A Lake Okanagan Resort (LOR) homeowner is pushing the provincial housing minister to 乌鸦传媒渟how up乌鸦传媒� for the community.
Nearly two years after the McDougall Creek wildfire tore through the resort, residents like Heather Ormiston say they are still stuck乌鸦传媒攗nable to rebuild, unable to return, and unable to get answers from the resort乌鸦传媒檚 ownership or the provincial government.
乌鸦传媒淲e乌鸦传媒檙e not asking for special treatment乌鸦传媒攚e just want to restore our homes,乌鸦传媒� Ormiston said.
The fire destroyed most of the resort乌鸦传媒檚 infrastructure in August 2023, including water and sewer systems owned and operated by LOR. The resort is owned by DHi Holdings Inc., a company based in Richmond. A group of Chinese investors acquired the resort in 2014.
乌鸦传媒淭hey乌鸦传媒檙e doing everything in their power to not have to move forward with restoring that water utility,乌鸦传媒� Ormiston said. 乌鸦传媒淔or the majority of the last two years, they have ignored our emails. And when push comes to shove and they do respond, it乌鸦传媒檚 either lies, it乌鸦传媒檚 stall tactics, or it乌鸦传媒檚 inflated estimates.乌鸦传媒�
Ormiston cited one early claim from the company乌鸦传媒攖hat the fire had destroyed the water plant乌鸦传媒攚hich she said turned out to be false.
乌鸦传媒淲e insisted on doing a visual inspection,乌鸦传媒� she said. 乌鸦传媒淭he water treatment plant wasn乌鸦传媒檛 even touched by the fire. It乌鸦传媒檚 in pristine shape.乌鸦传媒�
With no clear plan from the resort owner, residents say their only path forward is to create a solution themselves.
乌鸦传媒淲e came up with this viable solution for us to go it alone,乌鸦传媒� Ormiston said. 乌鸦传媒淏e independent of LOR.乌鸦传媒�
She and her neighbours, who make up the 99-unit Strata KAS 520乌鸦传媒�49 of which are still owned by LOR乌鸦传媒攁re now proposing to build an independent water treatment facility, with plans to hand over its operation to the Regional District of Central Okanagan (RDCO). An architect is working on the plans and has agreed to attend a meeting with residents, and area politicians to present the proposal and discuss possible disaster relief funding.
The proposed system would only serve residents of Strata KAS 520, which has the advantage of owning the land surrounding its building乌鸦传媒攁 benefit not shared by other stratas at the resort.
Ormiston said frustrated homeowners approached Victoria for help, only to be told it乌鸦传媒檚 a private legal matter. She flatly disagrees. Since the province issues and licenses water utilities, she argues, it retains oversight responsibility.
乌鸦传媒淭his is a provincial government issue,乌鸦传媒� she said. 乌鸦传媒淔or the government to try to wash its hands of the problem and force citizens into litigation is abandonment on the provincial government乌鸦传媒檚 part.乌鸦传媒�
In a statement to Black Press Media, Housing and Municipal Affairs Minister Ravi Kahlon acknowledged the difficult circumstances.
乌鸦传媒淚 recognize that this is a challenging situation and my hope is that everyone involved can work together to resolve the issue,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淯nfortunately, this may need to be done through the courts. In this case, an overseas owner has control, and we don乌鸦传媒檛 have the ability to intervene from the province.乌鸦传媒�
In the same statement, a Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship spokesperson explained that LOR residents have been told that they have options. They can ask their local government to provide water or apply for their own water licence to draw directly from the lake, avoiding the resort乌鸦传媒檚 private utility.
A cost estimate for a new system has been shared, but it could be expensive due to a smaller customer base.
Ormiston maintains the province has a responsibility to homeowners, who have gained support from RDCO director Wayne Carson, MP Dan Albas, and MLA Macklin McCall for their proposed independent system. The only person still missing from the conversation, she says, is B.C.乌鸦传媒檚 Housing Minister.
乌鸦传媒淲here乌鸦传媒檚 our housing minister?乌鸦传媒� she asked. 乌鸦传媒淗e乌鸦传媒檚 a huge voice to advocate for us.乌鸦传媒�
She believes that, if support and approvals do come through soon, rebuilding could begin quickly.
乌鸦传媒淲ithin a year, absolutely,乌鸦传媒� she said.
Black Press Media contacted a DHi Holdings representative for comment but has yet to receive a response.
