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[LA blasts

wage freeze plan

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{2s school

aaministrators

Real issue of school costs not
being addressed, says Dalton

EDUCATION MINISTER Anita Hagen is trying to
avoid the issue of teachers’ strikes and school board
lockouts by suggesting school district administrators
making six-figure salaries have their wages frozen,

West
charged on Thursday.

Dalton, the Liberals’ educa-
tion critic, made the statement
during a debate in the
legislature on Thursday.

It comes after Hagen sent
out a letter to all B.C. school
boards asking that they freeze
the salaries of al! schoo! ad-
ministrators making $100,000
or more and limit pay hikes to
those making. less than
$100,000. ;

Hagen said she has asked
school boards to ‘‘voluntarily
comply’? with the. provincial
government's policy that
freezes salary increases for all
public-sector employees earn-
ing $100,000 or more.

But Dalton said . Hagen
should address the issues of
strikes and lockouts in the B.C.
school system.

“J truly believe the minister
is grabbing a headline. or two
about the 3% to 4% of ad-

‘ministrative costs, the big
-chuak of that being salaries,
“and we're not properly ad-
dressing the much more global
and broader question of school
costs right across the board.

“Yt think every taxpayer in
‘this province is probably crying
out for some demonstration for
government. to. cut back right
across the board, and let’s not

- play games with the 3% or 4%
administrative ‘salaries, because
I think that’s a loss leader. .

-“That’s truly dragging a
herring across the trail for the
wrong reason,’’ said Dalton.

“But Hagen said that since
.she_ was appointed education
minister, she has been trying to
direct. as. much schoo! funding
as possible towards the needs
of students.’ .

She added that her letter to
school boards reflects a ‘‘con-
“sultative approach.”’

‘Dalton asked whether Hagen _

‘is suggesting that any contrac-
tual agreements currently in
place between school boards
and their administrators not be
honored.

Hagen in turn questioned
where Dalton ‘‘is coming
from,””

““Does he want us to spend
more on education and to cut
taxes?. Does he want us to pro-
vide leadership, as we have, in
terms of administrative salaries
and to suggest that those in

_ high salary positions might
consider that to be a respectful
request?”’

North Vancouver-Lonsdale
NDP .MLA David Schreck,
who released a list of North
Vancouver School District 44
administrative salaries in

_ Schreck was

‘senior District

Vancouver-Capilano MLA Jeremy Dalton

By Surj Rattan
News Reporter

January, said administrative
costs and salaries increased by
18% between the fiscal years
1991-92 and 1992-93 —- a cost
increase of almost $3 million.

“T learned that one salary
increased, in total comparison
cost, not just salary, by more
than $40,000.

“When my constituents see
compensation levels in six fig-
ures and generous fringe-
bencfit packages and
perks, they want to be assured
that it is contributing to value
in education, and 1 want to be
assured,’’ Schreck. said this
week, ~

Hagen said there are 30 ad-
ministrators in the B.C. school
system making over $100,000.

In a. Jan. 29 News story,
Schreck said that 17 District 44
administrators are making over
$100,000, while. a further 33
administrators earn over
$90,000 a year.

But District 44 superintend-
ent Dr. Robin Brayne said
‘“‘comparing ap-
ples to oranges”’ and that only
12 District 44 administrators
make over $100,000 a year.

Brayne said that January
1993 payroll figures show that
44 ad-
ministrators are currently paid
between $94,692 and $125,711
annually,

Brayne said his current sala-

-ry is $125,711 a year without

benefits.

Annual District. 44 salaries
for principals currently range
between $65,077 and $95,543
without benefits, said Brayne:

He added that he has volun-
tarily roiled back his salary.

District 44 chairman Don
Bell said Friday that he has
received Hagen’s letter but that
the board has not had a chance
to meet to discuss what its
response to the salary freeze
request will be.

Bell added that the school
board is currently examining
District 44 administrative
salaries, which account for
3.4% of District 44’s $87.6
million operating budget.

West Vancouver School
District. 45 administrative
salaries account for 4.1% of its
$32 million operating budget.

Administrative salaries ac-
count for an average of 4% of
schoo! board budgets pro-
vince-wide,

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Sunday, April 25, 1993 - North Shore News - 3

Civic centre construction
to start with $3M library

NORTH VANCOUVER
DISTRICT COUNCIL

$3 MILLION library is
planned for initial construc-
tion in the phased-in devel-
opment of the Parkgate
Civic Centre in North Van-
couver.

By Martin Millerchip
Contributing Writer

North Vancouver District
Council also recently decided that
a recreation centre, as originally
approved by council, ‘tbe com-
pleted as soon as possible.’’

Completion costs for the
Parkgate complex are now
estimated to be in the range of
$11.5 to $11.9 million.

A development permit for the
Seymour-area civic centre will be
discussed by council on Monday.

The centre will include a
childcare wing and not the ice rink
as requested by Seymour area res-
idents seeking additional skating
facilities.

But precisely when the entire
centre will be completed and at
what cost is yet to be determined.

Coun. Ernie Crist told the News
that higher than projected land
sales revenue this year means that
the Parkgate project could be
funded in its entirety in this year’s
municipal budget.

Municipal budgeting figures
show that district staff suggest al-
locating $3,160,000 for the

‘Parkgate library this year. Staff

recommends the allocation of
$7,045,000 for the recreation cen-
tre and community wing in 1994.

A-recreation commission report
by facility engineering manager
David Naysmith, presented
council in January, confirms ‘‘a
need to consider phasing the pro-
ject.”’

The report reveals that the rec-
reation commission cannot afford
the additional operating expenses
of a new recreation centre.

Concludes the report, ‘‘Perhaps
the final decision as to which fa-
cility is funded first will be made
by: the public with council, but
staff are of the opinion that the
recreation centre could be defurred
an additional year or so in order
to stabilize the commission’s
overall operating budget.’’ ;

Planning for the Parkgate rec-
reation centre began cight years
ago. Council finally approved

Mount Seymour Road

CIVIC CENTRE

PROJECT

To Be Phased-in,

With Library Built First

Mount Seymour Parkway

NEWS graphic Joan Paderson

COMPLETION COSTS for the Parkgate complex are now
estimated to be in the range of $11.5 million to $11.9 million.

budget estimates of $8,564,000 on
July 20, 1992... *

The propesal called for a two-
storey library connected via a
walkway to a recreation centre-
community building complex
housing a multi-use gymnasium,
arts and crafts studios, meeting
rooms and a youth wing with
daycare and preschool capacity.

But council’s January review of
the development permit applica-
tion and subsequent debate of

fundamental design issues caused:

municipal manager Mel Palmer to
direct the consultants to suspend

work,
On Feb. 1 council directed staff
to examine the costs and possible

location of an ice rink. following a,

delegation appearance by Dan
Morrison of the North Vancouver
Minor Hockey Association. Mor-
rison presented a 3,000-signature
petition and asked council ‘‘to
re-evaluate the Parkgate pro-
posal.’’

Council! directed staff to in-

vestigate all potential sites in the .

Seymour area and develop pro-
posals that would invite the
private sector to build and operate
an ice rink complex.

Meanwhile council recently
heard arguments from supporters
of the original childcare wing.

Lois Rennie of the North Shore
Childcare Resource Society ' said
that parental! care is the most im-
portant care of all, but told coun-
cil that Statistics Canada. figures
show that 58% of women with
children are inthe workforce and
that Seymour area greschools are
full and have waiting lists.

Susan Brennan, chairperson of
the Seymour - Facilities Review —
Committee, told. council ‘that
phasing would jeopardize the in-°

tegrity. of the design and the.:.

delivery of urgently needed ser-
vices. ,

“Phasing only i increase the costs, ™:
of projects such as these. - ‘And as
costs. increase, other ‘community.
needs get shoved further into the
future. Phasing disrupts the local
residents and: prolongs the con-
struction mess and commotion for
a longer period of time,’’ said
Brennan,

On April 13, Coun. Joan:
Gadsby unsuccessfully.’ attempted .
to ‘remove the youth: wing. from”.
the proposal. ;

“Pm having: difficulty in sup--
porting a childcare facility at $14 °
million, We have never offered
childcare at one of our facilities
and I’m not sure we should,”’ said
Gadsby.

Park Royal seeks theatre tenant

WV shopping centre looking for independent operator
HAVING BEEN spurned ty the two big cinema chains,

West Vancouver is turning to local independent operators

to bring back the silver screen.

Park Royal Shopping Centre is
currently discussing reopening its
triple-screen cinema with a

‘number of independent movie op-

erators, according to mall director
Rick Amantea. If a deal is worked
out, he said, the theatre could be
up ‘and running as early as the
summer.

Amantea is looking to create a
second-run cinema that would of-
fer a mix of classic and: foreign
films, with the possibility of a
bistro included in the. adjoining
lobby.

He would not reveal which op-
erators are being considered, ad-
ding that he has yet to receive any
formal proposals.

‘We're talking to several dif-
ferent parties,’’ he said.

But one thing’s for sure: it

By Evelyn Jacob
News Reporter

won't be either Famous Players or
Cineplex Odeon, both of whom
turned their backs on the
municipality.

West Vancotver has. been
without a cinema since mid-
January, when Famous Players
moved from the Park Royal facil-
ity to consolidate its operations.
Almost two years ago to the day,
Cineplex Odeon shut down its
cinema on Marine Drive in West
Vancouver in favor of multi-plex
mall theatres,

North Vancouver currently has
two multi-screen theatres with a

“total of 12 screens.

Despite the recent . closures,’
Amantea is: confident a second-
run theatre will fly in West Van-
couver.

“I think people are looking’ for
a unique experience when they go
to the theatre. People still like to
see the big screen presenfation ~-
they just don’t like to pay $8.50
to'go and see it.””

This week and next, Sentinel _
secondary school is occupying one
of Park Royal’s theatres for its..
annual spring play.

Amantea said the cinemas
themselves are ‘‘remarkably’ well-
suited to facilitate stage perfor-.
mances,’’ noting that one of the
theatres’ was originally designed
for that purpose.

“If someone came to us with a
concept of running films — and
live. performances. from time to

. ume — we'd like to see it hap-

iad he said.

i