro: https://www.facebook.com/jmm.mauro4
Christopher Mitra: https://www.facebook.com/MitraforCouncil
Doug Ronnquist:
Cindy Sonne: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61564741211316
Randy Sunderman: https://www.facebook.com/RandySforCouncil/
Nevin Webster: https://www.facebook.com/loopszer

07/24/2026

𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐥 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐌𝐚𝐣𝐨𝐫 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝐁𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐌𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐎𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧

In May 2024, the City confirmed to the RCMP that it intended to move forward with a new detachment.

Just two months later, Council launched the AAP to borrow for the PAC and Multiplex.

According to the RCMP's July 16, 2026 letter, they are still waiting for a formal update on the City's implementation plan and timelines for the new detachment.

The RCMP also reminds the City that providing and maintaining a suitable policing facility "𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐲" - it is 𝐚 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 under the Municipal Police Unit Agreement.

𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐀𝐂 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐌𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐱 𝐨𝐫 𝐧𝐨𝐭, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭'𝐬 𝐚 𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐚𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫.

𝑃𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑒.

KCU advocates for and serves as the public voice of concerned residents who prioritize transparency and accountability in municipal government.
We work to hold local officials fiscally responsible and responsive to community needs.

07/24/2026

𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟕 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐅𝐞𝐞 𝐇𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝟑𝟑% 𝐂𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫

At next Tuesday's Committee of the Whole meeting (July 28), City staff will ask the Committee to direct Administration to prepare bylaws for Council's consideration that would:

+💧 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐬 𝐛𝐲 𝟏𝟎%.
- 💧 𝐑𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐲 𝐛𝐲 𝟑𝟑%:

• Winter: 𝐂𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝟒𝟓 𝐦³ → 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝟑𝟎 𝐦³
• Spring/Summer: 𝐂𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝟗𝟎 𝐦³ → 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝟔𝟎 𝐦³

The staff report highlights an example showing only 𝐚 $𝟏𝟔 𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 for a household that stays within the new, reduced water allotment.

We applied the proposed rate structure to the actual water bills of one of our members - a 2,400 sq. ft. home with four people and a backyard pool.

Based on that household's actual water use over the past year, the proposed rates would increase their annual water bill by 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 $𝟏𝟐𝟎 (𝟏𝟓%).

Every household will be different depending on water use. After several years of utility and property tax increases, we'd like to see the City provide examples for a range of typical households - not just one that remains within the new reduced water allotment - 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐛𝐲𝐥𝐚𝐰𝐬.

*𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑠𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑓𝑓 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑜𝑛𝑙𝑦. 𝐶𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑐𝑖𝑙 ℎ𝑎𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑦𝑒𝑡 𝑣𝑜𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑦𝑙𝑎𝑤𝑠.

Link to report in comments.

07/20/2026

𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐖𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡 𝐎𝐮𝐭𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐲'𝐬 𝐋𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐞𝐞 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩

In 2025, the City spent $52,293,510 on wages for the City's largest employee group (CUPE employees and Program Instructors) - and $19,766,895 on management wages.

From 2024 to 2025, wages for the City's largest employee group increased 𝟕%, while management (including exempt) wages increased a whopping 𝟐𝟎% - rising from $16.47 million to $19.77 million, 𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 $𝟑.𝟑 𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫.

Management wages increased at nearly three times the rate of the City's largest employee group.

So:
• For every $1 taxpayers spent on wages for those employees, they spent another 38 cents on management wages.

Or:
• Nearly 22 cents of every payroll dollar went to management wages.

𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐥 𝐓𝐞𝐫𝐦:

2022: +𝟏𝟏.𝟒%
2023: +𝟑.𝟗%
2024: +𝟏𝟒.𝟐%
2025: +𝟐𝟎.𝟎%

𝐻𝑒𝑙𝑝 𝑘𝑒𝑒𝑝 𝐾𝑎𝑚𝑙𝑜𝑜𝑝𝑠 𝑖𝑛𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑑-𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑒.