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Friday, June 5, 2015
CNC GRADUATES PAGE A15
VOL. 101 NO. 79
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Relay Another Relay for Life event came to a close at 10 p.m. last Saturday night and after all was said and done, the event raised $74,000 for the Canadian Cancer Society. There were 17 teams with 128 participants and plans are already in the works for next year, however look for some revitalizing changes to make Quesnel Relay even better. For more photos see PAGE A3. Autumn MacDonald photo
Contractor lined up to remove brown cabins AUTUMN MacDONALD Observer Reporter A contractor lined up to demolish the brown cabins is treating the property as a hazardous site. “There’s asbestos, black mold, sharps,” mayor Bob Simpson said. “It’s another indicator of how bad those properties are.” Council directed staff to proceed with the demolishing of the buildings during Monday’s
council meeting. The decision came after a number of steps, kicking off in September of 2013 when the city received a request for a business application to increase the number of rental units. Business licenses are required for properties with three or more rental units. The business license was then refused following an inspection of the property in May 2014 due to a number of safety and
health concerns. In September 2014 the use of the property as a rental unit was ordered to stop. In October of 2014 council directed staff to work with the property owners to encourage “remediation of the site and pursue a remedial action order should no action be taken.” The city reiterated its cease business order, however operations continued and no plans to improve
the site were provided. In April of this year, council declared, under the Community Charter, that the buildings “create an unsafe condition and are a nuisance.” “In a span of three years there were 79 calls for emergency services,” Coun. Scott Elliott said. “That’s unacceptable. There’s much better ways our emergency services can be used.” Owners had until June 1
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to demolish the buildings, failure to do so resulted in council lining up a contractor. Staff provided a report to council Monday, advising the demolition costs for the site are estimated at $53,725. “This amount will be added to the owners’ taxes,” Simpson said. “Whether they pay it or not, is up to them.” The two tenants residing in the cabins were offered replacement housing.
“Staff at Seasons House have been phenomenal,” Simpson said. “Places have been found for both of them.” As of Tuesday the water had been disconnected, once the BC Safety Authority gives the green light, the gas and power will be shut off. “Once that’s done our contractor’s ready to go,” Simpson said. The demolition will take approximately 1.5 – 2 weeks.
14th Annual Quesnel & District Hospice Palliative Care Association
Hike for Hospice Sunday August 9, 2015
July 16th - 19th
Registration: 12:00 p.m. Hike: 1:00 p.m. LeBourdais Park
REGISTRATION - ADULTS $15 STUDENTS & SENIORS $5 CHILDREN UNDER 6 FREE