Cleanup ordered for former nightclub that burned down

The courts have told the owner of a former Simpson Street nightclub that burned down to clean up the mess, city official said Friday.

The former Simpson Street nightclub known to many as the Triple Nickel burned to rubble after a massive fire in January. The owner pleaded guilty on June 28 to failing to clean up the mess left as a result of the blaze.

Ron Bourret, manager of Licensing and Enforcement for the City of Thunder Bay, said the building wasn’t insured so the owner didn’t have anything to assist him in the cost to remove the rubble. The city would start to remove the rubble with the costs added onto the property owner’s tax bill.

If the property owner arrears tax payments, the city has the option to take ownership of the property if it chooses, he said.

"I think it is up to three years, property can be issued to the city," Bourret said. "The city doesn’t always have to take it either. If arrears build up over several years then the city can decide to take it over or not to."

Bourret said the city gave the property owner 30 days to get started on the cleanup, but he failed to do so. The cleanup could cost anywhere from $40,000 to $90.000 and added the fence erected by the city would also be billed to the owner.

"Once the building is completely levelled maybe then the owner can do something with it and sell it," he said. "When that happens there will be an order placed by us on the property land titles and we will hopefully recuperate our expenses."

Bourret said that before the city cleans up the site, they needed to see how much it would cost and what other damages the fire caused.