A new survey released to Kamloops Council shows the new leadership in the city has a lot of work ahead of it to make people happier than they were.

The survey was conducted by an outside firm, Forum Research, in November — shortly after the election.

It shows, among other things, that 64-percent of those asked now say their life has gotten worse in Kamloops since 2019.

“Fewer than 1 in 10 (7%) of Kamloops residents think life has improved over the past three years, while more than 6 in 10 (64%) think that it has worsened,” shows the results of the survey. “Less than 3 in 10 say the quality of life has stayed the same.”

The same analysis suggests Kamloops isn’t performing well among different demographics as far as satisfaction is concerned.

“Those most positive about Kamloops’ trajectory tend to be younger with 2 in 10 (20%) of those aged 18-34 saying quality of life has become better,” notes the survey. “Middle-aged residents are the most negative. Only 1% of those aged 45–54 say that quality of life has become better and 79% say it has become worse.”

Pollster Winsome Stec says there are a number of factors behind this.

“The most common issues that residents identified were homelessness, poverty and increases in crime or issues of safety,” said Stec. “But, residents also identified that Kamloops still has many livable qualities.”

That suggestion has been echoed by Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson, who suggested during the release of the survey that a lot of people around the world know and respect Kamloops.

“As a matter of fact, when I was in Cabo, I met up with Gord Bamford,” said Hamer-Jackson. “He’s a country music star, and he’s from Alberta. He loves and supports Kamloops.”

The survey was commissioned to try to help the new council through its strategic planning process, which is due to get underway later in January.