WESTLOCK – Citing a recent inspection that claims Capri Mall presents a “potential risk to the public” in addition to “numerous public complaints” regarding its condition, the Town of Westlock has issued a 15-day closure order to the owners of the facility, the Calgary-based Capri Capital Corp., effective today, May 11.
In a news release the town says it did an April 10, 2023, inspection pursuant to the Municipal Government Act, safety codes, building (including electrical code), and the fire code and the findings concluded that, “Capri Mall presents a potential risk to the public or any tenant that accesses the mall” and the “only remedy available to the town is to prohibit occupancy until safety concerns have been addressed.”
The town says it hand-delivered a letter to the mall’s tenants with notification of the imminent closure May 1 to give them “as much time as possible to make arrangements to ensure their business continuity.” In a follow-up interview, CAO Simone Wiley said, in essence, they’re demanding the mall owners remedy the deficiencies or it’ll be shuttered by May 26 — affected businesses include Integra Agencies Ltd., Small Town Vapes, Top Shelf Liquor, Westlock Barber Shop, and Your Dollar Store with More.
“There are three orders going out. One is under the building code, one under the fire code and one under electrical. It’s very, very specific within the orders as to which section of the code and what the contravention is. That’s really as specific as I can get at this time,” said Wiley in an interview.
“The only way for us to proceed following the complaints was to do an inspection. Once we did the inspection it became evident that there were public safety issues here. The items that were found during the inspection were such that it was determined that it’s not safe for public occupancy.”
Wiley said there’s been “ongoing conversation with the ownership” over the state of the mall, but until a qualified inspection was done “you can’t force any work to get done.” The social-media platform LinkedIn lists Lal Narang as president and CEO of Capri Capital Corp. and Kalaiyarasi Balakrishnan as bookkeeper — as of May 11, both pages have been deactivated on the platform. The Westlock News reached out to Narang May 11 via e-mail, but has not received a response.
“The town does have the flexibility, if you will, if we’re satisfied that the owner is making strides towards remedying the situation and has a plan in place to do so, then we would work with the owners to make that happen. But really, as soon as those orders are issued, it’s up to the ownership to decide what they’re going to do,” said Wiley.
In her nine years working at the town, including the last three-and-a-half years as CAO, Wiley’s never had to deal with a similar situation and said they’re aware of the negative impact it will have on the mall’s tenants. In August 1971, the first development permit on record was issued to establish a shopping centre in that area — the first business was a steakhouse in 1972, and then in 1973, Pacifica Petroleum was the first gas station on-site. From 1973 to 1998, the mall, located at the corner of highways 44 and 18, was a thriving shopping centre and featured many local businesses, while during that time there were several modifications and additions to the original structure. By the turn of the century the shopping centre was in foreclosure and was acquired by Capri Capital Corp.
“This is a hard one. We’re talking about five businesses in our community … all five are viable and most of them are long-standing businesses and one is a new one that just won an award from the chamber of commerce … so it’s hard knowing that we’re affecting their livelihoods,” said Wiley. “But we have to balance that with the public safety and good of all.”
