Fire hydrant is needed on Riddle Road, council to hear

Owners of nine properties on Riddle Road at the northern edge of Penticton will today ask city council to install a fire hydrant there to guard their homes and the Three Blind Mice trail network.

In a letter sent to council in advance of his scheduled presentation today, Doug Cox, chairman of the Riddle Road FireSmart committee, noted residents have already taken steps to cut the fire risk on their properties due to close calls in 1994 and 2003.

However, “The majority of residents are on wells, which limits the accessible water, and there is no water if the electricity is cut off to the wells,” Cox noted.

The letter was also signed by the heads of the cycling and disc golf groups that use the Three Blind Mice system, part of which is owned by the city.

“The request for the fire hydrant is not just for the benefit of the… residents of Riddle Road, it will ultimately be beneficial to all the user groups and individuals who use the (Three Blind Mice) trails on a daily basis,” Cox continued.

“It will also be beneficial to the City of Penticton as it will help protect their 320-acre asset, which we are sure the city would not want to see destroyed for the lack of a fire hydrant.

Cox’s proposal calls for tapping into an existing water main at Naramata Road and running a line to a new hydrant at the KVR Trail access on Riddle Road.

His is one of three presentations scheduled for council’s committee of the whole session. Also on the agenda are Jack Shepe, president of the Penticton Tennis Club, who is set to talk about expanding facilities to grow the sport, and RCMP Supt. Ted De Jager, who is scheduled to deliver quarterly crime statistics.

Following committee of the whole at 1 p.m., council will move into its regular meeting, the agenda for which is slim.

It includes proposed amendments to the Fees and Charges Bylaw that will hike the cost of everything from public swimming to power bills, and proposed rezonings of 703 Forestbrook Dr. and 161 Bassett St.

Council will reconvene at 6 p.m. for two public hearings: one on the proposed conversion of the former Super 8 Hotel to social housing and the other on the proposed construction of a new 75-room hotel on Eckhardt Avenue.

All meetings will be held in council chambers and are open to the public.