Wedding celebration with ferris wheel leads to complaints, more than a dozen tickets: Surrey, B.C., bylaw department
An extravagant wedding celebration that had a ferris wheel on site was shut down by Surrey, B.C., bylaw officers this week after complaints were received.
Officers were called to a home on 192 Street near 76 Avenue Tuesday evening after getting "multiple noise and traffic complaints from neighbours."
Surrey RCMP were bombarded with complaints about the event and say police received more than 50 calls between 10:30 p.m. Tuesday and 2:30 a.m. Wednesday. The majority of the complaints were about noise.
In a statement to CTV News Vancouver, the city's bylaw department said 15 tickets were issued for parking infractions and multiple vehicles were towed. Mounties also went to the home to support bylaw officers.
"This appeared to be a wedding celebration," the statement said. "Bylaw officers advised the organizer of (the) wedding to stop and desist their activities due to noise and traffic issues impacting the neighbourhood."
The next day, bylaw officers and Mounties went back to the house with building and electrical inspectors. According to the bylaw department, "multiple illegal tents" were set up behind the house along with a ferris wheel. A stop work order was issued because the property owner reportedly didn't get the appropriate permits for the large tents.
"The city also issued compliance orders to the owner due to concerns over the electrical set up," the bylaw department said, adding that fines for zoning and building infractions will be issued.
Surrey RCMP told CTV News in an email its community response unit is still working with the city's bylaw department to fully address the issue. While no tickets were handed out for breaking COVID-19 health orders, Mounties said they're being considered.
Multiple people told CTV News the lavish event was to celebrate the wedding of popular Punjabi singer-actor Parmish Verma and his bride Geet Grewal. She ran unsuccessfully for the Liberals in the last federal election. CTV News reached out to the family to request an interview but did not hear back.
Verma posted videos and pictures of his wedding celebration to his 6.5 million followers on Instagram.
CTV News also spoke to a woman who identified herself as the couple’s wedding planner. She said there were fewer than 130 people at the reception on the night in question and less than 70 guests at most of the wedding events that took place over six days.
She said organizers removed some speakers from the property after a noise complaint Monday.
The planner said the ferris wheel was a surprise for the groom.
But you can’t just put up a ferris wheel on private property, according to bylaws.
The City of Surrey said organizers would have needed “proper zoning for installing and operating a ferris wheel."
"Electrical permits would have been required for electrical connections. No permit for this work was issued,” the city said.
The event organizer said they provided a shuttle service so people didn’t park on the street and screened all guests to ensure they were double vaccinated.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Here's how much more Canadian landlords are asking for now, according to a just-released report
A new report says the average asking rent for a home in Canada in April was up 9.3 per cent compared with a year ago, while a slight month-over-month increase was also recorded for the first time since January.
Rare severe solar storm Friday could bring spectacular aurora light show across Canada
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
What is basic income, and how would it impact me?
Parliamentarians are considering a pair of bills aiming to lift people out of poverty through a basic income program, but some fear these types of systems could result in more taxes for Canadians who are already financially struggling.
Canada abstains from Palestinian UN membership vote but supports two-state solution
Canada was one of 25 countries that abstained from a United Nations vote on Palestinian membership that passed with overwhelming support on Friday.
More than half the Canadians once detained in Syrian camps for suspected ISIS family members have returned home
A total of 29 Canadians have been freed from detention camps in northeast Syria and brought back to Canada since human rights advocates began lobbying for their release years ago.
'I may have some nightmares:' Man survives being bitten by 2 sharks in Bahamas
A man who was bitten by two sharks in the Bahamas said Thursday he's 'thankful that I'm here' while sharing his story of survival.
Out-of-control wildfire burning near Fort McMurray
As of 9 a.m. on Friday, the wildfire burning 28 kilometres southwest of the northeastern Alberta city was 25 hectares in size.
Mexico's president accuses press and volunteer searchers for missing people of 'necrophilia'
The administration of Mexico's president has accused the press and volunteer searchers who look for the bodies of missing people of 'necrophilia,' comments that drew criticism this week.