A Prince Rupert resident has been banned from entering city hall for six months after he made threats to city staff.

Adrian Devison has since taken to protesting outside city hall, and on social media, to demand city staff restore a crumbling retaining wall outside his mother’s home on Pigott Avenue. He is also raising issue with the neighbouring home, which is derelict and sinking into the ground. He says this a fire hazard.

“The house next door has fallen over. It fell over a year-and-a-half ago. I want the city to board it up because there are people staying in it,” Devison said. “Right now, I don’t have house insurance, if anything happens to that other house, and my house catches on fire I don’t have insurance.”

Two-and-a-half years ago a car crash on Pigott Avenue wrecked the retaining wall outside Devison’s mother’s home. Devison is concerned that the wall is crushing the gas line outside the home, and he’s worried about their safety.

City of Prince Rupert said a complaint was registered the fall of 2017. Following the complaint, the fire and building/engineering staff, as well as Pacific Northern Gas (PNG), looked into the situation.

“The exterior casing of the gas line does appear to be bent, however in multiple inspections PNG has confirmed that the interior gas line is safe and undamaged,” said Veronika Stewart, city communications manager.

As it didn’t pose as an immediate threat, the city said it recognized the need to replace the retaining wall in 2018.

“Unfortunately, quotes for the project came back at three times the budgeted amount, which made the project beyond our ability to complete in the 2018 construction season. It has now been rolled into the 2019 budget,” Stewart said in an email.

Devison’s mother is 71 years old and has mobility issues. He said he’s tired of waiting for the city to fix the wall, which he said is also affecting the stairs that go from the road down to their home.

“It’s literally twisting my stairs,” he said.

The city said the stairway was not part of the original complaint, and inspections haven’t demonstrated any issues with the stairs connected to the retaining wall.

As for the derelict home next to Devison, the city said, “We are actively working to remedy this issue.”

His mother’s home, he said, doesn’t have insurance because they need to replace the roof. If the neighbouring home catches fire, he fears they will lose everything.

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But threatening city staff has banned Devison from entering city hall to voice his concerns. On Jan. 29, Devison received a letter from the City of Prince Rupert stating the temporary refusal of service.

“Your threats of violence to put two of our staff members ‘into the ground’ were inappropriate and will not be tolerated,” states the letter. He is prohibited from city hall for the next six months. If he attempts to enter within that period, the city said it will call the RCMP.

“They’re just trying to shut me up,” Devison said to the Northern View over the phone.

In the letter, the city said he can still communicate with the city through email or written letter.

Threats against city staff in December 2017 led to additional security measures at city hall. Since then, the main doorway has been locked and people must enter the side door to speak with front-end staff. Access to administration offices are by appointment only.

READ MORE: Smoothing out potholes in Prince Rupert

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