Disturbing CVRD didn’t do more about derelict Pioneer Square
Dear CVRD directors:
It’s disturbing indeed our CVRD staff did not push harder months ago to have derelict Pioneer Square Mall buildings demolished.
The eyesore mall’s former restaurant outbuilding sat vacant for years, allegedly threatening to spill debris and toxins into an adjacent fish-bearing stream.
A May 27, 2022 fire finally, not surprisingly, razed the vacant complex. The blaze sparked hours of traffic gridlock, stalled thousands of motorists, risked local fire crews, and polluted Mill Bay area’s air and that nearby stream.
Thankfully no one was injured.
Pioneer Square experienced two fires this earlier year, but those blazes failed to elicit enough preventative action among CVRD directors.
Surely our bylaws permit stronger proactive thinking and working with property owners — in this case Victoria’s Limona Group — long before a mess such as Pioneer Square’s fire fiasco happens.
If our bylaws are too weak to allow such cogent action, local taxpayers deserve stiffer legislation from our CVRD directors to help our bylaw staff.
Directors, please heed and act on clear lessons to be learned from this unnecessary comedy of errors.
Yours in health and safety,
Peter W. Rusland
North Cowichan