Okanagan Mayors Urge Province to Convert Oliver Prison into Mandatory Care Facility

Okanagan mayors and regional leaders, including First Nations representatives, are urging the British Columbia government to turn the unused space at the Okanagan Correctional Centre in Oliver into a mandatory and secure care facility.

They gathered outside the prison on Friday, highlighting that communities across the region are still dealing with a growing drug, mental‑health and social‑disorder crisis. “The need continues to grow on a daily basis. What is missing is action,” Kelowna Mayor Tom Dyas said.

Penticton Mayor Julius Bloomfield added that the focus must be on getting people the help they need, and that compassion should guide the response: “Let’s start helping the people that need help… leaving people on the streets is not compassionate.”

The mayors point to the Oliver facility’s low occupancy as a possible location for mandatory care. Oliver Mayor Martin Johansen noted that the centre, which has 401 cells, was housing about 200 inmates on an average day last year – well under half its capacity.

Health Minister Ravi Kahlon warned that simply changing the use of space is not enough. He said converting part of the prison into a mandatory care site would require proper infrastructure and the presence of health‑care professionals to deliver the needed services.

The mayors plan to keep pressing the proposal at the upcoming Union of B.C. Municipalities convention, where municipal leaders from across the province will meet with provincial ministers to present their idea.

“I believe this is a viable solution,” Johansen said, emphasizing that the proposal offers a concrete way to address the region’s intertwined addiction, mental‑health and public‑safety challenges.

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