The demolition of the Pioneer Inn has been halted by the city.

The stop work order was issued Tuesday to Kingcat Contracting, the company responsible for the demolition. Most of the work done so far was conducted last week.

In an interview Thursday afternoon, city planning manager Mike Gau said the order was made to Kingcat for not following a condition of the permit that waste from the site be hauled to the city landfill.

"It went outside of city limits," Gau said. He confirmed the debris from the site went to the Burma Road area north of Whitehorse.

Once it leaves city limits, it's in the Yukon government's jurisdiction.

For that reason, Gau explained, there's a condition in the permit that if the contractor hauls demolition waste outside of Whitehorse, proof of approval from the territory must be provided to the city.

It's unknown how long the order will be in place, but Gau said the city and contractor are working toward resolving it.

The order was issued specifically around the condition of where the waste is hauled.

However, the permit also stipulates the contractor must have an overall plan for demolition.

That plan must include the amount of material that will be taken from the site, the times and route for hauling waste, the start and completion date of the work, contact information for the supervisor and a remediation plan detailing how the site will be left.

Other conditions outlined in the permit include having approvals from Occupational Health and Safety officials, the city's Department of Engineering and Public Works and further permits from the city.

Among the general conditions of the document, Kingcat must also:

• provide security to prevent vandalism or forced entry, with security personnel providing contact numbers to the city in case of emergency;

• acknowledge responsibility to get approval from other jurisdictions where required; and

• keep all streets and public property clean and free of any obstacles form the site.

While Gau said the city has some concerns around the security of the site, he stressed the stop-work order revolves specifically around the condition of where the material is taken.

The document was signed by Kingcat on Nov. 21, with city officials approving it a week earlier.

Kingcat owner Robby King, whose name appears on the city permit, declined to comment on the situation this morning.

The Yukon Workers Compensation Health and Safety Board has also been involved in the demolition, looking for the possibility of asbestos in one part of the building.

Tests have since confirmed there's no asbestos in the structure.

Rather than issuing a stop work order while waiting for test results to come back, the board instructed crews to stay out of that part of the building and work on other areas of the demolition, board president Valerie Royle said this morning.

The board received the results yesterday, confirming there's no asbestos in that section, she said.

Meanwhile, Dennis Senger, a spokesman for the Yukon's Department of Environment, confirmed earlier this week officials are looking into "several" phone calls about the dumping and burning of waste in a trench on a Burma Road property.

"The matter is under investigation," he said.

The department won't comment on details of its investigation.