The Town of Oliver thanks SOS Security for providing bylaw enforcement services this past year and wish him well.

It is unfortunate that SOS Security cannot continue to provide bylaw enforcement services in Oliver due to conflicts with bylaw’s mandate.

Mayor Ron Hovanes

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Interview by ODN with

Owner of SO Security (SOS)  of Penticton
Don Moore

Moore says his company has worked for the Town of Oliver for 12 or more years – first in the nineties and rehired just last year when bylaw services withdrawn by another company from Osoyoos.

SOS was brought in on an emergency basis last year and signed a one year contract in January of 2016 but has notified the Town it will not continue.

Why? Moore hired an on-site contractor to do bylaw enforcement and dog control – Donald Lowndes who lived in a trailer on a town owned lot on Station Street for most of the summer.

The Town claims a number of complaints made against this individual but reasons and facts not given to the company named in the contract, says Moore.

Moore says he has a good reputation and wants to keep it that way but states that a bylaw officer must be backed up by Town of Oliver staff or at least that any complaint be thoroughly investigated before a decision is reversed.

Moore said too many bylaw tickets withdrawn by Town staff once a complaint made and that – he, the owner, was not going to tolerate that.

The point of this story – is that a company from Penticton has withdrawn a service – not just one individual who is quoted extensively by the local newspaper and the CBC.

Moore says he will be writing a letter to Mayor and council to make his position clear on the matter and why it was necessary for him to withdraw bylaw enforcement services.

The Mayor and Town staff asked to comment.