6 - North Shore News — Sunday, May 28, 2000

seems to be a peculiar fact of

local municipal planning that pub-

ic amenities are planned for after

the developers of condos and highrises
have received their zoning.

North Vancouver District residents
were forced to wait almost 10 extra
years beyond what was first envisaged
for the Parkgate Community Centre to
open. Ditto the ice rink. Scccer and
baseball players are still waiting for
promised fields at the Inter River site.

* North Vancouver City has been
studying to death the requests and
needs for public amenities amid the
Lower Lonsdale/Versatile redevelop-
ment. Cultural organizations and the

recreation commission had their say

over two years ago, with the residents
and business community then allowed
their chance to offer opinions on the
“wish list.”

you said it

It's a good example of “how to screw up a pretty nice

building.”.

oN Vancouver. City. development planner Gary
Penway.on the loss of architectural features during the con-
version of what was city h hall to Presentation House.. (From

a May 26 News story.)

perso:
Presentation House hasn’t had good vies i in the past 10
wn, there isn’t eno
money, it hasn’t been well taken care of. But it has quite
‘a a history, ar and that should mean something i in the com-

iutity.”
‘North Vancouver Museum director Robin Inglis thinks
the building has gotten a bad rap and history should be
take into consideration when i its future i is decided. (From

‘years or 80. It always looks run

believe that we'll be genting into’ © something that .

moan explode all over the city.”

icouver City councillor Darrell Mussatto dur-
$ before council turned down the. request ~
ternational Currency on East 14th Street for -

; (From a May 21 News sory.)
a00

have to be careful bout what we put up there

wind.”

ons ‘ Gate -Project director Geoff Breer on ‘the steel
to,be installed along each sidewalk to protect brid
ic Gam a a May 24 News sory. )

orkers from

er. with: American
‘From the same ne May 24

VIEW POINT:

Planning backwards

Yet the last council approved zoning
for the redevelopment of the Versatile
Jands without arriving at any firm deci-
sions regarding community facilities.
The densities include an allowance for
heritage and community buildings, but
there is yet to be any announcement of
a grand design rooted in the culture of
North Vancouver.

Only now, at the 11th hour, is coun-
cil asking staff to consider the merit of
saving Presentation House and Anne
MacDonaid Hall as usable heritage
buildings. The heritage consideration
is laudable, especially given the token
facades being preserved on Lonsdale,
but one might have expected this step
to be the first in the process. Without
this knowledge, what was the point of
considering the recreation commis-
sion’s report on community facilities in
secret last week?

divorce if it doesn’t
work — or even, if
preferred, a same-
sex union —~ are
the cool ways to
enter this third

Sorry to disappoint
all you “with-it™ ” pundits
but. you couldn’t be
more wrong. The insti-
tution of marriage,
including second mar-

- Virtually the same percentage of

bled since 1970.
parents, 8

ried in the traditional way.

ciages, is flourishing as strongly as ever.

Canadéans are married today as in 1901.
Second marriages have more than dou- -

‘And despite alf you hear about single
37% of Canada’s families today
Include a couple — the vast majority mar-—

WILL THINGS CKANGE
IF THE ANGUCANS

1 AND THE CATHOLICS
lUNSTE AFTER A
' 466 YEAR RIFT?

Love, marriage keep on rolling

common law (whish a parently no one
admitted to doing in 1901!)

What’s making so many Canadians sail
tic | the knot with “forev-
er” vows and then do it
all over again after the
first “forever” attempt
has crashed? Especially
when only about 20% of
Canadians now regularly
attend church —
although, of course, the
above gures include
civil ceremonies as well

as those at the altar. The.

explanation seems to lie:

in two deeply embedded °

traits in most half-decent human beings.’
One, according to Vanier Institute
spokesmen, is the fundamental personal
need to “share some aspect © f Life with
somebody else, That's what creates the
meaning and the memories. It’s this busi-
ness of not wanting to walk in life alone.”
The same instinct is seen in the long-
term mating habits of many species « of,

’ wadition of

Who says so? The well-respected,

“Ottawa-based Vanier Institute of the

Family in a new landmark study of turn-
of-mitlennium Canadian society. Its most

. » Susprising feature — in view o today’s

lespread concern over crumbling rela-_
tionships and family breakdowns — being
the ered ae set of the ancient
anging “forever” vows
with a hoped-for lifelong partner.
Even when it doesn’t work out the

=. first time, In 1970 there were just under

30,000 remarriages with another partner.

By. 1989 the figure was well over 62,000.

and, since 1996, has continued to rise.
Overall, $1:1% of Canadians were.
married in 1996 (as compared with ©

52.1% in O1) plus another 8% ving. a

_ animals and birds.-With humans it is’ oy
_ strengthened by centuries of cultural tra-

~ Van Chamber of

. President's: Dinner oatinerce

dition which have added a second ingre- |
dient to sharing: t the concept of explicit
COMMITME

In other ands, the urge not simply to, ;

be together but the intent to stay topeth-

" er permanently and to promise
‘tong relationship by exchanging formal .

vows before a priest or marriage commis-
sioner. But how can this be reconciled ..-

with the growing sumber of broken mar-:.
riage vows ever since the 1968 Divorce : °-

Act reduced marital breakup to little

“ ‘more than a paper formality? :

Oddly, the answer comes in the much.
greater increase over the same 30 years.
(see statistics above) in second Marriages:

LETTERS 70 THE EDITOR must includ your’.

name, full address and telephone portals
via e-mail to: treaskew@ricews.com
AA TE IO OATES ERI

1S He Pore »
ANGLICAN? 2)

of the traditional kirid; involving t re
vows exchanged with a new partner.
Often, children of earlier unions have
now entered the equation. |;

To the individual quest for a lifelong
Partnership is now added the equally:
important guest for family stabili
which may explain why many of tt
second-time-around vows a
working better than the ori

to the Vanier
rescarchers for bri rightening o
not yet as screwball
_ ships ag the cool “with-it” pundi
have us believe. Why, even mm!

riage.” The fatter may hav.
peared — but the fn half f tin ‘apo:

right

ms, just ke

“at the Capilano Golf and Country Chul
Reception 6:30 p.m., buffet:7:30
Call 926-6614 or fax: 926-643 with

1199 Lond Avenue,