Lennox and Addington OPP arrested and charged a Kingston man in connection with fires that burned down the Lennox Agricultural Society’s Community Centre in Napanee and a garage on Curl Road in Stone Mills Township.
Carol McKinley, president of the Lennox Agricultural Society, said it was her garage that was burned down, along with the community centre on Oct. 23.
McKinley said she’s glad an arrest has been made because the fires were an unsettling experience.
“We’re very relieved about that, yes. It’s been a trying 10 days,” McKinley said.
“This whole area around our home — they’ve all been so scared and frightened about what’s happening and what’s going on and unfortunately just who might be next.”
One of the reasons residents in McKinley’s neighbourhood have been on edge is there was a second garage fire two doors away, and only two days after McKinley had the fire on her property.
The second garage fire has also been deemed suspicious and is still under investigation by police.
Mckinley says fortunately no one was injured in any of the fires but the Agricultural Society has some tough days ahead when it comes to determining the next steps for the community centre.
“It’s very preliminary about rebuilding and what that might look like if we intend to,” McKinley said.
Whatever the Agricultural Society decides, McKinley said the community support so far has been heart-warming.
“All of the community groups that we had within our facility, they’ve all been very supportive,” McKinley said.
Jay Nelson Bradley, 49, of Kingston, has been charged with two counts of arson with disregard for human life, criminal harassment, and threatening conduct along with possession of incendiary material.
Bradley has been held for a bail hearing and will be scheduled to appear at the Ontario Court of Justice in Napanee.