THE PASSENGER of this car was sent to Lions Gate Hospital after the vehicle struck a pole on Marine Drive near Capilano fast for road conditions. The 1990 Mustang sustaine Driver sent to hospital... ee Sunday, November 18 . 1990 ~ North Shore News - $ NEWS phote Cindy Goodman Police spokesman, the driver has been charged with driving too Road Wednesday afternoon. According to a West Vancouver estimated $10,000 in damage. NVD Council accused of shortchangin But mayor claims Northlands golf course meeting is nothing out of the ordinary A PUBLIC hearing concerning the development of a golf course in the Northlands neighborhood of North Van- couver District as been set for Tuesday night. But some North Vancouver res- idents charge thai North Van- couver District Council has short-circuited it; usual deci- sion-making proce:s and thereby shortchanged the yublic on in- formation regarding the develop- ment proposal. Said Deep Cove Community Association (DCCA) director Jen- nie Keeran, ‘‘We’re registering a formal letter of complaint to council. The way that council has always dealt with these kinds of issues is that they have an infor- mation meeting, then they have a public hearing. Now they just went right through to a public hearing and nobody has any in- formation.”’ But said North Vancouver District Mayor Marilyn Baker, “‘No, that’s not the case. Certainly at the zoning stage, yes (informa- tion meetings are held prior to By Michael Becker News Reporter public hearings regarding devel- opments). You can use as an ex- ample the four amendments that just went on with the official community plan — none of those went to a public information meeting.”’ The association distributed a brochure at pre-municipal election all-candidates meetings outlining a number of Northlands issues, in- cluding: euse of fertilizers on greens and increased surface run-off water into nearby creeks; the district’s loss of a poten- tial net profit of $42.7 million from the sale of the land instead of keeping it for a golf course; e changes to the official com- CEO denies reports THE CHIEF executive officer of Versatile Pacific Ship- yards Inc. (VPSI) has denied recent media suggestions that the North Vancouver-based shipyard is on shaky financial ground and is sinking further and further into dedi. “With a company that does 350 million wortn of business a year it is only natural that we are going to have debts. It’s mathematically impossible not to have debts,” Peter Quinn told the News in an interview this week. He was responding to media reports that VPSI owes several of its suppliers thousands of dollars in unpaid bills. But Quinn, while admitting bills -are owed, said all creditors will be paid. “We're doing everything we can (to pay bills). We've been hurt (financially), but there’s been a hell of a fot of payrolls met around here over the last years,” said Quinn. ‘‘Everyone will be paid.” But at least one North Van- By Surj Rattan News Reporter couver company says it is owed about $100,000 by VPSI. Eugene Gilfott, owner of Norteck Electronics Ltd., said VPSI officials have told him that he will be paid. **That’s what they said. We're owed quite a bit and some of it goes back to last spring,’’ said Gillott. ‘We'll “survive, but it’s not easy. They’re (VPSI) having a bad time right now.’’ Despite the outstanding debt, Gillott said he is still doing business with VPSI and will con- tinue to do so in the future. It has also been reported that a munity plan; * opposition to the concept by 22 community groups; ethe holding of a public hear- ing without getting enough prior information out to and input from the community. Added Keeran, ‘‘The Nor- thiands golf course people have been saying, ‘Hey this is great; look, you can have a golf course.’ We don’t know if it’s going to be close to McCartney Creek, which is a fish habitat. We don’t know anything about it.’’ Meanwhile, Lou Bonar, first vice-president of the North Shore Public Golf Course Society, dismisses the points raised in the DCCA brochure. “7 think they are erroneous,” he said. Said Bonar in response to the lost land safes issue: ‘‘The assumption here is that if the district had sold that land they possibly would have realized this money. But they have no intention of selling this iand. I don’t know an NORYH Vancouver District Mayor Marilyn Baker ... public informati¢-» meeting not nec- essary. how you can jose money on some- thing ‘hat you own and that you retain.”’ Bonaz conceded that a golf course would have some en- vironmental impact. But he asked, ‘“What is going (o create the most adverse impact, 1,000 houses up there or open space from a golf course: ** index @ Affluence & Influence .42 ®@ Gary Bannerman .... 9 Wi Classified Ads @ Cocktails & Caviar. ..40 MComics...........-. 39 @ Editorial Page B® Fashion @ High Tech @ Horoscopes ......... 32 @ Bob Hunter W Lifestyles @ Mailbox ............ 7 @ Miss Manners....... 26 ® Municipal Affairs ....40 @ Spiritually Speaking ..17 Weather Sunday through Tuesday, cloudy with showers. Highs near 9°C. Second Class Registration Number 3885 @ public But Keeran argued that one of the selling points made in support of the course has been that the number of housing units going in- to Northlands would be reduced with a golf course in place. “It was the site for about 1,200 housing units. With the golf course, what could happen is that they could put the golf course in and, with a change in density, they could put 1,000 housing units in and have a golf course.’’ But said Bonar, ‘'That’s not re- ally true. The breakdown quite roughly is that they have 185 acres in that plot at Northlands. The tentative layout is about 155 acres for a golf course and roughly 28 to 30 acres for housing develap- ment. Ail of this is below the proposed Hyannis Drive. There is a lot of acreage above Hyannis that they have tentatively sched- uled for housing development. And in that area they can proba- bly put in 500 to 1,000 housing units with no problem at ali just above Northlands.” The public hearing on the Nor- thlands golf course is set for 7 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 20 at Plymouth School, 919 Tollcross Rd., south of Mt. Seymour Parkway. of Versatile Shipyards’ demise second North Vancouver VPSI supplier, Eurocana Marketing and Production Lid., has applied to the B.C. Supreme Court to gar- nishee VPSI'’s bank account for an outstanding debt of $65,000. Meanwhile, Burnaby-based Prime Mover Controls Inc. said it is owed at least $33,000 from VPSI. While Quinn denied that VPSI’s financial woes will have an impact on the company’s plans to build a $120-million superferry for the B.C. Ferry Corp., it was an- nounced this week that VPS! has set up a separate company, In- tergrated Ferry Contractors Inc., (IFC) to head the project. “it's (IFC) a prime contrac- tor,’’ Quinn said. ‘‘This (superferry) is an enormous engineering project that has to be ‘complete in a relatively short time; but the media don’t seem to un- ‘derstand that.’’ The superferry is due for delivery in February 1993. B.C. Ferry Corp. spokesman Bill Bouchard said IFC, which is being run by VPSI director of business development Dave Longdale, will be responsible for overseeing construction of the ferry and will also be in charge of paying off all of the subcontrac- tors who will help build the 470- vehicle vessel. Project’ subcontractors include North Vancouver-based Van- eouver Shipyards and Altied Shipbuilders. “Ut (IFC) will make sure it {superferry) is built on me and to the right specifications. The origi- nal announcement of the superferry was made at Versatile’s Victoria yard. At that time there was no IFC," said Bouchard. In other VPSI news, Quinn again denied reports that’ the company will be moving its North Vancouver operations to 46 We've been hurt (financially), but there's been a hell of a lot of payrolls met around here over the last years. Everyone will be paid. #9 —-VPSI CEO Peter Quinn Nanamio’s Duke Point industrial area. Quinn originally denied that the company was moving its North Vancouver yard to Nanaimo in a Feb. 2 News story.