Members of the Kamloops Central Business Improvement Association Customer Care and Patrol team are introduced at a media conference, Monday, May 16, 2016.
(BRENDAN KERGIN / iNFOnews.ca)
May 16, 2016 - 4:30 PM
KAMLOOPS - The Kamloops Central Business Improvement Association has a new team of street ambassadors.
The Customer Care and Patrol team is made up of 11 red capped 19- to 25-year-olds are taking to the streets to help tourists and increase safety downtown, business association manager Gay Pooler says.
“To have a successful downtown the number one thing is clean and safe,” Pooler says. “The CAP team being the first point of contact with a lot of our visitors, they give that whole friendly face and giving information.”
She says another benefit is the additional eyes and ears on the ground for bylaw officers and the RCMP.
Thompson Rivers University marketing student Ali Webster is a part of the team for a second year. She says her interest in tourism led her to the job but community safety is also a central focus.
City officials and business community members also spoke about the importance of the CAP team to downtown Kamloops at a media conference to introduce the team today, May 16.
RCMP Const. George Buttuls says the team is valuable as it’s the worst year he’s seen in downtown Kamloops for homelessness and the extra eyes on the ground help police observe any issues.
Pooler thanked all the supporters of the team, including Shirt Productions who donated $15,000 to the business association. The production company was behind the Power Rangers movie, which was shooting in the city's downtown last month.
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