Written by SCOTT STANFIELD
Citizen staff
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Thursday, 09 October 2008 |
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FRASER-FORT GEORGE REGIONAL DISTRICT
The closure will leave Mackenzie with one gas station, a Petro-Can, but it does not have propane, which can now only be found at the Windy Point junction 20 miles from town.
"There is no longer any way to get propane in Mackenzie," said Dale Fox, a longtime resident of the town about 190 kilometres north of Prince George. "It's really bad here in the wintertime. We usually have power outs. You're in trouble if you haven't got your propane topped up."
Mackenzie Mayor Stephanie Killam suggests the Fraser-Fort George Regional District may need to look at the situation because "we have things that run on propane." At the same time, she points out Windy Point is "not that far away. It's just inconvenient to people, and I don't know if that's more inconvenient than when this outfit was closed down and wasn't giving any propane because the operator couldn't be there."
Chevron Canada spokesman Sean Comey said the company arrived at its decision after considering its current and long-term business options, as it did for Fort St. James.
"The rationale for the closure is the same in both locations," said Comey, who notes a third Chevron station will close Oct. 28 in McBride. "When you're a business you have to constantly re-evaluate your operations and make decisions that are in the best long-term interest of the company. This is a difficult decision and was only made after very careful consideration of both of these operations."
Fox feels the closure could not have come at a worse time.
"Nobody's going to put anything back, your infrastructure's gone," he said. "The next time somebody's going to put in a gas station here, it'll probably be a while."
Killam, however, is philosophical about the situation.
"Concern in town is of course we're down to one gas station, but that doesn't mean another one wouldn't open up," she said. "I'm assuming that, as things change in the community, things will start up and different things will come into play, including somebody putting in propane or taking it over. That's happened before."
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 09 October 2008 )
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