Kamloops Downtown Businesses

With natural disasters around every corner, Kamloops has seen an influx of evacuees. With this comes a growing homeless population. An issue the city was already failing to deal with. In the article linked below written by the staff at Kamloops This Week, we see information about Three new proposed shelters, the locations and what will need to happen for these to be viable options. This poses the question- Is this enough? With the temperature decreasing and housing becoming more dire, the demand for more shelters grows. The counter argument for these proposed shelters is where to put them. Many Kamloops citizens feel that the shelters bring crime to neighborhood areas such as Downtown, Westsyde, and the North Shore. Personally, I feel that the shelters are a necessity and that there will never be a perfect location for everyone. I feel the only way forward is to provide a better system in place for those needing the shelter to help get them back on their feet again to prevent crime from taking place. Allowing for a little more security to those in the neighborhood that these shelters are built in. 

Province announces three new shelters for Kamloops – Kamloops This Week

There is one thing the people of Kamloops can usually agree upon- that the housing crisis is getting out of hand. In a story written by Aaron Schulze for CFJC Today, we find a proposed solution; but one that comes with a large cost. The Kelson group has plans to redevelop a block in downtown Kamloops located on Nicola Street and replace it with apartments and condos. In Aarons article it is revealed that 12 out of the 20 houses to be demolished, can actually be moved to a new location. The local discourse surrounding this has been high. Some argue that this is still destroying some of Kamloops’ history, and moving these houses still requires someone to purchase it to do so. Others say that the history is worth removing in exchange for more dire living spaces. I agree with the latter. While I think maintaining history is crucial, housing Kamloops citizen’s is of more importance. Besides, history requires people, and if people leave Kamloops in search of more affordable housing, then future history will fail to be created. 

Downtown Kamloops homes in the path of City Gardens development offered for sale and relocation | CFJC Today Kamloops

Kamloops is a growing city with many citizens moving here to build a home. However, one area that always fails to grow is a place for the performing arts. In an article written by Shannon Ainslie for Info News, she brings to light a proposed project for downtown Kamloops. This project has been an ongoing debate on whether or not the 70 million proposed budget is worth it. On one hand, people think that Kamloops is in dire need of an arts location; a good portion of the remaining arts buildings are run down and too costly to try and repair. While others debate that the cost will only put Kamloops further into debt and take away even more parking, when that money could go to things like road repairs and necessities for the wellness of everyone. Personally, I believe adding a performing arts centre might just bring a little more life to downtown Kamloops, something it has been missing for a very long time. A place for concerts, performances and more would bring joy for years to come. Yet, only time will tell if this project will ever get to see fruition.  

Future of proposed Kamloops Performing Arts Centre remains uncertain | iNFOnews | Thompson-Okanagan’s News Source (infotel.ca)

Music credit to Lofi Records/Kanisan x no one’s perfect: https://lofirecords.com/blogs/releases/a-way-of-existing

For many stores the push for online shopping led to their inevitable doom. Oftentimes they are stuck in a race that will leave them behind in the dust of corporations such as Amazon or large chains like Walmart. However, not all hope is lost for these stores; the power to save their business lies in the hands of a small store’s greatest asset – local shoppers. So often we get lost in the conveniences of online retail that we lose sight of the importance of supporting our community and the small businesses found within it. Kevin Bailey the General Manager of Wild Cave Gift Shop helps us understand why our support is so crucial.

When asked what local shopping means to Bailey he went on to explain how it’s about supporting the community that we live in. When we support these shops we in-turn benefit from the growth these shops have. When businesses grow it creates more traffic for more stores to join alongside them. When a product sells they can buy greater quantities; this helps them reduce the upfront cost to the customer. Bailey stated: “When somebody takes away $500 from us and spends that on amazon it’s more like $5000 for us and $5 for [Amazon]. It’s pennies for them, but for us that’s a significant amount of money”. Money going directly to the store also helps influence their staffing capabilities; to ensure fair wages and to allow more staff in order to meet demand.

Some may argue that the benefits of shopping online outweigh the need to support local businesses. However, Bailey counters that with the cost of shipping, subscription costs, photo-to-product inconsistencies and the lack of human interaction; one of the beautiful things about visiting stores personally is the experience itself. You get the chance to meet people and experience moments that cannot be replicated through online retail. Unfortunately, this is often only possible when we have the support behind both the store owners and the customers.

A significant complaint amongst downtown stores is the lack of backing and advertisement from the downtown association. With a lack of parking and minimal publicity, downtown gets pushed to the side when compared to options like Walmart or mall complexes. This is especially necessary when it comes to the peak season of retail, when everyone is getting ready for the holidays. Stores gain the most amount of foot traffic in the later months of the year, but when faced with lower numbers due to the pandemic and the rise of online retail, sales and profit margins are still decreasing. For many owners, they have to rely on the community around them to maintain enough sales to keep them afloat for the year to come.

While this does not mean we have to stop enjoying and partaking in the benefits of companies like Amazon; the convenience and item diversity makes it an asset hard to avoid. However, the next time you have to go and buy someone a gift or to find a new shirt, stop to consider the businesses around you. Who knows, maybe you will find a new favourite spot. 

– Hannah Walker (Author)

Picture 1- The outside of Wild Cave Gift Shop.

Picture 2- Kevin Bailey the general manager of Wild Cave Gift Shop.

picture 3/4- A variety of products Wild Cave Gift Shop has.

Photographer- Hannah Walker