Spallumcheen wants the Log Barn up to code

If you’ve traveled through the north Okanagan, you may have stopped in at the Log Barn.

However, the popular roadside attraction has caught the Township of Spallumcheen’s attention because of structures the municipality says were built without permits. The township also believes some aspects of the property don’t comply with the provincial building code.

An inspection earlier this year found seven areas where things needed to be brought up to code or didn’t have permits, including issues with handrails on stairs and guards on decks.

In a follow-up inspection, months later, only some of the work had been completed. Now Spallumcheen council has taken action and has put a notice on the property’s title.

“We decided that we needed to put a notice on title to protect the potential buyers, if there are any, and to let people know that we do have concerns with the building code,” said Brown.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We decided that we needed to put a notice on title to protect the potential buyers, if there are any, and to let people know that we do have concerns with the building code," said Brown.

The notice doesn’t force the Log Barn to take action. It simply acts as a notification to anyone interested in the property that the municipality has further information they may want to be aware of.

The notice could become especially relevant to potential buyers if the property is ever put up for sale.

The Log Barn owners did not respond to Global Okanagan’s requests for comment Thursday.

In documents submitted to the township, the Log Barn said it has now completed the work on some items and that it is appealing the validity of the other concerns.

However, the district says the notice will stay on the title till all the issues are addressed.

“We really want them to succeed, but we really need them to abide by the rules and I think they need to really be aware that safety is an issue,” said Brown.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We really want them to succeed, but we really need them to abide by the rules and I think they need to really be aware that safety is an issue," said Brown.

It will be up to a building inspector to confirm whether work done since the last inspection is enough to bring the business in line with the rules.

This isn’t the first time the Log Barn has been in the news.

Last fall, a Calgary woman set up a one-person protest outside the business. She was trying to collect full payment for services her business provided to the roadside attraction.

We followed up with Marnie Dickson Thursday. Dickson said she has since been paid.