World’s largest boom lift brought to Kelowna to fix woodpecker problem

KELOWNA – A building in Kelowna is infested with woodpeckers and to fix the problem they’ve had to bring in the world’s tallest boom lift.

The Centuria Urban Village in Kelowna is a 17-storey building and home to 151 apartments and businesses on the corner of Gordon Drive and Bernard Avenue. It is also home to a large colony of woodpeckers that took up residence as soon as construction was completed in 2008.

“Since we moved in, woodpeckers have been an annoyance,” strata president Kris Kristenson says in a media release. “As birds, the woodpeckers leave a lot of mess, making some of our resident’s balconies dirty.”

To correct the problem, a local company that specializes in anti-woodpecker armour has brought in the world’s largest boom lift. Weighing more than 24,000 kg, the Genie SX-180 can reach 180 feet in less than five minutes and is used in construction, maintenance, telecommunications, gas and oil refineries.

There are only four in Canada.

The lift will be on location until June 27.

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