Three weeks after it opened, the plug has been pulled on a water-based business in the Okanagan.
The provincial government has told the owner of Whiplash Cable Wake Park that his operation is illegal and he could be fined thousands of dollars.
On Friday, the provincial government served legal notice to owner Conrad Wiker that he was occupying Crown land without lawful authority.
“For us to be suddenly shut down is shocking to say the least, beyond disappointing,” Wiker said.
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The Westbank First Nation has a government issued lease to operate a marina in the area. Wiker says the band gave him permission to piggyback his cable park operations onto that existing lease.
“We were issued a sublease allowing us to use both the land and water rights. The provincial government says that is not the case. They hold governance over it,” Wiker said.
Wiker says the solution is to either designate his businesses as a lawful amenity to the existing marina on the other side of the bridge or amend the band’s lease to allow the park to operate.
“A simple amendment to the existing marina lease, owned by the Westbank First Nation would solve all this,” he said.
Not so, says a government spokesperson in Victoria.
They say Wiker has to apply for and obtain a new stand-alone lease for his cable park.
Although the government says it will give his application priority treatment, Wiker does not believe that will happen any time soon.
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