= ! Brooksbank warehouse in dispute with NV City hail over use of space Liam Lahey Contributing Writer WINDSOR Secondary School student Riley Ketmer is not directly involved with the virtual war his employer is embroiled in. However, the 16-year-old does identify with the advantages of working for Pine Systems Inc. “I'm hoping to be a computer cocsuleant or perhaps run my own business like Mr. Preckel’s,” Kettner said. “The advantages of working here are obvious... | get to see the daily operations of how to successfully ran a computer company from both the business administrative end and from the com- puter end.” The veenager has also witnessed firsthand the politics of running a business. The Brooksbank Avenue company is currently locked in a dispute with the City of North Vancouver, the result of complaints from nearby competitor CSC Computer Services. CSC has accused Pinc and owner Frank Preckel - of using sore than 20% of its warehouse space for retail purposes, contrary to zoning bylaws. On Aug. 10, city council learned Pine Systems had applied for an awning sign permit, an indica- tion the company may be planning to operate out of its present location for the duration of its lease. Earlier statements by Preckel suggested he'd prefer to relocate to the United States rather than fight city hall. “Intel Corporation approached us regarding representing them as an authorized dealer of their + products and services,” Preckel said. “The new sign puts us in 2 more prestigious light.” Preckel insisted he’s not particularly concerned With retail sales, but questioned the city’s defini- tion cf “personal computer.” ~~" “1 you look at.2 computer as a personal item, then city hall would have to throw everyone out of the industrialized zone,” he said. .. Teay Wilson, a property use inspector for the ay, said council’s position on this issue is crystal clear. *. “The use of the property at 440 Brooksbank * Avenue is not allowed in that particular zone,” . Wilson said. “At this point in time, city staff applied for an injunction that'll see Pinc Systems - conform to the city’s bylaws.” _-Pinc. Systems” lawyer Jonathan Raker of ' Jonathan Baker & Associates in Vancouver stated in“a letter to Frances Caouctte, administrative manager. of development services for the City of * North Vancouver, that “when the council of the City. of North Vancouver orders our client (Pine Systeris Inc.) te close down because a personal computer js personal rather than non-personal or » household, it has fallen into grave error. They (council) can not be serious”. Accompanying the fetter was a definition of the word “household,” taken from Websters New World Dictionary, and explanations for the phrases “personal goods,” “personal computer,” and “mainframe.” The letter closed by stating, “we would not want to sce our client charged with a breach of the Building Codc because their mainframes have not had ‘a ‘raming inspection.” Baker said Pinc’s legal troubles are the result of a poor business atmosphere in Canada. “You can sce why people hate this country,” Friday, August 21, 1998 — North Shore News — 3 Kirmish flares Ferry COMPUTER enthusiast Riley Kettner is on his way to tecoming a certified technician. Baker said. *The rules are made by people who drive people out of business ... perhaps it’s a failure of the public school system that doesn’t teach peo- ple to analyze the definition of words.” Baker added he expects the city to enforce their threats of secking an injunction against Pinc Systems in an effort to shut them down. “They're (city council) looking at the bylaw that says only non-houschold goods can be sold in that particular zone,” he explained, “Since a com- uter is referred to as a ‘personal computer’ and a jot of houscholds now buy ‘personal computers’, the city believes my client is in violation of city zoning laws ... I have great respect for this city’s planners and developers, but [I don't think they anticipated Intel would develop a better microchip that everyone would wait to use.” Baker further questioned the city’s motives for pressing for action against Preckel and Pinc Systems. He hinted the Lower Mainland was in the grip of “municipal lunacy.” “f don’t quite understand what municipal luna- cy is running rampant lately, but it’s not just hap- pening in North Vancouver,” he ‘said, citiag Surrey’s dec.sion to ban ice cream vendors fiom operating ou. of trucks. “In my opinion, the city’s interpretation of these bylaws are prep. ysterous.” No matter what legal struggles Pine Systems is encountering,, for young Riley Kettner, the com- pany is providing an opportunity to learn the finer aspects of the computer industry while funding his future. education. Kettner is one of several secondary schoo} stu- dents Preckel recruited to work for Pine. Kettner said the advantages of working for Preckel are invaluable. His respons answering the phone clients. “I do techinical service on the computers, from upgrading systems to actually building them,” he said. “I’m also responsible for fixing various mod- els when a customer brings them ini for repair.” “T get better than average pay with Pinc,” Kettner said. “There’s more of sn opportunity to expand my expertise and be up on newer products it’s a far better opportunity cather than just es inchide more than just and greeting potential being a grunt.” horn blasted Robert Galster News Reporter robert@nsnews.com BOWEN Island resident Richard Montagna is tired of being blown away by a BC Ferries horn blower. Montagna jas a problem with the loud horn that most of the BC Ferries vessels usually sound shortly befure leaving their berths. Most captains announce a warning to passén- gers shortly before sounding the horn. But some don’t. “J was out there and was blasted by the whistle and I’ve had car problems ever since,” said Montagna. “It’s a very, very, very loud whisde. It’s one of those things when it gocs off ople cringe, babies cry and ids start to scream.” He said the warning is a rari- s rather than the nerm along the short commuter route connect- ing Bowen Island to Horseshoe Bay. One of the route’s captains has been reluctant to warn pas- sengers. 7 Montagna said he is not the only one upset by the actions of. the captain and said he knows of several other islanders who have filed complaints with BC Ferries. “It seems ludicrous to me that BC Ferries, a service-orient- ed, governmental agency, is doing something against its cus- tomers,” said Montagna. As ic turns out, no hard rules requiring ferry captains to warn the public befure bizting the horn have ever been place. Nevertheless, the majority of the fleer’s operators are in the habit of doing just that. As of Jast week, the warning became mandatory. ; BC Fervies spokesman Eric Kristianson said the Crown cor- poration passed a directive asking ferry operators to “make every effort to inform the ship’s pas- sengers of the sounding of the horn.” He said it was implemented as a result of complaints from Bowen Island residents. “BC Ferries did receive a number of complaints from Bowen Island residents,” said Kristianson. “Since that point no complaints (have been received) since the directive was issued.” Kristianson added occasional horn blasts may still be issued without warning, but only in a navigational capacity. Former Reformer miffed by party direction Others were not as impressed with White’s actions. Paula Folkard — ran against Kim Campbell in Vancouver Centre as a - From page 1 election with 5,041 votes. White won the rid- ing with 26,404, with Liberal Warren Kinsella second with 18,348 votes. North Vancouver Liberal riding Jay Straith praised White for being * ss Reform Party candidate tent,” but had few kind words for the Reform iu 1988. The North Party leader. Vancouver woman says “Manning’s very hypocritical and has she is disappointed with hung his party out to dry,” Straith said of Ted White’s handling of Manning’s muddled message to his MPs with the pension issue. regard to the pension plan issuc. “Why would he send Calling the Official Opposition “the B.C, that (survey) out he Lions of Canadian politics,” Straith said he knew he wasn’t going to wasn’t surprised that some Reform MPs were take a pension anyway?” she asked yester - opting into the pension plan. Folkard added she fully supported White “(They) are very sanctimonious once they when he was first elected, however “as soon get to the magic six years,” he said of two- as he backstabbed Preston in the media I lost term MPs. respect for him.” Last week White told the Straith prais- es MP's con- sistency News that he doesn’t believe Manning can lead the Reform Party to a ted- eral election victory. Since then White has backed down from his criticism of his leader, saying he has nothing more to add to last week's comments. Folkard said she is no longer a card carrying Retorm Party member, and that she believes the party become “Orcawa-ized, “| thought we were finally going to get an honest government,” she said. “Or at least as honest as a government can be.” Progressive Conservative — candidate Dennis Prousc, fourth in last year’s North Prouse has problems with survey Van riding election with 2,698 votes, said he has problems with the householder survey process White used in polling his con- stituents. “If a couple hundred motivated people told Ted White in a survey to change his stance on justice issues, would he do it? How about taxation and government spending?” Prouse asked. “Is Ted White a right-of-centre politician with a guiding set of principles, or is he simply a populist voting machine?” Prouse added: “After asking a mind- numbing series of questions, Ted White made people give their name, address and tete- phone number before allowing them to vote in his survey. Otherwise, he told them, their votes not be given the same weight’. “In a Third World country, we would call thar election fraud,” Prouse declared. “Ted White calls it ‘Direct Democracy’.”