Photo: City of Penticton
The piles of broken wood and glass left over from a Penticton heritage home are a reminder of the fire that broke out in March. Months after the fire, the city wants homeowners to take steps to clean it up.
City Hall will discuss the fate of Warren House at 434 Lakeshore Drive West on Tuesday, and staff will advise owners to demolish and remove the fire-damaged structure and level the site to make it safe.
The 110-year-old lakefront house, which was recently a bed and breakfast, was set on fire on March 7 by a gas explosion that resulted in the total loss.
The property was considered “unsightly and cluttered as offensive to the community” and has been declared a nuisance requiring corrective action.
Staff recommends that the board set a time limit for completing all the corrective action requirements described no later than 4:30 pm on July 11, 2022.
In addition, a deadline should be issued for notifying in writing a request for the City Council to reconsider the corrective action requirements described no later than 4:30 p.m., June 27, 2022.
The city’s building and permits department sent a standard letter of fire-damaged buildings to homeowners on May 3, encouraging contact to discuss requirements for a building permit for the structure.
In the report, staff stated that on May 16 Bylaw received a complaint, alleging that the structure was still unsightly and that they were concerned that the exposed materials could be dangerous to the health of the neighbors.
Staff treated the property on May 19 and determined the property was unsightly due to the various piles of fire-damaged debris, blackened trees and exposed concrete foundations of the structure.
No evidence was found that an attempt had been made to clear the fire.
On May 20, the owners were contacted regarding the status of the property and future plans.
According to the staff report, the owners had been waiting for an insurance claim to be approved for eight weeks and were not willing to spend any additional funds on the property until this process was completed.
“Landlords reported that there were currently no redevelopment plans for the property at this time.”
If the owners have not fully completed the corrective action requirements before that time, the City Council will intervene and the costs of repairing the property will be borne by the owners.
Casey Richardson