The Queens Way Court Motel’s business licence will be the subject of a special council meeting held tonight in the Council Chambers.
The special meeting, which takes place at 6 p.m., is open to the public and will also be live streamed on the city’s website.
“The purpose of the special meeting is for Council to conduct a hearing in connection with an appeal by Queensway Court Motel (“the Appellant”) of decision to suspend the Appellant’s Business Licence No. 611220 with respect to the premises located at 1616 Queensway, Prince George, B.C,” states the agenda for the meeting.
The Queensway Court Motel was the location of a targeted shooting that took place May 1, 2018.
Shortly after the incident, RCMP Cpl. Craig Douglass said the area was known to police and the RCMP have received an increased number of calls to the motel over the past few years.
Local Trip Adviser and Yelp reviews of the Queensway Court Motel from recent years also highlight various problems with the location.
Review of Queensway Court Motel (via Trip Adviser)."First off when I arrived and told the cab driver where I was headed she told me not to leave the room after dark because it was a hot spot for prostitutes and drug deals. I'm a fairly young adventurous person, so I wasn't too put off by this. When we arrived it smelled bad and looked even worse. The doors looked as though they had been kicked in in certain spots and the locks were sketchy. When I arrived home at the hotel later that evening, after the concert there was yelling and stomping going on everywhere."
Tonight's special meeting is part of the Prince George's ongoing efforts to address nuisance properties. The special meeting regarding the Queensway Court Motel's business licence is similar to a meeting that took place on May 25, 2016 when the owner of the Connaught Motor Inn appealed a three-month suspension of its business licence.
Councillor Brian Skakun reported that the RCMP were called to that property 750 times between 2012 and 2016. In response to the repeated calls for service, Skakun proposed a bylaw that would recover costs from the owners of properties where there have been repeated calls to the police or bylaw infractions.
February 2018, council approved bylaw No.8940 which requires landlords and property owners to pay hourly rates for police calls to nuisance properties.
The special council meeting regarding the Queensway Court Motel will hear witnesses from both the City of Prince George and the hotel owner, followed by closing remarks from both parties, and deliberation. Council may either make its decision at the close of the meeting or reserve its decision to be made in writing at a later date.
