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Temporary tent slated to replace Harvey’s Hut this season

Cross-country skiers will have a temporary place to keep warm this winter while they wait for a permanent replacement to the beloved Harvey’s Hut.
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Cross-country skiers will have a temporary place to keep warm this winter while they wait for a permanent replacement to the beloved Harvey’s Hut.

The Whitehorse Cross-Country Ski Club is planning to set up a wall tent in the next two or three weeks to temporarily hold the spot near the beginning of the Mount McIntyre trail system, said Jan Polivka, the operations manager for the ski club.

The original Harvey’s Hut burned down in September. The hut, with its central wood stove, was a gathering place for young skiers for 35 years.

The new wall tent is slated to be about four by five metres and have a wood stove of its own.

Polivka said it’s still the plan to put up a new, permanent building. The wall tent is the best temporary solution until next fall when something permanent will be built, he said.

“Considering everything, the wall tent is the best option,” he said. “We would have had a problem with logistics because we have snow on the ground. It would also be more difficult and more expensive if we wanted to build something temporary.”

In the meantime, a committee has been put together to decide what should officially replace Harvey’s Hut.

When the hut burned down the community rallied and raised nearly $16,000 through an online campaign to rebuild.

The club will have something built by next fall, Polivka said, in time for the next ski season.

According to an RCMP press release at the time of the fire, two witnesses reported seeing between three and five young children between the ages of eight and 12 near the hut at the time.

Police say they still don’t have any suspects in the case.

“To date, no suspects have been identified or located by police, and no further witnesses have come forward with information pertaining to this incident,” Const. Julia Fox said in an email on Thursday.

“Whitehorse RCMP encourage anyone with information that could potentially assist police in identifying the suspects responsible to please come forward.”

Contact Ashley Joannou at ashleyj@yukon-news.com