Scouts attending Camp Dunlop in South Kelowna will no longer be able to sit around an open campfire to roast marshmallows or share stories.
Kelowna Fire Chief Travis Whiting confirmed on Friday the city denied approving the camp’s fire permit in the fall.
While the camp has traditionally had their fire permits approved by the city, Whiting said recent changes to the city’s fire regulations prevented it from approving the permit.
READ MORE: Central Okanagan Scouts look back in time
“We’ve seen updates to fire and life safety and clean air bylaws, which aims to eliminate smoke around our city limits,” said Whiting.
“As these regulations start to change, we are no longer allowing one property to do their own thing.”
Stricter open burning policies and tougher fire safety inspections are two reasons for why the fire permit couldn’t be approved, according to Whiting.
Whiting said the city has been pretty relaxed around the fire permits filed by the camp up until now.
“Camp Dunlop was the last camp permitted to do fires up until this year,” said Whiting.
“Now, this is simply a matter of us managing bylaws equally across the city.”
Despite the permit denial, the City of Kelowna does allow burning permits under certain circumstances between Oct.1 and April 30. Exceptions include properties that are bigger than one hectare like orchards.
The camp features a lodge, two bunkhouses and a large seating ring on 30 acres of land along Lakeshore Road.
An email to Scouts Canada nor the camp were not immediately returned.
@connortrembleyconnor.trembley@kelownacapnews.comLike us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
