What goes up...
Eye-catching display comes down after Town of Truro issues immediate danger notice
TRURO, N.S. – An eye-catching display set up by a local business may have been popular with the public, but it was a different story when it came to the Town of Truro.
On Nov. 27, Chris Grant used three vehicles to create an unusual exhibit in the parking lot of his business, Serious Sounds & Performance, at 82 Walker St. An old Blazer was driven onto two junk vehicles and secured with ratchet straps.
“It got a lot of attention, all positive, except from the town,” said Grant. “The building inspector, Pat Boyce, came in the next day, when I was in Halifax and told my employees it wasn’t safe and would have to come down.
“He put a notice on the wall, saying we had until Monday to do something. On Monday it was still up when he came in, so he came Tuesday with another letter, saying we had two days to remove it, but seven days to appeal.”
Grant’s lawyer told him it was up to the town to tell him what wasn’t safe and sent a letter to the town department.
“What we were looking for was confirmation that it was set up safe and didn’t pose a risk to people on the property or the adjacent property,” said Jason Fox, director of planning and development with the town. “What we need to see is proof from a qualified person that this is safe. We need to have something in writing. The onus is on the business owner to show what they’re doing is OK.”
Grant said he made efforts to ensure things were as safe as possible, including bracing the lower SUVS from the inside so they wouldn’t collapse, placing heavy vinyl on the windows, strapping the upper truck to both lowers with heavy ratchet straps and placing caution tape around the area that wasn’t fenced.
“I’ve seen displays like this up across North America,” he said. “When it’s done properly it’s the same as a vehicle on a ramp.
“I was tempted to leave it up out of spite, but we took it down that Thursday,” he said. “I probably would have left it up a few more days, but it wouldn’t have been there long because I didn’t want to plow around it.
“I’ve had grief from the town before and it’s really discouraging. I’d be happy to relocate to another area if someone wanted to buy the property in town.”