eT aot NEWS photo Cindy Goodman : A 55-YEAR-OLD Vancouver.man was charged with dis- ‘obeying & railway crossing signal on Friday. after this 4991: Oldsmobile coliided with a BC Rail train at 15th Street and Bellevue Avenue in West Vancouver. No seri- . ous injuries were reported. ‘False alarm fines approved by W. Vancouver Council WEST VANCOUVER adopt- ed two: bylaws March .14, establishing fees.for. false “security alarms, attended by . police and. ‘false fire alarms - attended by firefighters. ©. -the fines would not discourage peo- ple from installing alarm systems. False alarms occur because of ‘mechanical failure, owner negli- _gence, atmospheric coaditions, * power failure,.and occasionally by “We have literally thousands of . false:alarms on an annual basis,” ‘said Mayor Mark Sager. Coun. * Diana ‘Hutchinson said she hoped - people “testing” their systems. -In future, residents will be per- mitted one false alarm; after that the fine will be $50, $75 for a third occurrence and $100 thereafter. Quality of mass food production debated by LGH staff BAKER DAVID Elphick will be out of dough come April, when Lions Gate Hospital closes down its one-man bak- ing department. By Kate Zimmerman News Reporter Elphick, an employee of [4 years with the hospital, found out at a.general meeting on Friday that he'll lose his job. He has 31 days to “bump” another kitchen or housekeeping employee with less seniority out of their job, or be laid off. “Tm probably going to bump.” said the 47-year-old man, who is the sole wage-- » earner in his two-mem- ber household. He doesn’t particu- larly relish the thought of displacing another worker. But, as he con- tinued to cut out cook- ies in a sunny back room of the hospital’s main kitchen he said, “Most people understand.” Elphick supplies patients with fresh scones and muffins and desserts such as custards. Like many of the Nutrition . Services employees wliose posi- tions are being phased out over the next year, he had expected to work at LGH until he retired. On Monday, he hadn’t yet been told who weuld be supplying such items to the hospital in his stead. Other Nutrition Services work- ers were still in shock. Wearing their standard-issue paper hats and hospital garb, they gathered in the crowded kitchen -after the lunch hour to tell the News how they were feeling. . “T just.can’t believe this,” said a hospital cook of many years stand- ing, who did not wish to be named. “We've been working here getting things done, improving the quality and all that, and now it’s all down {School service cuts feared NORTH SHORE | public -school officials say they face service cuts as a result of an announcement Friday that Education Ministry budget increases will be lower than the inflation rate. By Anna Marie D’Angelo News Reporter . North Vancouver School .District 44 (NVSD) schools ‘received a 2.6% increase in over- all funding. - West Vancouver District 45 Schools (WVSD) received a 1.1% increase. The provincial inflation rate (consumer price index) was listed as 2.5% in January. The figure is the difference in price of certain items purchased in January last: year and in January of this year. Said NVSD board chairman Pat Heal, “Anytime you have to CALL US: 983-2208 make any cuts, it’s disappointing. It could be worse.” She said school officials esti- mate the district will have a shortfall of $1.5 million with the new budget money. ‘ “A.piece of that (cuts) must come out of administration. Where it is all going to come from, | don’t know at this point.” said Heal. Money for school administra- tion has been capped in all school districis by the provincial govern- ment. Heal said last year the school district took in approximately 600 new students. She said there will be no additional personnel to serve new students this year. . Meanwhile WVSD board chairman Jean Ferguson said it was too early to tell wheis cuts will be made. “It’s unfortunate, but econom- ic times dictate this,” said Ferguson. She said benefits for retired teachers and liability coverage on property are now coming out of an individual school district bud- get. The Education Ministry had paid for the items separately. She suid WVSD officials pre- dict there will be no new students in September despite an influx of 150 new students last year. In total, WVSD. received $32,253,248 as a preliminary 1994-95 budget. NVSD received $91,223 for the same period. North Vancouver-Lonsdale NDP MLA David Schreck said he is pleased with the increases for local school boards. “It is higher than what I feared,” said Schreck. “fT have no difficulty with it, bearing in mind places like Alberta are cutting back by dou- ble digits.” The average funding increase was 3.1% throughout the 75 284 -provincial school districts. the drain, “What's here for me any more? I don't know,” she said. with a hopeless expression on her face. Lyle Jenkins, who is First Cook in the Terrace cafeteria, has worked for LGH for four years, When the news came, he said, “1 was really shocked.” Rumors had been simmering that the LGH kitchen might become the main commissary for extended care facilities on the North Shore. The workers were imagining they might be busier than ever. , “Just to have this announced ~ Maintenance worker Wayne Meger was very abrupt,” said Jenkins. “I wasn’t ea pecting it at all.” i - The kitchen staff described cook-chill meals as “airline food.” . Meals will be cooked and chilled offsite and then brought in bulk to LGH, where they will be “plated” and heated for patients. Cook-chill food service is said to be an efficient way to prepare . and distribute food. “Once it’s pre-frozen and brought out and heated, all the nutrients are cooked out of it,” said ptep cook Eileen Nahanee. (North Shore Health community: nutritionist Margaret Broughton said this is not necessarily so —- vitamin content depends on how quickly the food is-cooked and chilled, and on the length of time between reheating and consump- tion.) LGH cooks had been experi- menting with vegetarian and Heart Smart entrees and continuing to . 66 People who are in this hospital are going to be served sub-standard food. 99 feature fresh vegetables on the menu, “Fresh food is part of getting well, Jenkins said. He nated the reported $2 a day saving between three cook-chill meals and three typical LGH meals and said the hospital's kitchen should have been given the chance of trying to rival the cook-chill meal’s cost: ~ : “That option wasn't even given to us," he said. “There's no“input Jeft for us to give.” Staff member John. Vereczkey pointed out that the long-term patients in-Evergreen House pay, for their food. — . “Are they (admin- istration). going to lower their rate in the hospital?” he asked. Maintenance worker Wayne Mleger said the Hospital. Employees’ Union's stipulates that the hospital wili not con- tract work out that results in unionized employees © .. being laid off. “Why should‘ North Vancouver people in hospital suffer?” “Meger asked. “People who are in this hospital. are going to be served sub-standard’ food.” ‘ : Community nutritionist Broughton said cook-chill has become quite common in Canada in ‘recent years. She couldn’t see any particular drawbacks to the method ‘’ itself. - But as for the i issue of relying on Burnaby Hospital to supply patients at Lions Gate, she said, “Mass food production always has some draw- .backs in that if something breaks down, more people are affected.” * Lyle Jenkins predicted that the kitchen staff layoffs would not be. the end of LGH'’ s cost-cutting mea- sures. . “There will be more layoffs,” he said. i News’ crossing survey siaialalaheieieiaiaialeiaiaiaiaaaaieia aia aiaiaian elaine NORTH SHORE residents use the Lions Gate Bridge more than anyone else, so the North Shore News wants to know what you think. Please check one. Where parentheses are beside a choice, please circle one of the choices inside the parentheses. 1) Live in: ‘2 North Vancouver O Vancouver 2) In one week, I cross the Lions Gate Bridge: (3 6-10 times. O more than 15 times. O less than 5 times. QUIL-IS times. 3) 1 would be willing to pay a toll (at rush hour) of: €) $0.50 O $1.50 ©) $2.50 2 Nothing $1.00 3 $2.00 DQ more than $2.50 4) I feel the best solution is (circle one in parentheses): Q Renovate bridge (3 or 4 lanes) 2 New bridge (4 or 5 lanes) % 6-lane, double-deck bridge (suspension or cable-stayed) & Tunnel (Is there a specific one?- } &, Responses can be mailed, to or dropped off at, 1139 Lonsdale Ave., N. Vancouver, V7M 2H4, or they can be faxed to 985-2104. The results will be published in the North Shore News’ special Lions Gate Bridge pull-out feature on March 27. er ee rd THIS WEEK’S QUEST TION: 2 West Vancouver 2 Other? ee me tae ae yy ae ms ee se Om le ms ae Ome es me ky sy em t a] Should the police have more leeway in how they conduct car chases? collective agreement .