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Council Notes: Old hospital slated for demolition soon

At this time we believe there will be an opportunity for either the lease or sale of lands from this property

Interior Health Authority is moving forward on plans to demolish the old hospital in Clearwater, according to a letter to mayor John Harwood from Dr. Robert Halpenny, IHA president and chief executive officer.

“At this time we believe there will be an opportunity for either the lease or sale of lands from this property to a third party after the demolition process is complete and approval is provided to a request for subdividing the property,” Halpenny wrote.

The health authority CEO said his staff is aware of the community’s interest in the development of an assisted living facility, and will keep this in mind as the demolition and subdividing process continues.

In the preamble to his letter Halpenny said he would discuss the costs related to the development of a helipad.

However, in the letter itself there was nothing on the subject.

Providing a helipad for Clearwater’s hospital to improve emergency evacuations for highway rescue, the forest industry and backcountry tourism has been a priority for some area residents for a number of years.

Concerned about end of television service

Clearwater resident Annabelle Stevens asked town council what is going to happen to the television re-broadcast service.

“I don’t want to lose my TV,” Stevens said.

Users of the service presently receive three channels over the air by using rabbit-ears or similar small antennae.

The service is provided without charge to users by the municipality and regional district using repeater stations.

Cost of providing the service is going up as the equipment ages and becomes more difficult to replace, plus there is the question of how many people actually use it.

Area residents were told in a letter last summer that the service was to be shut down.

As an alternative, users could sign up for Local Television Satellite Solution (LTSS), which would be free for five years.

Deadline to sign up for LTSS with Shaw was supposed to be the end of November but when local residents tried to enrol, they found the program was already fully subscribed.

Mayor John Harwood said he and the regional district have been working with Shaw and the federal government to get LTSS extended.

The equipment needed to repair the repeater stations just isn’t available anymore, the mayor said.

The re-broadcasting service is to be discontinued throughout the North Thompson Valley.