COUNCIL TO CONSIDER BYLAW TO SEIZE DRUG-RELATED PROPERTIES

RCMP Supports Law That Would Allow 'Crack Shacks' and Grow Operations
to Be Closed Down and Seized

Do not occupy.

Those are words that operators of crack-shacks and other drug related
houses in Williams Lake may have to get used to seeing posted on their
door if the city gets its way with a new proposed bylaw.

Council intends to ask staff to prepare a new bylaw that would allow
the city to shut down and seize drug related property within 24 hours
of giving the resident notice.

Council gave notice of motion at its meeting Tuesday
night.

The proposed bylaw would give powers to the fire department and the
city's bylaw enforcement officers to shut the houses down based on
health and safety regulations.

Similar bylaws are in place in other cities across the province,
including Vernon and Salmon Arm.

And that is what Mayor Scott Nelson is basing this new bylaw
on.

"We've been talking for some time to create additional tools for
RCMP," Nelson says.

"One of the tools is a bylaw that will shut down and force the clean
up of crack shacks."

As an added bonus when a house is seized, the federal government can
sell it and keep the money.

Nelson says he would eventually like to see some of the money from
seized property come back to the city.

Williams Lake RCMP are onside with the proposed bylaw.

Staff Sgt. Grant Martin says RCMP don't have the power to just enter a
house but the bylaw would let the city communicate to them if the
house is being used for drugs.

"If [the city] can get in there under different bylaws for different
things we certainly support it," Martin says.

"It certainly puts the onus back on the owner to be more vigilant of
what's going on in those houses."

And he sees dangers not only to residents of a drug house but to the
community at large.

As for how bad the drug house situation is in Williams Lake, Martin
says crack shacks and crystal meth labs aren't a huge issue, but
grow-ops are on the rise.

While there may be some safety issues around unarmed bylaw officers
breaking up a drug house, Nelson says the first few seizures would
likely have the RCMP in attendance.

The city is also looking for the endorsement of the Cariboo Regional
District regarding the bylaw.

While Nelson says nothing would give him more pleasure than to start
seizing the houses now, the bylaw needs to go through the regular
approval process and won't likely be on the books for some time.