The Regional District of Kootenay Boundary (RDKB) executed a court order to remove a number of illegal trailers from the Granby Road property of Peter Demski on March 28.
The RDKB contends that there had been complaints from nearby residents about the trailers, which were brought onto Demski’s property illegally and went against zoning bylaws.
The mobile homes were torn down and the debris was taken to the local landfill.
“Columbia River Homes was contracted to remove the trailers and they’re working with Boundary Excavating and Boundary Electric to do that work,” said Mark Andison, the RDKB’s director of planning and development. “Boundary Electric has been contracted to shut off the power to the buildings for safety reasons.”
While most of the trailers were taken down, there were two additional units that were moved onto the property after the injunction was issued and were not touched.
“They (the two trailers) won’t be removed because they haven’t been identified in the court order but we will be consulting with our lawyer to determine what course of action to take with it,” Andison explained.
He also said that there were a number of safety hazards regarding the trailers, including concerns with respects to electrical and sewage – Andison said that it was not known where the sewage was going
Demski disagreed with the assessment and said that there are no issues regarding sewage and electrical.
“I have a sewer system in place there and they’re all tapped into the same sewer – it was all professionally put in,” Demski explained. “It doesn’t hurt the river; I don’t see any contamination.”
Demski also said that he wasn’t happy with the way the RDKB handled his electrical system.
“They basically called the safety inspector down there and they disconnected me totally and now it’s going to cost me a lot of money to hook it back up again.
“They could’ve just pulled the wires out of the box, because the box that was put in there was put in professionally. All it didn’t have was the cover on it, that’s all.”
According to Andison, electricians said that there was an example of unprotected electrical lines servicing a trailer that were lying on the ground, not buried, with the only protection at the point where the two lines were connected being a plastic flower pot overturned on top of the splice.
Demski said he was under the impression that he had a year to dispute the Supreme Court ruling while Andison said that he would be contacting the RDKB’s lawyer regarding that, although he hadn’t heard anything as of press time.
Regardless, Demski hopes the RDKB doesn’t take action against the two remaining trailers.
“I was thinking I could get rid of one of the trailers and I’m allowed one dwelling on my property and I don’t see how they can really say no to the last trailer being there,” Demski said.
Andison said that Demski is allowed one dwelling but he already has one that is already designated as such.
“He’s got one on the north end of his property that’s been designated under the court order as the ‘one family dwelling’ that he’s permitted to maintain on the property. He’s renting out some form of dwelling further north along Granby Road that is on the same property,” explained the RDKB director of planning and development.
Members of Grand Forks RCMP were on hand as the injunction gave them the right to arrest anyone that prevented the order from being carried out but Andison said Demski co-operated with the RDKB.
According to Demski, residents that were living in the trailers moved out in December and he doesn’t have any plans to take any legal action.
“I can’t really afford to fight this whole thing and I’m kind of tired of it all,” Demski went on to say.