Cove bear shot dead Anna Marie D’ Angelo News Reporter dangeleQusnews.com SOME Deep Cove resi- dents are still upset about a bear that was shot and killed in their neighborhood on Saturday. “The kids are traumatized. They (conservation officers} are saying the bear is danger- ous. Here they are walking around with a high-powered rifle,” said Rub Sim. Sim lives ats the Burrardview Co-op in the 1400-block of Deep Cove Road. Sim, his wife Valerie and their three children were at Stanley Park when the bear was shot on Saturday after- noon. “The kids still don’: under- stand. Is that what we do with animals? Is that what bears are for? To shoot and kill” said Sim. : Conservation officer Rick Grindrod said the animal was killed after a three-hour chase by conservation officers and RCMP. Grindrod said the adult male bear had many chances to run off into the bush, but it chose to turn and face the offi- cers. Grindrod said the animal could not be chased up a tree where it could -be safely tran- quilized. ve “This bear had obviously become very climatized to people,” said Grindrod. He added that bears are wild ani- mals and people will not know See Bear page & Seniors hi Martin Millerchip News Reporter méiller@nsnews.com JOHN Murchie believes “retirement is a crisis.” But he failed to convince North Vancouver District Council Monday that the crisis is imminent and needs iminediate remedy. His plans for a seniors housing project in Seymour we Murchie co-owns property v MacAuley in the 2400-block of Windridge Drive, to the south of Mount Seymour Parkway and Berkley Road The block is immediately south of the recently completed Kiwanis Care Facility. Murchie has been trying to redevelop his property since plans for that facility got under way in 1992. At thar time, owners in the block were advised that district planning stat¥ would support redeve opment to higher density residential in accordance with the policy directions in the Maplewood Official Community Plan (OCP). While the lots are presently zoned single family residential, they are designated as multi family in the OCP. Murchie and MacAuley retained an architect and submitted an application for a 10-unir, three- storey apartment building. In October 1994 they applied for the required a NEWS photo Miky Wakefield Snake eyes JEREMEY Skellenger, right, and Robert Kuit were out for a stroll on Lonsdale Avenue recently with two red-taiied boa constrictors. The snakes are fed once every two weeks. The guys have no problems whatsoever with mice or rats at their house. 128-apartment complex to be considered in Seymour Local Plan rezoning on their property. Discussions with statf revealed their application would appear before council withoui staff support for what was essentialiy considered “spot” rezon- ing. That application was subsequently deferred as council and staff began to redefine future develop- ment patterns in Windridge. Murchie and MacAuley waited while the Kiwanis facility was built and opened, but when a site at Berkley and Mount Seymour Parkway was be advanced for development and not others. They now have the support of other owners the block and, with architects Chandler Associates, have submitted a preliminary proposal for a con- pregate care facility that would be located on cight Windridge Drive lot Sheldon Chandler and Murchie appeared before council Monday to press for the development of 128 seniors apartment units in a four-storey build- ing. The apartments planned are small, ranging from an deferred 450 sq. ft. one-bedrooms to 850 sg. ft. nwo-bed- rooms. Chandler said the complex was designed as an “assisted living development” with central exten- sive amenity space that would include full kitchen and dining facilities. He envisaged a lot of programming built around the concept of “wellness” and suggested that the site’s proximity to the Kiwanis’ congregate care facility made “this type of development appro- priate in terms of need and usc.” Murchie was more blunt. “I believe that we are coming to a crisis in our community that we haven't really faced yer,” he told council. But council members were not willing to advance the project iramediatel Mayor Don Bell agreed there is a need for age- in-place accommodation, but said processing such an application was not as pressing as the ice rink. le said: additional residential development should be considered part of the Seymour Local Plan. That process is presently in the hands of the public and, according to staff, is appre halfway through a gigantic grassroot reise that will give Seymour residents control over long panning objectives in their neighborhoods Council voted unanimously to defer considera- tion of the seniors housing project “until: the Seymour Local Plan is sufficiently advanced to pro- vide the necessary land use policy direction.” Band io vote on RV park future From page 1 was fighting Wese Vancouver munic- ipality because they didn’t want any native businesses,” said Capilano RV and Mobile Park generat manager Frank Baker. “Now for the last 10 years we've been fighting our own people.” Although the council initially suggested an agreement that called for significantly higher rates tor the use of the land, the Baker clan declined. Their decision was based, in part, on the fact many of the res- idents living in the mobile home park are on fixed incomes and could not acconimodate significant: rent increases in their budgets. “We feel like we've run the busi- ness profitably for 32 vears and this is an injustice,” added co-owner and sister Pam Baker. Frank Baker said the family has paid the band $5.5 million in lease payments since 1977, In that time, the family has sunk more than S8 million into the site in various improvements and expansions. Squamish Nation council mem- ber Haroid Calla disagreed with the Bakers* assessment that the council was trying to run them out of town. “The permit always contemplat- ed an expiry, but it’s not our posi- tion for them (the Baker family) to not be involved,” said Calla. He added the council’s motiva- tion for refusing to grant the 10- year permit the Bakers are secking is uncertainty over the area’s future. Calla said the council is awaiting a master development plan being pre- pared by the federal government which will add Squamish lands on both sides of the Lions Gate Bridge. The plan which has no hard completion date, is already two years in the making. “We recognize the RV park has benefitted both the family and the nation over the years,” said Calla. The dispute has moved the band council to take the issue to the mem- bers and on Oct. 4, it will be put to a membership vote, said Calla. said the council's latest offer calls for three years of involve- ment and only in 3 managerial iry. After that, he said, the ould take the business. He sees this as unacceptable. “PE think the world has taught us that government-run) operations don’t work,” said Baker. He added thar the family has s re-invested money trom back into the Squamish tion community —- something other operators may not be inclined to do. One of these ve-investments has been the family’s involvement with the North Shore Indians lacrosse franchise which has been steadily losing money over the years. The RV Park portion of the property features 205 spots while the neighboring mobile home arca has 103 pads. The majority of the pots are taken up by temporary Ss passing through the area. The mobile park is home to perma- nent residents, most of whom are senior citizens. Rita Fiddes, president of the Capilano Home Owners Association, said the situation is worrisome, but said there’s little she or any of the residents can do until the natives sort out the differences among themselves first “Pm a great believer in not wor- ving about something until it’s on ur doorstep,” said Fidde like a triend of mine said: ‘E don't buy green bananas anymore’.”