A downtown Kelowna business owner expresses anger over what she said about increasing incidents of violence in her business by people who appear to be homeless.
Raegan Hall – who has owned Blond Women’s Retail Boutique in Kelowna for 16 years – sent an open letter to the Kelowna Downtown Business Association on Thursday afternoon.
READ MORE: Counselor estimates Kelowna has nearly 2,000 homeless people
In the letter, Hall said many of her employees were becoming increasingly frustrated and apprehensive about the daily incidents they had with people downtown. Here is her email as written:
Hello again…
My name is Raegan Hall and I have been a downtown Blonde Women’s Retail Boutique store for 16 years. From the trenches, I can tell you that the everyday state of our inner city has never been so disappointingly embarrassing. Every day my employees report terrible annoyances from unsavory customers, the sole purpose of which is to hurl insults, scare and steal my employees and customers when they walk into my store.
These unfortunate residents have taken over. They have more rights than taxpaying residents. These are not weekly or monthly disruptions, but DAILY. My employees are afraid to come to work and the locals are less and less coming downtown because of this particular problem. Fortunately, my business thrives in the summer when the tourists venture the streets, but even they are choosing alternative destinations due to the increasingly sketchy Kelowna vibe. I’ve traveled a lot and always appreciated visiting downtown cities and towns.
Downtown matters, and that’s why I originally invested in Kelowna’s in 2004. Approximately 180 stores have closed or moved out of our downtown area since I started my business. If this homeless and drug-infested population is not treated quickly and properly, our once vibrant downtown area will become a ghost town overrun by a zombie apocalypse.
I am sensitive to the predicament of these people, and the solution is simple: shift the gospel mission. Our community grows with whiplash. The faster this move can be done, the better.
How can I help?
In an email response to Hall three hours later, Mark Burley, executive director of the Downtown Kelowna Association, said the incident was a widespread problem that was not addressed solely by the Gospel Mission.
While Burley admitted the problem was frustrating for everyone, his email highlighted at least one initiative the city is taking to deal with the escalating situation. Here is his answer:
Hello Reagan.
Thank you very much for your email.
The Downtown Kelowna Association is a permanent contributor to and advocates for all of Downtown Kelowna’s businesses. We consistently treat the types of people you refer to in your email. It’s a widespread problem downtown and is increasingly affecting us around Leon.
This topic is complex and very frustrating for everyone. The Downtown Kelowna Association’s Downtown on Call and Clean teams are out there every day doing their best to deal with situations and people who are issues they are not supposed to deal with. But they do.
The Gospel Mission in Downtown Kelowna has been present for 40 years. As the social problems change, the influx of people into your facility has grown immensely. This is just one more facet of the social problem we are facing.
DKA is in constant contact with the city and continues to work to make a difference for all of us who work, live and do business in Downtown Kelowna.
I will continue to update the membership with news as soon as it becomes available.
Thanks very much.
Mark Burley
Downtown Kelowna Association
In addition, a recent apartment assessment by the Regional District Central Okanagan found that waiting lists for affordable housing have increased 109 percent since 2012.
Of those 259 applicant waiting lists, 42 percent are low-income seniors.
@connortrembley
connor.trembley@kelownacapnews.com
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