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Les Bellamy
Independent for Kelowna Council
Housing & Homelessness
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Affordability
Reduce unnecessary municipal costs and barriers that make housing more expensive.
City Hall can't control every factor affecting housing prices, but it can control the costs, regulations and approval processes it imposes. We should understand their impact on affordability.
Use Kelowna’s voice to push back when senior government policies unnecessarily increase housing costs.
Council may not control provincial building requirements, but we can measure their local impact and advocate for change when added costs or regulations aren't producing enough public benefit.
Building Maintenance & Occupant Health
Support reasonable standards that keep existing housing safe and habitable.
Adding housing supply matters, but so does protecting the homes we already have. Standards should focus on genuine health and safety concerns without creating unnecessary costs.
Homelessness
Support solutions to homelessness that combine appropriate help with accountability.
Homelessness, addiction, mental health and criminal behaviour are different issues and shouldn't be treated as one. We need the right response for each, while protecting the safety and use of our public spaces.
Housing Accessibility
Support housing choices that work for people of different ages, abilities and stages of life.
Accessibility should be practical. City policy should make it easier to adapt existing homes and encourage new housing that can accommodate changing mobility and accessibility needs.
Indigenous-Led Housing
Work constructively with Indigenous housing providers on projects proposed in Kelowna.
Proposals should be evaluated fairly on their merits, with the City helping resolve municipal barriers where appropriate and within its authority.
Property Taxes
Respect taxpayers by making sure City spending delivers measurable value.
Keeping taxes reasonable matters, but so does maintaining services residents rely on. I will focus on what we spend, why, and whether taxpayers are getting the promised results.
Public & Assistive Housing
Support supportive and assisted housing where there is a demonstrated need and a clear operating plan.
Funding a building is only part of the solution. Council should understand who it will serve, how it will operate, what supports will be provided and how outcomes will be measured.
Rent & Rental Stock
Plan for the rental housing Kelowna will need tomorrow, not simply what is needed today.
Today's rental supply is strong, but needs change. We should plan ahead and encourage more choice, including ground-oriented family rentals, not just apartments.
Zoning
Remove unnecessary zoning barriers while protecting responsible development and the public interest.
I would look at which regulations repeatedly require variances or add cost and delay. If a rule isn't producing a clear public benefit, we should be willing to reconsider it.
Local Government & Democracy
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Budgeting
Apply a consistent test to major spending decisions before committing taxpayer dollars.
What problem are we solving? What will it cost? How will we measure success? Who is accountable if it fails? What are we choosing not to fund instead?
Good Governance
Support an independent external review of City operations.
Any organization of this size should periodically look for duplication, inefficiencies and opportunities to do things better. The goal is better value and better service, not simply cutting costs.
Public Engagement
Engage residents before major decisions are made, while there is still an opportunity to influence them.
Public engagement should be earlier, broader and measurable. We should report how many people participated, what we heard, what changed as a result and why.
Youth Engagement
Create more opportunities for young people to participate in decisions about Kelowna’s future.
Young residents will live longest with the decisions we make today. We should actively seek their input, rather than expecting them to find their way into traditional City engagement processes.
Public Safety & Policing
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Non-Police-Based Public Safety
I will support using the right resources for the right situations, allowing police to focus on crime and public safety.
Not every call requires police. Where other trained professionals can respond more effectively, we should use them, allowing police to focus where they are most needed.
Police Funding
Support police resources that keep pace with Kelowna’s growth and public safety needs.
Additional resources should come with accountability. We should know what problem the funding will address, what results we expect, and how success will be measured.
Police Wrongdoing & Accountability
Recognize the limits of municipal authority over RCMP conduct and accountability.
The RCMP is a federal police service with established processes for complaints and misconduct. City Council cannot create its own system outside its authority.
Upstream Causes of Crime
Address the causes contributing to crime and disorder while balancing compassion with accountability.
Addiction, mental health, homelessness and crime are not the same problem. We need appropriate help for those who need it, while protecting the safety of residents and businesses.
Community Safety
Use every reasonable tool available to make Kelowna’s neighbourhoods and public spaces safer.
We should measure whether our public safety policies are actually working. If they aren't, Council needs to understand why and be willing to consider a different approach.
Climate Change, Heat, & Fires
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Zoning
Remove unnecessary zoning barriers while protecting responsible development and the public interest.
I would look at which regulations repeatedly require variances or add cost and delay. If a rule isn't producing a clear public benefit, we should be willing to reconsider it.
Public Spaces & Services
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Zoning
Remove unnecessary zoning barriers while protecting responsible development and the public interest.
I would look at which regulations repeatedly require variances or add cost and delay. If a rule isn't producing a clear public benefit, we should be willing to reconsider it.
Reconciliation & Indigenous Nations
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Indigenous-Led Housing
Work constructively with Indigenous housing providers on projects proposed in Kelowna.
Proposals should be evaluated fairly on their merits, with the City helping resolve municipal barriers where appropriate and within its authority.
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Biography
submitted by the candidate or their team
Les Bellamy has called Kelowna home since he was 19. A local business owner for more than 30 years, he has created jobs, led professional organizations and been actively involved in charitable, civic and community initiatives throughout the city.
Les Bellamy moved to Kelowna when he was 19 years old with two garbage bags strapped to the back of his motorcycle. He rented a basement suite and worked nights in a restaurant, days in construction and played music on weekends.
More than 30 years later, Les is a longtime local business owner and employer who has built his career and his life in Kelowna.
Over the years, he has taken an active role in the community, serving in leadership positions with professional organizations and contributing his time and experience to charities, community initiatives and issues affecting Kelowna.
Les and his wife Pat have lived in several parts of the city over the years, including Rutland, the Lower Mission, North Glenmore and the Upper Mission. Today they live downtown. That experience has given him a firsthand appreciation for how different the challenges and priorities can be from one part of Kelowna to another.
His career has been built around making difficult decisions, managing budgets, solving problems and being accountable for the results. Those are the same principles he believes should guide decision-making at City Hall.
Reason for running
submitted by the candidate or their team
I’m running because too many major decisions are made before residents have had a meaningful opportunity to be heard. I believe better decisions come from asking better questions, listening earlier, measuring results and being accountable for the outcome.
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