Six summer CAP team members will once again return to Kamloops in the coming months.
Downtown Kamloops BIA Executive Director Howie Reimer says six additional “red shirts” will be patrolling both the downtown core and the North Shore for 16 weeks in the coming months.
Speaking to Council Tuesday, Reimer says similarly to last year, the summer CAP team will be paid for by the City, despite new changes from Ottawa.
“Service Canada has reversed its decision, once again, and granted a not-for-profit designation to the BIA’s, increasing eligibility for Canada Summer Jobs Funding,” he said.
“However, due to oversubscription of the program, securing funds is tenuous.”
Reimer says thanks to the safeguard provided by the city, the summer CAP team will go ahead with six “red shirt” members.
“Those six students will get the opportunity to acquire valuable work experience in a variety of skills from first aid, drug awareness, hospitality, marketing, events, planning, and more to springboard into an array of career paths.”
Reimer says CAP is integral to their events, activating space, collecting data, conducting surveys, and distributing materials to businesses, noting they communicate regularly with the Outreach Community Services and the Kamloops RCMP.
He says CAP team members now receive additional mental health, first aid, and de-escalation training.
Last year, the Downtown Kamloops BIA was left scrambling to find $60,000 to hire their summer CAP team, after Ottawa lowballed their funding request, offering only half the amount needed to hire the six summer CAP team members.