6 - Sunday, October 26, 1986 - North Shore News

feel VOICE OF NONTH AND WEST VANCOUVER

Peter Speck
Noel Wright
Barrett Fisher
Linda Stewart

Publisher:
Editor-in-Chiet
Managing Editor
Advertising Director

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News Viewpoint

Better—or worse? aims
a 1139 Lonsdale Ave.
North Vancouver, B.C. V7M 2H4
on Entre conents «©
We fe fe ete 1986 North Shore
. Free Press Lid All
nights reserved

he buzz word in last week's provincial election

was ‘style’. Ino the Nov. 15 municipal and

school board elections West Van and North Van
District voters will be looking primarily for
“‘substanee’’. At the grass roots, PERFORMANCE is
what counts,

Lecal government is the level closest) to home.
Though it will never please everyone, municipal voters
can judge how well it is working IN TOTAL from their
own everyday lives — where such things us police and
fire protection, road upkeep and parbage collection,
parks and recreation facilities, neiphborhood
development and schooling standards have a direct and
vital impact.

Mayors, aldermen and = school trustees are their
neighbors, accessible in person at any time. Every
week, foo, citizens can watch them in action and ques-
tion them in) public at) council and school board
meetings, so it’s easy to assess gust how much, or how
lite, each elected representative is contributing to (he
community. When there are obvious inadequacies,
change may become essential, with beads rofling on
election day.

By and large, measured by the overall quality of life
there, West Van and North Van District have been
pretty well served to date by their elected officials. This
doesn’t mean fresh minds and approaches should ever
be ruled out — periodic new blood being healthy for
the body politic. But on the other hand, change

$7,656 ©

feetage

Feday te out doy?

HUSTINGS-BOUND ... left, new aldermanic hopefuls Bill Rodgers
(North Van), Val Vopni (West Van). Above, West Van Mayor Derrick
Humphreys lends a hand clearing the old bus depot site, foot of 14th, to
make way for the new civic plaza.

PURELY for the sake of change carries risks as well.
it can make good local government even better. It

can also make it worse.

OFF AND AWAY: Official starting
gun in the Nov. 15 municipal elec-
tions in North Van District and West
Van will be fired tomorrow (Mon-
day) at noon. Until nominations
close at that hour, here's the latest
update.

In NVD Mayor Marilyn Baker's
parade may be rained on after all,
Post office employee Don Carison,
who garnered a miniscule handful of
votes when he ran against Her Wor-
ship in 1982, has taken out papers
again. If he files them by the

DR. PHILIP ALDERMAN ...
from practice to planning.

deadline, Marilyn will miss her
return by acclamation and the
minicipality will be $3,500 poorer —
the cost of the extra name on the
ballot. Democracy doesn't come
cheap... Meanwhile, North Van
lawyer Bill Rodgers, 36, has joined
aldermanic challengers Nosm
Vipond and Rick Buchols in their bid
to unseat some of the incumbents,
Next month Bill also joins John
Lakes’ North Van law firm as a
partner.

Latest

known = aldermanic

RON RICHARDSON ... named

top pastoral counsellor.

LETTER OF THE DAY

VCGG ‘a travesty of democratic

Dear Editor:

The West Vancouver Citizens
for Good Government are smali
number of our citizens who have
appointed themselves as an elite
group to carry out an entirely new
system of democratic government.
To explain the system the chair-
man wrote a letter to all candidates
for the November 15 election. If
all 12 vacant offices (5 school
board, 6 council and one mayor)
are contended for, some 34 can-
didates may be involved.

The letter invited them to an
all-candidates meeting on October
21. A second meeting is called for

October 29. Nothing irregular
about such meetings, but then
comes the new approach to our
old-fashioned system. Before the
second meeting, there begins the
Endorsement Process during which
the 10 directors of the group ‘‘will
provide an opportunity for each
candidate to meet with them to
discuss the important issues facing
our municipality and = school
system.’’ These interviews will be
behind closed doors, no doubt. It
is not known whether the sup-
pliants for approval may take
along legal counsel or at least a
tape recorder. No reporters, one
presumes.

I quote from the letter: ‘‘Fol-

challenger in West Van is vivacious
Val Vopni, wife of West Van Socred
Assn. president Richard and a high-
octane community worker for half a
dozen organizations. She joins retir-
ing school trustee Pat Boname plus
outside contenders Rod Day, Andy
Danyliu and Bert Fleming in their
campaigns to make life rotten for the
five present council members seek-
ing re-election,
« . *

SHOW TIME in the West Van cam-
paign is highlighted this Wednesday,
Oct. 29. At 8 p.m. (doors open 7:30),
in West Van High School on
Mathers, Mayor Derrick Humphreys
holds a public rally to report to the
electorate on council’s stewardship.
Atthe same hour the 100 or so paid-
up members of ‘Citizens for Good
Government’’ (formerly West Van
Electors Assn.) are called upon to
gather in St. David's Church Hall to
endorse the private slate of mayoral
and other candidates pre-picked for
them by their 10-member board of
directors.

Choose your show for the evening
according to whether you prefer pro-
bing up-to-date facts and figures
about West Van affairs — or watch-
ing yet another re-run of the 10-year-
old WVEA Follies.

* - *
THIRD PARTY: Last week's item
on a4 poison-pen fetter being

lowing each set of presentations
(i.e., at the October 29 meeting)
the Board of Directors will indicate
their recommendations for the

membership ARISING FROM.

INTERVIEWS CONDUCTED
WITH EACH CANDIDATE
PRIOR TO THIS MEETING ...
The membership will then vote to
decide which candidate to sup-
port.”

The letter then states: ‘tA
brochure will be produced ana
distributed to every household in
West Vancouver. The brochure
will contain the pictures of each
endorsed candidate and a short
write-up .... Each endorsed can-
didate will be expected to make a

Noel Wright

anonymously circulated against
Mayor Humphreys (who seems to be
treating it with contempt) mention-
ed a ‘‘third party’? it defamed. Just
for the record, the sex of that third
party — lusting for libel damages the
moment he can nab the culprits —
is MALE. A straight, professional
and very angry male. Watch it,
fellahs!
* * .

WRAP-UP: Popular North Shore
medic leaving family practice after
almost 30 years is West Van's Dr.
Philip Alderman, who'll henceforth
be specializing in aspects of family
planning and related research. Dr.
John Adair takes over at his North
Van office...Warm praise for Len
(Crashpad Collision) Macht from
lady-in-distress Andrea Labe whom
he stopped to help when her car
broke down — staying with her un-
til the BCAA arrived, then driving
to Canadian Tire to get the needed
part... Succeeding retiring founder-
dizvector John Stewart as exec. direc-

financial contribution toward the
cost of the brochures.”

The qualifications of the direc-
tors to sit in judgement on each
candidate is left to conjecture, ac-
companied with wonder about
possible personal prejudice and
municipal political opinions
already formed. Are they endowed
with superior intelligence and a
profound knowledge of all the
elements of municipal affairs? Or
are they well-meaning citizens with
the conceit to imagine they are bet-
ter qualified to appraise each can-
didate than is the average voter?

The really serious feature is that
each candidate is intimidated. If he
declines to submit to the secret in-

© sunday brunch ¢

tor of the North Shore Counselling
Centre is Ron Richardson, a nine-
year staff member with wide profes-
sional qualifications in pastoral
counselling ... yet another North
Van Youth Band success story from
Ald. Ernie Crist whose trumpeter
son David -- a NVYB alumnus and
recently guest soloist with the
National Youth Orchestra — has
won his second Canada Council
grant to continue his studies in Vien-
na ... Salute North Shore P. Engs
honored at the a.g.m. of the Profes-
sional Engineers of B.C. — Jack
Davis (Community Service Award);
David Leaney, Gerald Elkington and
David Bakewell (Professional Service
Award) ... And congrats to West
Van Secondary and UBC grad Bruce
Gemmell, geologist, on his doctorate
from Dartmouth College, New
Hampshire.
* * *

WRIGHT OR WRONG: We have a
head for the same reason a pin has
— to keep us from going too far.

system’

terrogation, he will not be endors-
ed by the group nor included in its
brochure recommending the can-
didates it wishes the voters to vote
for. The pressured candidate also
knows that to print and distribute
an attractive brochure costs more
than many individuals can afford.
So however fine and efficient a
person he truly is, the possibility of
losing to an endorsed opponent is
greatly increased. Advertising

pays.

It is most unfair. It is a travesty
of our democratic system.

D.L.Mathiesen
West Vancouver