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INVITED TO BANFF FESTIVAL
BEGINS THIS MONTH
SUMMER
Weather Forecast JUNE 9—10
Scattered showers, cool
JUNE 11—15 Sunny, cool
JUNE 16—23
Scattered showers, cool
JUNE 24—30 Sunny, turning hot
JULY 1—6
Rainy periods, cool
Volume 15 Issue 6 > JUNE 9 — JULY 6
@sunpeaksnews /sunpeaksnews
NEW STAFF ACCOMMODATION
YOURS FREE TO TAKE HOME
“It’s designed very much to support the wellbeing of the mountain”
under construction Hostel site to transform to multi-use building
Artist’s rendering of the planned building | PHOTO SUBMITTED
by JEAN STRONG
T
he distinct red-roofed hostel near the bottom of the Burfield chairlift welcomed visitors to their vacations and locals home for many years. The morning of May 20, construction crews gathered, and by the end of the day the hostel had been demolished. All that remained was a deep hole and a pile of rubble. Some on social media expressed sadness at the loss and even the hostel’s owner Ash Hanna said a part of him was emotional at seeing it go. But plans to redevelop the site meant the rounded roof and 38 beds inside had to go, and
The end of an era, the hostel was demolished May 20 | PHOTOS SPIN
Hanna is looking forward to the next stage. By the end of November 2017 he said he hopes to have most of the construction complete, ready just in time for the new ski season and arriving staff. The new building will house 90 people, including much needed accommodation for resort and village staff. Hanna’s mother and brother had been searching for a lake house in Interior B.C. 13 years ago when they stumbled across Sun Peaks and the hostel, which was for sale. One excited call to Hanna later and it
was theirs. His brother managed it for many years but eventually it was up to Hanna to own and run the business while his family split their time between Australia and Sun Peaks. Hanna said he started to think about changing or refreshing the hostel but the 2008 recession hit the area. “I thought ‘I’ll leave it the way it is,’” he said. “I thought about selling but it was not the ideal time.”
In November 2015, he said he started thinking of change again. “I went to an architect and I
said ‘let’s see what we can do with the property,’” he said. “We knew it was due for renovation, it was tired. The old girl stood there for a long time without any drama.” Hanna said he looked at many options before settling on the final plan. Residential units, apartments or a new hostel were all considered. He said meetings with the municipality told him high density housing was needed. His first application for residential units was declined by council because of insufficient CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE
Vol 15 Issue 6 June 9 — July 6
sunpeaksnews.com
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