City council’ s actions created homeless crisis

Throughout the course of history there are historical events that are started by a single act. The Invasion of Poland started the Second World War. Storming of the Bastille in 1789 led to French Revolution. The 2022 Penticton homeless fiasco was created in October 2020 with a 6-0 city council approval of a homeless shelter, wet facility at the old Victory Church.

The approval was granted by Councillors Judy Sentes, Campbell Watt, Katie Robinson, Julius Bloomfield, Frank Regehr and Mayor John Vassilaki. Thousands of our citizens told them “no.” The will and vote of the citizens were ignored.

Many citizens had the foresight to predict what would happen to our city and downtown core in the future; if this was approved. Unfortunately they were 100% correct.

We were treated daily to passed- out homeless addicts in our downtown core. Business and bank windows smashed. A violent assault of a senior female business owner. Homeless shopping carts all over our downtown core. Removal of our city benches to prevent the drug addicts and homeless from sleeping all day on.

Constant ambulance, fire trucks, police sirens all hours of the day in the downtown core to deal with overdosed drug addicts. Severe increase of property crimes and bike thefts. The public spectacle of Mayor Vasillaki fighting with Housing Minister David Ebby to close the shelter. This put Penticton in the national spotlight.

Homeless people from elsewhere are moving to Penticton. We have a great city council welcome package to offer them. Free shopping carts, well-stocked soup kitchen, a nightly roaming bus for drug injections, property crime that’s never investigated, a roaming nightly van to hand out snacks and beverages to keep up their energy as they steal our property.

Coun. Sentes will not be missed and will be remembered for ignoring the will of the public and the homeless fiasco that she helped to create and approving the 2016 Skaha Lake Parl waterslide fiasco.

The remaining councillors and mayor (excluding James Miller) will be joining her in retirement as the public votes this council out. Mike Hawley Penticton