The Telkwa and District Seniors Society requested the use of Telkwa’s community hall for their upcoming carpet bowling tournament, however the request sparked a discussion on the availability of the closed facility.
Councillor Rimas Zitauskas began by asking how much it would cost just to bring the heat in the building back to room temperature.
“So lets say they move out at the beginning of March and we’re going to shut down the heat ... there’s a certain cost to bring it back up to 20, 25 degrees,” he said.
He continued that council decided to shut down the facility and not allow its use for the general public because it was unfit.
“I can see it if another organization comes forward and asks again ... next thing we know we’re going to be back to operating the municipal hall the way it is and incurring costs.”
“I don’t see that as a problem,” said Mayor Carman Graf. “This is a one time deal.”
The question then shifted to other options the village could provide. Councillor Jim Hiltz suggested that the society could apply for one of the village’s grants-in-aid to rent a facility.
Zitkauskas also suggested Camp Caledonia’s facility might be a place they could try to get into.
Council eventually voted unanimously to write a letter replying to the society saying that at this point in time they don’t know if the hall will be available (they currently have a renter slated to be gone shortly) and suggested they speak to the operators at Camp Calendonia.