PERMIT NOW NEEDED IN WEST VAN

Backyard burning banned in 2 years time

A COMPROMISE to West Vancouver’s outdoor burning
dilemma was reached at Monday night’s West Vancouver

District Council meeting.

Caught between residents who
wanted an immediate ban on the
practice that has been decried as
unhealthy and environmentally
unsound and residents who wanted
an open burning season no longer
restricted to a few, often un-
suitable, days, council decided to
go with Ald. Rod Day’s proposal
to ban burning after a two-year
transition period, during which
people could still burn garden ref-
use provided they had a valid per-

By MAURE CURTIS
Cuntributing Writer

mut.

Although he was in favor of an
immediate ban on outdoor burn-
ing, Day suggested a two-year
transition period, rather than the
three years proposed in the
recently-released Outdoor Burning
Task Force Report.

“An immediate ban would result

NEWS photo Terry Peters

Armed robber hits bark

THE CANADIAN Imperial Bank of Commerce was temporarily
closed Monday afternoon after a man entered the branch at 1626
Pemberton, watked up to a teller, produced a handgun and demanded
cash. The teller complied and the man ran off on foot with an un-
disclosed amount of loot. A police dog was called in to help North
Vancouver RCMP track the suspect but the track disappeared a block
from the scene of the crime. The suspect is déscribed as being 5’7"',
approximately 150 pounds and having dark hair. He was wearing a
two-tone brown ski jacket, a red baseball cap and dark sunglasses.
Information may be forwarded to police at 985-1311.

in an avalanche of waste material
that the municipality would not be
prepared to deal with,”’ said Day,
who was absent from last week’s
protracted burning debate.

He proposed that residents who
really need to burn garden refuse
in the next two years (those on
very large or steep lots) could do
so by first getting a permit.

The permit approval process
would be supervised by the West
Vancouver Fire Department.

Said Day, ‘‘There are two things
that would deter ‘capricious burn-
ers’: having to come to the
municipality to get a permit and
the cost of the permit.”*

North
iegal

NORTH VANCOUVER Ci-
ty has declared a
moratorium on enforcing its
illegal suite regulations.

By CORINNE BJORGE
Contributing 3Vriter

According to a resolution passed
Monday night, enforcement action
against secondary suites in the city
will be deferred until a city-com-
missioned study of the suites’ im-
pact on the current rental housing
crisis is completed.

The city will continue to accept
written complaints about second-
ary suites, but no action will be
taken against them for approxi-
mately four months, according to
city staff.

But a statement released by the
city made it clear that the
moratorium doesn’t mean open
season on the housing market for
suite owners.

**Health and safety infractions
are not exempt from the
moratorium,’’ according to a
statement released Monday by
North Vancouver City Mayor Jack
Loucks.

The mayor added that *-during
the period of the moratorium the
city will not permit the construc-
tion of illegal suites nor will it
permit the re-establishment of
suites previously removed.”’

But a letter from two secondary
suite owners said a_ limited
moratorium would work against
suite owners.

SOLUTION QUESTIONED

“A short-term solution (such as
a one-year moratorium) would be
counter-productive as it would lead
to uncertainty on the part of te-

3 - Wednesday, February 21, 1990 - North Shore News

Day's proposa! was approved by
the majority of council.

But Ald. Andy Danyliu and Ald.
Carol Ann Reynolds argued un-
successfully for an immediate ban
on burning.

Reynolds failed in her attempt to
get council io vote first on an im-
mediate burning ban, before
voting on Day’s motion.

She also failed to get support for
a shorter one-year transition
period and a proposal that would
have required residents to get ap-
proval from neighbors for a burn-
ing permit.

Instead, the rest of council went
for the two-year transition period

and permit process, and called for
a staff report to map out how the
fire department could oversee the
system.

The fire department would
decide on an_ individual basis,
whether climatic conditions were
suitable for burning on a given
day.

“If the permit system doesn't
work, we can get rid of it,’’ said
Day.

Other issues left to be addressed
include whether burning is to be
permitted throughout the year or
only during certain months.

Van City halts
suite closures

NORTH Vancouver City Ald.
Frank Morris ...wants ‘“‘far more
complete study,”’

nants aad it would force owners to
take a short-term view concerning
maintenance of the affected
suites,’’ wrote suite owners
William Clark and Mitchell
Anderson.

City council also reconfirmed
plans to proceed with its own
$23,000 illegal suite study.

The study is designed to poll 20
per cent of city residents on the
secondary suite issue.

But some council members ex-
pressed concern over the study’s
method of collecting information.

“I subscribe to a study by all
means,'’ said Ald. Frank Morris.
‘“(But) for a few dollars more, a
far more complete study (could be
done).”’

- Morris said by studying only 20
per cent of the city’s population on
their attitudes, the city would not
be receiving sufficient information.

“I think we’re doing the wrong
study,’’ he said.

Ald. Rod Clark said a study
done with 20 per cent resident par-

Politicians disappointed with Polar 8 axe

jobs and it could mean some very

MP Chuck

NORTH Vancouver
for ship-

Cook ...‘‘tragedy
wrigbts.’"

From page 1
anywhere trom 500 to 800 ship-
wrights. Any shipwrights I’ve talk-

ed to, I've said, ‘For God sakes.

don’t wait for it. Go retrain or
find another job. Don’t sit around
waiting. This may never come to
pass. Well it’s not coming to
pass."’

“*However, that is the most
valuable chunk of land on the
North Shore, that Versatile sits on.
This undoubtedly means the end of
the old Versatile shipyards totally
and that land will see redevelop-
ment. So for every shipwright
that’s lost the hope of a job, it
probably means two construction
workers will find a job,’’ Cook
added.

Said North Vancouver District
Mayor Marilyn Baker, who was

among a group of labor, industry
and government representatives
who went to Ottawa in 1986 to br-
ing the Polar 8 contract to North
Vancouver, ‘I’m very, very disap-
pointed with that decision. Cer-
tainly we were expecting the con-
tract would be let. We were advis-
ed the contract would be let.”
Baker reserved comment on
the contention that the Polar 8
cancellation might be the federal
government's way of punishing the
province for not returning enough
Conservative MPs to Ottawa fol-
lowing the last federal election.
North Vancouver City Mayor
Jack Loucks said, ‘‘As it (the
Polar 8) got more expensive, the
chances of it surviving were
decreasing. I’m disappointed, very
disappointed. It means the loss of

big changes down at Versatile.
Unless they get some work from
the provincial government in the
way of ferries...if they’re going to
continue to operate they’re going
to need some work to keep them
together.”’

Heralded as the savior of the ail-
ing West Coast shipbuilding in-
dustry, the Polar 8 was initially
conceived in 1985 as a means of
preserving Canada’s sovereignty in
the Arctic.

Construction on the vessel,
which would have been the world’s
largest icebreaker, was initially
scheduled to get under way last
year.

Versatile’s North Vancouver and
Victoria yards were to share the
work on the Polar 8.

i a

Ft

NORTH Vancouver City Ald. Rod
Clark ...wants referendum,

ticipation would be of ‘“‘less use”’
than one in whici all of the
neighborhoods participated.

“Tam in support of the legaliza-
tion of illegal suites in a
neighborhood-by-neighborhood
referendum,” said Clark.

But Ald. Bill Bell said a study
was necessary ‘‘to legalize (suites)
Properly and thoroughly, and to
minimize problems to the com-
munity.’”

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Wednesday, cloudy with
rain. Thursday, mostly
cloudy with chance of
showers. Highs near 7°C.

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