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![\"There](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/stephenvillage_p4074481_p4077048_p4267118.jpg\")
<\/p>\nKeeping weapons out
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Photo: Contributed<\/p>\n
There have been multiple complaints about violence around the Stephen Village supportive housing complex in Kelowna.<\/p>\n
The province is making changes to the Residential Tenancy Act to keep weapons out of supportive housing.<\/p>\n
\u200bThe proposed amendments will clarify when and where the Residential Tenancy Act applies.<\/p>\n
\u200bThe changes will also give operators more power to temporarily ban tenants to de-escalate health and safety risks to other residents and staff. In extreme cases, the changes would allow operators to restrict access to tenants if they are waiting on an expedited Residential Tenancy Branch eviction hearing about someone posing a threat to residents, staff or guests.<\/p>\n
\u200b”The majority of the approximately 15,000 people living in supportive housing create a positive community in their homes and with their neighbours. Operators of supportive housing are calling for more tools and support to deal with rare problematic tenants and guests,” said Christine Boyle, Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs.<\/p>\n
“By providing new tools to keep tenants and staff safe, we can continue the vital work of helping people find stability in their lives, while also assisting those living and working in supportive housing to feel more comfortable and secure.”<\/p>\n
\u200bIn 2024, the Residential Tenancy Regulation was amended to exempt supportive housing from sections of the Residential Tenancy Act to enable guest management and wellness checks.<\/p>\n
Last summer, the Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs set up a working group to look at ways to address health and safety concerns in supportive housing.<\/p>\n
The ministry said the amendments are meant to protect the rights of tenants and staff by providing the tools to take quick and decisive action in rare instances of health and safety issues.<\/p>\n
“Balances are never easy to strike, especially when rights are at stake. The Residential Tenancy Act changes announced today do a good job of balancing the rights of people with the operational realities of supportive housing. Ultimately, these changes will help to ensure safer communities for residents and staff,\u201d said Jill Atkey, chief executive officer of the BC Non-Profit Housing Association.<\/p>\n
In Kelowna, neighbours have complained repeatedly<\/a> about violence around the Stephen Village supportive housing complex, operated by the John Howard Society. A petition was launched<\/a> in 2024 calling for it to be made a dry facility.<\/p>\n The province adds that by keeping supportive housing within the Residential Tenancy Act, it\u2019s ensuring people still have access to dispute resolution, including fair hearings.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Keeping weapons out Photo: Contributed There have been multiple complaints about violence around the Stephen Village supportive housing…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":515098,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[49,48,295,66],"class_list":{"0":"post-515097","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-environment","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-environment","11":"tag-science"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/515097","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=515097"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/515097\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/515098"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=515097"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=515097"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=515097"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}