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Kelowna  

District seeks compliance

The District of Lake Country is taking the unusual step of refusing to issue a business licence for a business not complying with municipal bylaws.

The measure is being taken against the Airport Inn Lakeside which, according to staff, has been non-compliant with municipal bylaws and the BC Building Code for nearly two decades.

But, why now?

Lake Country community development manager Jamie McEwan says, first and foremost, the municipality is after compliance.

"We try not to be too heavy handed in the approach, and try to work with people to come in compliance so their business can succeed," said McEwan.

"But, over time we have just had a number of incomplete files. This (licencing) is one more tool we are going to now in hopes of bringing the property into compliance with district bylaws and the BC Building Code."

While there have been issues with the Airport Inn since 1998, McEwan says things came to a head over the past 12 to 18 months.

Specifically, he says, around a stop work order in February of last year, for renovations being undertaken without permits.

"I started going through the file and said, it's time. It's time for us to do it. It's part of us being more integrated in our approach across departments and functions."

That integration included the business licencing function at municipal hall coming under the community development umbrella.

McEwan says a business licence will not be issued for the Airport Inn Lakeside until the non-compliance issues, mainly to do with public health and safety, are remedied.



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