The owner of Northumberland Court has 30 days to demolish the townhouse complex.
Council moved Tuesday to take action against the dilapidated Fraser Street property Tuesday following an inspection on July 12, when district staff found the buildings had been broken into and wiring was tampered with.
The buildings have been found “insecure” eight times since January and the inspection found they are an extreme hazard to firefighters, should a fire break out in any of them.
Since January 2004, the fire department has responded to at least 72 calls from Northumberland Court, 11 of them fire-related.
Vancouver developer Ghalib Rawji, who now owns the property, has said he will demolish them within weeks.
Rawji bought the complex last year, after years of municipal and police frustration at controlling the drug haven.
He later bought the lot immediately to the west, with access to 224th Street, so he could build more apartments, as well as office space.
Rawji intends to submit final drawings to the district for 29 townhouses and a 24-unit apartment building by the end of August.
BIA gets support
Only one business in downtown Maple Ridge opposed the creation of bylaw to keep the business improvement association around for another five years.
The single opposing voice wasn’t enough to stop the district from giving the bylaw second and third reading on Tuesday.
It creates the framework for a higher levy, raising the total take next year from its 1,000 or so members to $193,500 from $163,500.
By the time the bylaw expires in 2016, the district will be collecting $213,600.
227th safer
Pedestrians and cyclists will be safer when they travel along 227th Street.
The District of Maple Ridge has awarded a $212,449 contract to Imperial Paving Ltd. to begin construction of traffic calming measures along the stretch.
Traffic circles and curb bulge-outs will be built at the intersections of 116th Avenue and Holyrood Avenue, while 227th St. will be narrowed by approximately 1.5 metres south of Holyrood Ave. to accommodate a multi-use path on the east side.
There will also be a designated bike lane on the west side of 227th St. between the Haney Bypass and Holyrood Ave.
