I thought there were also laws in the city about leaving half built buildings up without finishing them. I am thinking of the house on top of the hill in the new small subdivision on the south west corner of Tyner and Hw 16. It must be under construction for about a year now. I thought such samll buildings were supposed to be completed within 6 months of construction start.

The Sandman on Hwy 16 is sure taking its time as well ..... 2 years by now it seems. Very unsightly with Tyvek flappin' in the breeze.

Then there is that building near 5th and Cassier as fifth turns into 4th. Looks like a boarded up building that's been there for decades.

What about the lack of sight obscuring fences on the Junk Yard on first Avenue around Queensway.

Why go after one lousy building? There are tons of other buildings and other land uses that are unsightly and ready to be torn down.

Well said gus!

Dpj may have come off sounding racist, but there is a basis for his complaint, although nationality or ancestry is not necessarily directly attributable to workmanship or adherance to standards and codes. It is the job of the inspecting authority to ensure that substandard practices are not tolerated. Unfortunately, imho, there is not enough inspection, therefore some people will forever try to save money by cutting corners on quality. Greed and love of money trancends nationality or ancestry,
although some cultures do raise the practice of profits at any cost to a fine art.
metalman.

That house with the windows broken has been in construction for over 2 years now. I moved into the area 2 years ago, and it was well on its way with the frame up.
It's a sign of the times, all of these lots for new houses and no one to buy them. People are broke.
I agree with you metalman. What you say is very true.

There should be a way that the city could put pressure on the owners insurance company rather than penelizing the owner themselves for something that is out of their control. Am refering to the building on 255 Quebec. Am interested in what happened to the owner of the old Columbus.
Did his insurance cover the cleanup costs that the city incurred.

some cultures raise the practice of profits at any cost to a fine art......hmmmm lets see...Conrad Black, Ken what ever his name was from Enron, how about that famous gold play out of Calgary a few years ago...... we damn whites sure raise the practice of profits at any cost to a fine art!!

The owner has a lawyer working on his behalf. If he City tears it down, and the owner has the money to retain the lawyer, or the lawyer does it on a contingency fee basis, we may see a case filed against the City that may be winable depending on the action/innaction on the part of both parties - City and Owner - since the fire.

The claim with respect to the insurance company will also start to be interesting if they were not willing to pay for a total rebuild. The issue will then become whether the insurers or the owner was complicit in pushing the City to this extent and causing the owner to loose any redidual value there might have been.

With racism surfacing once more on this web site, in this case likely due to people's limited experience with building owners, just remember that all races contribute to the roster of slum landlords and have their favourite ways of circumventing bureaucratic regulations.

It's really frustrating to read the racist comments posted on this blog.
The people in the north want doctors, dentists, professionals, lawyers and other professionals to be recruited to this area. Why would these professionals (especially ones of the cultures being generalized by the posters) want to come when they read such ignorant comments, cultural generalizations and racist remarks? As a doctor myself up here in the north, I must tell you, it's very disheartening to read.
Professionals looking to come to the north read the news of the area to get a feel for the people, the place, the culture, the tolerance. The comments people post do make the prospective people either feel welcomed or not.

May I remind you, racist remarks will not be tolerated. You will have your privileges removed.
Some of the remarks have been racist to a point of absurdity.
I also must remind you again, making accusations that something was being done at a home that was illegal, is not only libellous, but without any basis of fact, how would you like to have that charge levelled against you without any basis of fact. That is why we have libel laws.
Surely we must not have to go through the exercise of cancelling commenting privileges or remove the right for all because someone cannot understand the meaning of common sense
Ben Meisner.

Thanks Gus. Inappropriate business dealings are not dictated by specific ethnic groups.
Racism is fueled by ignorance and fear. I am glad to see this issue is promptly confronted on this website.
Back to the topic of the burned down building...
I agree with Downnotout. Insurance companies are notorious for not honouring their end of the deal. I feel the owner has done everything he can to rectify the situation. Demolition costs are huge.

"I feel the owner has done everything he can to rectify the situation."

I have no way of knowing but really I dont care. Its a terrible eyesore that needs to be demolished.

As far as the insurance company I know that when I have a legitmate claim I have never had problems with an insurance company.

I think city administration is at fault for allowing that fire damaged hulk of a building to beautify the area for over two years now.

Apparently the owner is being given a runaround by the people responsible for settling this claim in a speedy and equitable manner. It looks as if he is in a catch-22 situation.

Right after the fire the city administration's lawyers should have sent a registered letter to the insurer reminding them that prompt action is expected and no undue delays will be accepted for all the reasons already well known.

There should be a bylaw spelling out the expectations of the city whenever something like this happens, whether it be the result of fire, windstorm, floods, earthquake or some other insurable event.

It is still possible for the city to get involved at this level - if there is a will, of course.

BTW, skabowl1

"...we damn whites..." go ahead and think of yourself as such, as long as you don't include me in your denigrating assessment.

Even the people on the streets agree with everyone here about removing that particular building. Gus, those other buildings will get attention as they are noticed and the city gets rid of the other high profile condemned buildings.

Post some photos on Facebook or Photobucket so that people see them who can do things about them. That house that has been boarded up for decades is likely forgotten or perhaps the owner died or something. A few years go by and lawyers, city changes, higher profile places get noticed and taken care of. The house sits abandoned and lonely, waiting to collapse.

The Sandman likely ran out of funds for this project; it is an international outfit. They likely forgot about this site, perhaps they need reminding.

Photos get noticed people make it high profile by getting the right people to see them. Time passes and things happen one way or another. Houses lay abandoned and forgotten.

People noticed this building, took photos. Media focused on it after the Bus fire & made it high profile. Time took care of the Bus, unfortunately it took 2 people with it on it's fiery death journey.

"Even the people on the streets agree with everyone here about removing that particular building."

That is because people in general are not problem solvers. The do not understand what the issues are and how to solve them in both an imaginative way as well as a cooperative way.

People are too quick to get rid of stuff. Got a problem? Get rid of it. Move it somehwere else. Get it out of my sight.

On the assumption that the owner is correct, and the insurance adjusters may be correct, a good portion of the building is still usable and the building can be brought back up to a useable state, then the owner should be allowed to do that.

The one and only "problem" brought up by the City and the people on here is that it is unsightly. It is not a danger to the public passing by.

So wrap the building in a scaffolding wrap that some buildings under construction or being refurbished are wrapped in all over the world. The Bay on Georgia Street is one of those examples. The Hotel Georgia is now another example.

People are talking about painting murals on blank walls downtown. We have some already. Paint a mural on the wrap. Do whatever it takes to make the place interesting.

It really does not take a rocket scientist to think about these things that observant people see when they travel to communities outside of Prince George.

Here is the one that is now up around the Hotel Georgia while it is getting a total facade makeover.

I think we need to take the notion about becoming a more creative society a bit more serious. It can really help with improving the community all around.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/agent_86/2929924089

Sorry for being "Racist". You guys took my comments the wrong way. By the way, I am presently dealing with chinese relative issues. Probably why I am saying the comments. I do have good friend who is Chinese and is fine.

Have the two houses on Tyner passed inspection? I heard recently that one building exceeds the height restrictions and the other is not properly situated on the said lot. If this is true, the city can confirm it. And if it is true, shame on the builders responsible.

This building owner could apply for a court injunction if what he says is true.

Millns' lawyer will come to rue the day he agreed to represent him.

255 Quebec personifies PG. Crappy air, rising taxes, horrendous roads. No wonder everything stops at Quesnel. Even the train. Can hardly wait for Ospika to be paved. All three or four blocks of it. Lowest bidder again, eh? Grrrr.

Cosmetic condition of the building? Even a leper has a better cosmetic condition. Give me a break, even though I love the English language and the thesaurus.