(JENNIFER STAHN / iNFOnews.ca)

Kamloops is on track to take out millions of dollars in loans for new civic buildings and a police station, but the total cost for a new RCMP detachment alone appears to have doubled since last year's estimate.

There was no mention of looking for another option for the RCMP detachment at a council committee meeting in October 2023. At that time city staff favoured a $77-million detachment that would become a new city hall in about seven years.

The $77-million version would see city staff from both city hall, and the development and engineering offices move into the detachment once the RCMP grew out of it.

After having three preliminary designs drawn up, an initiative funded through $4.75 million in debt, the latest proposal estimates the cost a new police station at around $150 million, which should meet the RCMP's needs for 30 years, leaving out any mention of the building becoming a future city hall.

The $150 million loan, if approved, won't be part of the other $275 million debt under the Build Kamloops moniker. Together they would bring the city's debt payments to around $20 million per year by 2028, according to a recent city staff report.

A 2023 report that detailed the cheaper police station projects called it the "furthest advanced" in the Build Kamloops plans, before it was removed from the initiative.

READ MORE: $150M Kamloops RCMP station to cost triple Kelowna's detachment

It was after that October 2023 committee meeting that staff and RCMP sought a third option, now eyed as the best choice.

Kamloops is looking at a spike in debt costs as the performing arts centre and a new arena inch closer to approvals, along with several other projects under Build Kamloops. Last summer, residents were told the average home assessed at $800,000 would see a $25 property tax increase annually for five years to pay for the first $275 million debt.

Between an arts centre, a new arena and an RCMP detachment, Kamloops is looking at a combined $425 million in new debt over the next few years. There are no publicly available projections from the City yet, but rough math following the same formula could see that annual tax increase nearly double to $46 per year.

Payments will stagger over the years and City projections have the combined debt load peaking in 2031 with around $400 million at one time, roughly half of the allowable limit.

The limit is provincially mandated and allows local governments to put up to a quarter of its annual budget toward loan payments. Most cities refrain from going above 8% and that's as high as the debt load would go in Kamloops before adding the RCMP detachment on top of Build Kamloops projects, according to city documents.

Kelowna is approaching similar debt levels, largely due to a similar plan to build new civic facilities.

The Building Stronger Kelowna initiative is eyeing $287.5 million in new construction for multiple new facilities, including a new Parkinson Recreation Centre. The addition of the multi-million dollar airport expansion and other loans will bring Kelowna to put around 12% of its total budget toward debt by 2031.

The difference is that Kamloops, with a budget of around $150 million and nearly 60,000 fewer people, will pay off its loans over 30 years. Kelowna, with its $200 million budget and around 150,000 residents, aims to pay off its debts in 15 years.

READ MORE: How Kelowna expects to pay a $241 million loan at only $100 per household per year

For Kamloops, another round of loans could come in less than four years.

The 2024 Alternative Approval Process that saw two Build Kamloops loans approved was of two times when the City will come to ask taxpayers for their blessing. The second, not including the proposed RCMP detachment, is expected to be in 2028. That phase plans for an indoor soccer field and a new pool, though there are no costs projected yet and planning won't start until at least next year.

In addition to the arts centre and the arena, another facility for curling and racquet sports is on the table and will likely be funded through debt already approved last fall.

Just where a new city hall would fit among the building wish list in Kamloops isn't known.

The future of the $275 million in Build Kamloops loans still isn't known as it's the subject of a court challenge. If the City loses, it's likely the projects will be delayed and voters will be asked to head for a referendum.

Council will meanwhile decide on the future of the proposed Kamloops RCMP detachment, which would likely be part of another Alternative Approval Process.

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