Belmont Rubble remains, few indications of removal ahead yet

It was five months ago today that the Belmont Hotel made for the most
recent significant downtown area fire

It’s somewhat fitting that the day after Halloween makes for the five month mark of the Belmont Hotel Fire and the daily visual display of the aftermath, the rubble from the downtown fire of May 1st still the focal point for those travelling the 700 block of the Third Avenue corridor through downtown. 

The rubble made for some background and near background in the recent civic election campaign, but hasn’t been a topic for those that were in the chamber over the last five month.

The aftermath of the May fire made for a video backdrop for Mayoralty candidate Jason Hoang, while successful candidate Herb Pond, featured an endorsement piece for his campaign not far from the site of the fire, the selfie however pointing towards the east over the west.

The topic of cleaning up the downtown area and other areas of the city, the still boarded up apartments of the Angus Apartments on First Avenue West from the December 2021 fire come to mind, has on occasion been a discussion topic for Council members.

There has been little activity towards a clean up
seen around the Angus Apartments
since the fire of December 2021

The timeline between when Prince Rupert Fire/Rescue roll up their hoses and when the site of the fires gets cleared is a lengthy one, with some of the past significant fires of the downtown making for months of rubble on display before a clean up is taken on.

One example is the Second Avenue West Fire of the fall of 2020, which took six months before the site was cleared in April of 2021.

The newest installation of The Council will all have opportunity to renew the theme in one week's time. 

That's when the new Council takes office on November 7th, offering the chance to seek an update on a clean up for Belmont site as well as to hit the ground running with a rededication towards improving the visuals of the downtown region.

Past notes on City Council Discussion themes can be reviewed from our archive page.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review.