‘It’s sad’: Kelowna loses piece of history after fire ravages lakefront home
Kelowna is losing a connection to its history after a fire ravaged a lakefront heritage home last night.
Last night, Oct. 20, the Kelowna Fire Department responded to a fire in the 1900 block of McDougall Street at the Jennens heritage home on Okanagan Lake. No one was injured and the fire was deemed accidental but the house suffered from extensive damage, according to the fire department.
Those types of houses, once common in the Pandosy area, have all but been demolished and replaced with apartments, said Don Knox, president of the Central Okanagan Heritage Society. He called the Jennens house a “connection” to Kelowna's history.
“It’s sad from the heritage point of view but also historical as well because… it was severely damaged and the chances of it being restored are rather slim,” he said.
The home was built by Oliver Jennens in 1930, a businessman with B.C. Growers Ltd. and a managing director of B.C. Orchards. His son Eric Gordon Jennens was known for building a replica viking ship on the property as well as developing a milfoil harvester that is still in use today, according to City of Kelowna staff.
Eric Gordon also built racing shells for boats and proposed an underwater tunnel to replace Kelowna’s floating bridge, Knox said.
“(The house) was kind of legendary and the centre of a large group of individuals,” Knox said. Many Jennens family members are still living in Kelowna today.
In September, property owner Terry Jennens, the son of Eric Gordon Jennens, requested a heritage alteration permit to allow a garage and workshop on the property. Council approved the permit but it still needed a building permit approval before construction could start.
A fire had previously damaged the home and repairs were ongoing at the time. Complaints were also made materials being stored outdoors which city staff said during the meeting would be alleviated with a garage and workshop.
The viking ship has been in storage on the property and Terry told council he wanted to find a better home for it where it can be appreciated by the public.
“It's well known, not just in Kelowna but in many parts around the world. It took six years to build it... and we actually built it out of white oak trees, we cut down the trees ourselves and it’s an authentic replica,” he said during the council meeting.
It was displayed throughout the Pacific Northwest and Terry said he and his father and an international crew sailed the North Atlantic before they brought it to Iceland and then returned to Kelowna.
“I take great pride in the house I live in… I want to make this workshop so that I can better renovate the main house and put my working equipment out of the main house into a workshop,” he said at the meeting.
The ship does not appear to be damaged by last night's fire.
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