The Kamloops Central Business Improvement Association will be conducting surveys this summer asking residents, visitors, and business owners their thoughts about the temporary extended patios.

Executive Director, Carl DeSantis, says the results will determine the recommendation the KCBIA makes to City Council in the fall about the future of the program.

“We’ll provide full disclosure regarding the results from this feedback and its up to council,” he said. “Ultimately, I believe that the recommendations that we present to council will be based on information from the entire community, therefore it will give us a really strong position to present.”

Yesterday, the B.C. government announced that restaurants and bars that were temporarily allowed to serve liquor on outdoor patios areas could apply to keep them permanently to help with their long-term recovery plan.

In doing so, Solicitor General Mike Farnworth also announced that temporary patios will be allowed to keep operating through to June 1, 2022 – as long as there are no concerns raised by local governments and Indigenous Nations.

“Temporary patios have been a lifeline for so many businesses and workers in the hospitality sector, and we’re committed to making these expanded serving areas part of their long-term recovery and beyond,” Farnworth said, in a statement.

Kamloops has seen a lot of demand for these temporary outdoor patios, the majority downtown, but also on the North Shore and elsewhere within city limits. Whether those patios become a permanent fixture remains to be seen. For now, these patios in Kamloops will be operational until October 31, 2021.

While DeSantis is a fan of the temporary patio program, he notes it is important to gauge the thoughts of the community as well so that it is successful in the long run.

“The feedback I’ve received so far has been incredibly supportive regarding the extended patio program. But it can’t just be about us,” he said. “It has got to be a community position that we take when we go to council.”

“Initially the survey will be conducted by members of our CAP team downtown and we’ll try to engage the community that way. Will we open it up on our website? Perhaps. But its necessary to really engage people who have experienced the impact of the patios.”

Kamloops City Council is paying the cost to build extended concrete sidewalks to make room for those patios. So far they’ve approved up to $350,000 towards that, with money coming from the COVID-19 Safe Restart Fund provided by the B.C. government.