Canadian Collectors Roadshow stop in Burnaby cancelled
The Canadian Collectors Roadshow, which was set to take place Jan. 26 to 29 in Burnaby, has been cancelled due to the organizers' venue not meeting zoning requirements.
The event was to be located at the Best Western Plus Kings Inn on Kingsway, and was to feature free appraisals of all types of collectibles and antiques.
Unlike similar appraisal events, the Canadian Collectors Roadshow will often make offers to purchase the items, which it resells to a network of private collectors, at antique shows or through auctions.
It's the buying and selling part of the event which didn't meet Burnaby city bylaws.
Burnaby's chief licence inspector Craig Collis said appraisals of antiques would have been fine at the hotel, but once buying and selling of items is involved, the event is put into the same category as second-hand dealers.
Second-hand dealer is not a permitted use of the Best Western's property, Collis said.
If the Roadshow did find a venue that allowed such a use, then the company would have also been subject to recent changes to the regulations for second-hand dealers. Last year, the buying and selling of gold, silver and other precious metals by such dealers was added to a list of goods subject to strict recording requirements—detailed information about buyers and sellers must be recorded and submitted to Burnaby RCMP.
The change to the bylaw was aimed at addressing the sale of stolen property, Collis said, stressing that there is no indication there was such an issue connected with the Roadshow.
"But we look at it generally and these are issues that have come up through the RCMP and through the community in terms of concerns, so the gold, silver and other precious metals was added for that purpose."
Buying gold and silver jewelry, much of it to be melted down for the metal value, is a big part of their business, said Eric Dvorkin, spokesperson for the Canadian Collectors Roadshow.
On Monday, Dvorkin said the company was seeking a new location for the event outside of Burnaby.
wchow@burnabynewsleader.com
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