Audit ordered for ferry program From pane 1 Miller said Ward “simply resigned” and will not ree sive a sev- erance package from BC berries. Word of the fast-ferry project’s runaway costs first reached the BC Ferries board in November. At the time, the board instructed Ward to undertake a comprehensive accounting of the project's costs. By Jan. 5, Ward returned with preliminary figures indicating the cost of the first vessel had climbed to more than a $100 million. The final report put the fgure ar $113 million, It was presented to the board last Friday. “Mr, Ward telephoned are at my home in Prince Rupert that the costs had escalated and were in of a hundred (million dol- lars),” said Miller. Ward’s replacement is Halkett, 2 long-time civil servant whose latest position was deputy minister lor the Liquor Control Board. He was appointed as the new president and CEO of BC Ferries last Monday. He faces a well-detined but chal- lenging assignment. “We need to get to the bottom of this,” said Miller. Halkett will be working with Hugh Gordon, who is heading up an audit of the cost of the entire fast ferry program. BC Ferries spokesman Eric Kristianson said the cost over-run announcement does not dircetly impact the corporation's efforts to * market the program internationally. “The Pacificat is purpose-built for — British Columbia,” said Kristianson. “We haven't been try- ing co sell Pacificats.” Miller agreed. He added that he still believes in the concept of the fast ferry program revitalizing the province’s shipbuilding industry. Meanwhile, the first vessel, which was launched last: summer and is undergoing sea wials, is in limbo pending the resolution of a labour dispute berween BC Ferries ars? the union representing its employ The still nameless ship was initiniy scheduled to be in see- vice in 1996 and is currently grounded in Nanaimo by the labour dispute. In the aftermath of Monday's press conference, Jack Munro tell ill with the flu and was unavailable for comment to press time Tuesday. CFI vice-president: Oksana Exell, who is heading up efforts to market future vessels internationally, fike- wise did not return News calls. Wednesday, January 20, 1999 — North Shore News - 3 NEWS photo 8raq Ledwidge Police bug NORTH Vancouver RCMP constabies Heidi Hoffman (left) and Paul Chojnacki present the latest addition to the poiice car fleet. This new Volkswagen beetie was donated by Capilano Voikswagen. The car is equipped with police lights and siren and wiil be used by school liaison officers. North Vancouver elementary students are invited to take part in a contest to “name that bug.” School liaison officers will pick up entries frorn principals by Feb. 26. The contest winner gets a half-day “ride-along” in the car with a Mountic. soccer p NVD acti layers seek ids Association lobbies for joint-use agreement signature Martin Millerchip News Reporter martin@nsnews.com POPULATION growth has caused a critical playing field shortage for North Vancouver soccer players. as Sinnott, chairman of the orth Shore Youth Soccer Association, says he could be faved with curtailing enrol- ment in his popular program nev-t season if the pwo North Vancouver municipalities fai] ro come up with new playing fields. “Ifwe don’t have enough field: for our children, you'd better build bigger parking lots bee.tuse that's where they'll be,” said Sinnott Monday. He spoke to North Vancouver District council in front of seats crowded with young soccer plavers in uniform. Sinnott toid council that since 1986, yauth soccer has grown from 3,000 to 7,350 players. The greatest growth has been in the gris’ program, which has expanded by 388% in chat time. He pointed out that the number of fields available for soccer has grown 10.5% (from 19 to 21) over a penod in which the number of players has increased by 153%. He is expecting 506 additional children to enrol in the competitive program next season while approximately 150 will leave the Under-19 level. Said Sinnott, “i'm faci ensis.” He urged council to sign the Joint Use of Facilities Master Agreement and work out the issue of provincial funding later. The concept of a joint-use agreement berween the dis- trict, North Vancouver City, the North Vancouver Recreation Commission and Nordy Vancouver school board has been debated for over 10 years. A master agreement is conceptual in nature, but the intent is that specific agreements would follow relating to sites, facilities and services. The city, ree commission and school board have agreed to sign off on a master agree- ment while the district refused to come to the table on the basis of the costs it would incur. Argued Sinnott, “This is not an issue of cost, this is an issue of investment. This is a case of setting priorities.” He presented council with a petition he said had been collected in: just a few hours containing 1,115 signatures requesting that council sign the master agreement. But Mayor Don Bell told Sinnott that there was no point in the district signing something for show. “We've got to come up with something that makes philosophical and financial sense to us,” said Bell. He pointed out that the city has six all-weather and three curf fields, while the district has 47 all-weather and seven turf fields. Bell said the district would be paying for an annual maintenance program of appre “ately $400,000 if it took responsibility for all the school pone fields as well as a one-ume $50,000 upgrade for some ct the fields thar have, through lack of maintenance, becom: unsafe, Meanwhile, the school board has said ir cannot contribute financially to any joint maintenance budget. Bell said provincial Minister of Education Paul Ramsey had written the districe to contirm the school board receives finding for playing field maintenance and that he would not meet with the district to discuss the matter. Rell concluded with the suggestion that agreement may not be far off with a possible graduated partnership to be discussed this week by the recreation commission. jpen houses hit by thief in Lower Lonsdale Anna Marie D'Angelo Boden said he was showing an apartment in his mother. News Reporter dangelo@nsnews.com A bogus would-be home buyer has stolen items during four open houses in three days in Lower Lonsdale. The latest ripoff occurred on Monday and involved jewelry taken at a RE/MAX Crest realty open house in an apartment in the 200-block of East 6th Street in North Vancouver. “Because of the incidents reported to police so far, we are urging realtors and homeowners to take cautious measures when they are allowing strangets into their homes to view their places that are for sale,” stid North Vancouver RCMP Const. Heidi Hottman. Last weekend, items were taken in homes at three open houses conducted by experienced real estate agents for Sutton Group-West Coast Realty. “So we have a real live one going around,” said John C. Boden Sr., of Sutton Group-West Coast. the 500-block of Lonsdale Avenue on Saturday when a * guy” went through the suite. Boden found out later that the man then went to anoth- er suite in the building and talked his way into an elderly woman's home. The would-be home buyer toid the 89-year- old apartment owner that he wanted to compace her suite with the suite for sale. Alter the man had gone through the senior’s suite, the woman’s purse was missing. “He is pretry smooth,” said Boden, adding that it was the first occurrence of this kind in his 17 vears selling real estate. The missing purse contained the senior’s iden- tification, bank card and $120. Nothing was taken trom the suite for sale said Boden. Boden is president of North Vancouver divi- sion of the Real Estate Board. He said that the other nwo thefts at open houses on the weekend appeared to involve the same suspect, who main- tained he was looking tor a home for himself and At an open house on Sunday, a man was left alone brietly in the den of a West Keith Road townhouse as the real estate agent quickly answered the door. The next day the homeowner reported jewelry missing. At another Sunday open house, a man looked through a townhouse in the 200-block of East 6th Street. He also told the real estate agent that he was looking for place for himself and his mother. The man signed a guest book ia which he included a “fake” phone number, As in the previ- ous incident, the real estate agent left the man alone briefly to attend to someone who had just arrived ar the open house. The next day, the town- house owner reported jewelry missing from a bed- room. The suspect is described as being Caucasian, early 30s, 1.75 m (3°9") with dirty blond hair and a moustache, He was wearing black runners and the right side of his face appeared swollen or puffy. NV mayors join film lobby group NORTH Vancouver District Mayor Don Bell and North Vancouver City Mayor Jack Loucks will join a film-industry delegation meeting with federal ministers in Ottawa Friday. They will discuss new tax policies threatening the North Shore film industry. The tax policies force for- cign actors to pay Canadian income tax rates and rescind a federal tax credit. Filrai industry players fear U.S. based productions will pull out of Canada as a result. A 15% withholding tax ‘was previously paid to Revenue Canada by U.S. actors. Those who work in the North Shore film industry, both directly and indirectly fear for their livelihood. George Chapman, a North Shore production manager, has lost three TV movies deals since the poli- cies came into effect Jan. 1. — Danica Riley WV woman killed in car crash A 19-year-old West Vancouver woman was - killed on Sunday in a «0 vehicle accident in Wa, Darian S. Lutz died instantly in the crash near Leavenworth in the north ceatrai part of the state, according, to ihe Woshington State Patrol i. the Wenatchee District. Lutz was a passenper in a 1994 Geo Tracker driven by John Thomas, 21, of Auburn, Washington. According to the Washington State Patrol, Auburn’s car hit a guard-rail near a bridge in the snow. It then veered into the cast lane, colliding with a 1973 Ford pickup truck coming the other way. The driver of the truck, Leslie Blankenship, 25, of Leavenworth, was not seri- ously injured. Thomas was taken to hospital with possibie inter- nal injucies, Both vehicles were totalled. The accident occurred on the highway near the Spilway Bridge in Chelan county. ~~ Anna Marie D’Angelo ~* con state.