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Community keen for coffee

Roaster: Emissions a concern for some residents of Canoe
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Public hearing: Karla Ferster outlines her plan to open a coffee shop

While community support for a new coffee business and restaurant in Canoe wasn’t resounding, city council’s was.

On Monday night at North Canoe Hall, Salmon Arm council gave third reading to rezoning the site of the former Doc’s Pub as a CD16 Comprehensive Development Zone so as to accommodate a restaurant and “small-scale artisan coffee- roasting operation” that could roast up to 2,500 pounds of coffee a week. The applicant, Canoe resident and Leaping Frog Coffee owner Karla Ferster, said that would amount to 15 hours of roasting, though she only intends to do 2,000 pounds a week. Regardless, the roasting was a concern to others at the hearing, who were supportive of the business but apprehensive over possible emissions. Canoe resident Hugh Chalmers asked that the city have some maximum levels for emissions, and some kind of complaint mechanism if they become an issue. City staff, however, said they don’t have the capacity to deal with emission issues, and that a covenant requiring the business to use an afterburner would go a long way to help. Ferster explained the $60,000 afterburner the business will use will eliminate 99 per cent of the smoke and any potential noxious gases.

“The end result is that you would never know there’s coffee being roasted,” she said.

The majority of the public present at the hearing spoke in favour of Ferster’s proposed operation, including local business-person Louise Wallace Richmond. Asked by Coun. Alan Harrison if she was concerned about the potential smell, Richmond replied, “No, because we have a mill.”

 



Lachlan Labere

About the Author: Lachlan Labere

Editor of the Salmon Arm Observer, Shuswap Market, and Eagle Valley News. I'm always looking for new and exciting ways to keep our readers informed and engaged.
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