rovi Bob Mackin News Reporter IF finance minister Joy MacPhail had a dollar for every time she’s repeated the NDP’s healthcare and education mantra, she wouldn't have delivered a massive deficit Tuesday. Truth is, she decsn’t have the dough, bur she’s going to spend more money on health: care and education « ayway, MacPhail announced an $890 million bud: get deficit for 1999-2000. When Crown cor Poration losses are counted, the actual detivit Budget increases heal approaches SES billion, She blamed the provinee’s economic woes ona sizeable drep in commodity revenuc caused by the Asian recession. The solution, she said, is increased: spend: ing, Not cutbacks. “Unlike other provinces, we intend to grow our wav oot and net cut our way out,” MacPhail said. “Let me be direct. Our fiscal sit- uation is probably going to get worse betore it gets better, But U believe these are the right choices for B.C. families. Deficits mean fitde to patients on wait fists. Wednesday, March 31, 1999 — North Shore News - 3 th, education spending “Thavs why we have increased spending an health care and education -—- nwo thirds of the budget -- and cot spending in cight other min- istries by $120 million.” said MacPhail. She has committed the government toa S615 milion jump in healthcare spending and a S45-million boost to cducation, Part of those increases mean 400 nurses and 300 teachers will be hired. Personal income tases weren't cut, but mare than 40,000 small businesses will see a drop of 5.5% in their income fan rate as of July cial deficit hits $1.5 billion Jeremy Dalion (Liberal, West Vancouver: Capilano: said the people MacPhail says will benefit from the tereased spending will be paving tor it in the tuture. Daiton said the size of the eighth consecu- tive NDP-produced deticit made him “shad: der.” “The only bright light is there hay to be an glection in two years, Pwant it to be alot soon: er obviously,” Dalton said. “At some point in time we'll be able to challenge Glen (Clark), or whoever the premier is, on cis sorry mess.” The overall provincial debt is now nearly $35 Nillion —~ or 24% of the province's gross domestic product, according to government figures. Rescue teams save snowboarder's life Bob Mackin News Reporter SEARCH and rescue volunteers battled 100 kilo- metre-an-hour winds and sleet to save a wayward snowboardei’s life Sunday night. “It was absolutely abysmal weather.” said North Shore Rescue’s ‘Tim Jones. “It was a true test of the abilities of the three rescue teams, We pulled this off and we seem to do it every time.” A 22-year-old Australian man was separated from nwo friends who had returned to the in-bounds area of Cypress Bowl Ski Area, He encountered steep terrain and fell into Montizambert Creek, severely tracturing, his right ankle. North Shore Rescue began a search after 5 p.m. Talon Helicopters provided a chopper for the search, but the pilot had to carn back beeause of high winds and low visibility. Rescuers finally found the man at 10:40 p.m, with little time to spare. “We found him hypothermic with a severely angulat- ed fracrured ankle with impaired circulation,” said Jones. “We're lucky we got there. He only had a couple hours to live. He would not have been conscious in a couple hours.” The man was warmed up and raised ina stretcher to a stay: ing area. A snowmobile took him to a waiting ambulance at 5 am. Monday. He was treated at Lions Gate Hoypital. Twenty-one of the 44 volunteers were from North Shore Rescue. Lions Bay and Coquitlam provided 12 and 11, respec- tively, The rescue wasn’t the only call co Cypress on Sunday. A missing snowboarder, overdue since 4:30 p.m., was reported to the North Shore team at 8 p.m. The man was found walking along Highway 99 by Lions Bay team members who were dri- NEWS photo Mike Wakefield Seymour crash THIS vehicle hit a tree last Friday on Mount Seymour Parkway near Riverside Drive after the 57-year-old ving to Cypress, Seymour traffic crunch looms $197m in major construction projects planned for NV area Michae! Becker News Eefitor THE regional district is grappling with the traffic fallout anticipated as numerous construction projects slated for 1999 to 2012 come on stream for the Seymour area. Construction projects worth an estimat- ed $197 million are in the works: B Seymour Falls Dam upgrade, slated for a construction startin 1999. The project is to be completed by 2001 at an estinuated cost of $20 million. The project will see a seismic upgrade of the dant begin in the fall. Concrete and carth-fill portions of the dam will be upgraded. The water and construc- tion department of the Greater Vancouver Water District (GVW) foresees a substantial impact to the forest reserve, with approximately 50 truckloads of s daily moving to and from the site; B@ Seymour Filtration Plant, set for a construction start in 2002. The plant is to be completed in 2004 at an estimated cost of S125 million. The plant is scheduled to go in near Rice Lake to filter 1,000 roillion titres of water daily. The system will remove Giardia Cryptosporidiam cysts and reduce the amount of chlorine required; @ Seymour Main No. 5-South will begin construc tion in 2000 and is rarweted for completion in 2001 at an estimated cost of $18.8 million, The project involves building about 3,000 metres ofa 2,100 millimetre diameter water main from the and. lower Seymour gate to the water district’s beach vard; r Sevmour Main No, 5-North is set fora construe: tion start in 2004 and completion i in 2006 at an esti- mated cost of $12.2 million. Fhe project. ill see the construction of a 1500- millimetre diameter water main from the Sevmour Dam to the S-curve at Hydraulic Creek; @ Seymour Main No. 5-Centrat is scheduled to begin construction at 2007 and finish in 2009 at an estiniated cost of $12.2 million. The project continues the 1,500 millimetre water main from Hydraulic Creek to Rice Lake; B Sevmour Main No. 6 is slated for a construction start In 2009 and completion in 2012 at an estimat- ed cost of $8.8 million. The work involves building a 1,650-millimetre diameter water main from Rice Lake to Lillooet Road. The 1}-kilometre paved road berween the Rice NEWS photo Paul McGrath LOWER Seymour Conservation Reserve Supervisor Laurie Fretz was on hand Saturday to show a recreation path plan. Take gate and the Seymour Falls Dam will take the brunt of the trafic in the Lower Seymour Conservation Reserve Gormerly known as) the Sevmour Demonstration Forest}. The road was officially opened to the public in 1987, On busy days more than 2.060 people visit the forest and primari- iy ure the road to eyele, roller-blade and walk on. In Novemoer the engineering and construction: recom: mended to the water committee that a separate paved and gravel recreation tail be designed for a location west of and above the existing forest mainline road. In July the water committee was present: ed with four possible mainline road access options to accommedate the vari- ous construction projects slated for the area: Mi close the road to the public again; MB widen the existing road; B build a separate path adjacent to the existing road; B leave the road a In the November report to the water committee, staff concluded that simply closing the road or leav- ing it as is wouldn't work: the demands oa the road on the part of hikers, cyclists and roller-bladers and construction workers would nor “directly integrate well.” The choice of widening the existing road and addressing ity deficiencies was estimated to cost $6.3 million. The cost estimated for the construction of 3 sep- arate recreational path is $2.1 million. Trail con- struction would take approximately 10 months. The trail would make use of 3.6 kilometres of existing spur roads. The project would see 7.8 kilometres of new trail built. The rail would stretch front the Rice See Path page § GVWD manager of driver apparently blacked out. The driver was taken to Lions Gate Hospital. He was not seriously injured. District gets new fire chief Bob Mackin News Reporter NORTH Vancouver District’s new fire chief Gary Calder says education is one of his favorite pastimes. Over the years he's collect- ed management certificates at the B.C. Instirute of Fechnology — (1990) and University of B.C. (1998) and a conflict resolution cer- tificate from othe Justice Tnstizute (1996), The 47-vear-old successor to retired Chiet’ Rick Grant says he took the courses in his spare time and during holi- davs, The appointment — of Calder, a 27-year veteran of the North Vancouver District Fire and Rescue Service, was announced March 24. arant, 53, was district chief since 1989, Calder was promoted from manager of emergency services, a post he held since 1997, As fire chief, he'll be paid berween $91,788 and See Chief page 5