City may force demolition of derelict Kelowna motel

KELOWNA – Kelowna city council will decide Monday whether to order the demolition of the former Ponderosa Motel on Harvey Avenue near Parkinson Recreation Centre.

The 16-unit motel shut down in 2011 and has been a thorn in the side of police and bylaw officers ever since, states a report going to council Monday, Sept. 24.

The report cites two cases in December 2015 when transient individuals were ousted from the motel buildings. In one instance, two men were camped out in the former office with a fire burning in the fireplace. Another fire, blamed on squatters, was doused in February 2018.

Fire officials fear someone could be seriously injured or killed if nothing is done.

Since Jan. 1, 2016, bylaw officers received 18 complaints including three about transients on site and six for unsightly premises. The RCMP have 110 files on the property, including 21 where people had to be removed.

The owners — listed in the report as Witmar Holdings of Kelowna — took out a demolition permit in 2012 but have done nothing since.

If approved, the owners will have 30 days after receiving the order to demolish the three buildings on site, clean up the debris and trim the vegetation.

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