2 BC Transit me tO spruce ae Up bus loop .f Robert Galster i News Reporter robert@nsnews.con a” AS one of the gateways to Fs Mm but it is the first thing to meet the the North Shore, Lonsdale Quay’s bus terminal is shap- ing up to be more of a deterrent than anything else. Appearance isn’t everything, eve. And if that eye belongs to one not accustomed to the sight of grime, beware of flecing first-and- last-time visitors. Bird turds piled on top of bird wee droppings adorn a good portion of : x MLA says Victoria trying to cover up fast-ferry costs Seem tan Nobie the walkways beneath the com- muters’ fect. Sdil, the view above is not much COMMUTERS at the Lensdale Quay bus loop run to catch their connections better. Slung from the low roof above commuters’ heads, diree- tional signs offer free and silent directions to people who fe probably don’t even notice them. The others, visitors from ! I 2 _— over town and further afield, must shudder and fight the urge to turn around and retrace their route to wherever it is they came from. Each one of the hanging dircctives sports the need for 2 fresh coat of paint and a solid scrubbing; a gencrous dollop of goocy yellow muck cuts a path through the signs, forming drops that appear ready to drip on to the heads of the _ passers-by below. The sickening yellow path cuts through the words indis- criminaicly, so that S is separated from cabus and B somchow stands apart from uses. Located in the heart of North Vancouver City, the loop’s fm maintenance officially falls within the realm of BC Transit even though it is ac Ferry Sal ually owned by ICBC, which has its B.C. Ferries spokesman Clay Suddaby agreed that Gate Pryc e-dones _ Marion Lee. offices upstairs. According to a sample of the loop’s users, experts on the subject, the loop’s appearance is not 2 concern, particularly when compared to other cities or loops “Compared to the rest of them it’s okay,” said Gabe Pryce-Jones of North Vancouver. “It’s all grungy up on the signs, but ir’s pretty safe here. 1 haven’r seen many fights.” Rosemary Lucas, who was visiting fron’ Calgary, did not see any need to improve on what she considers an already good situation. “Well, comparing it to Calgary, it’s a whole lot better,” said Lucas. “It has more cleanliness, and J have no argument with the service. “I suppose they could fancy it up a bur that would give the destructive public more to work on.” Marion Lee of North Vancouver said the most important thing is the service and she has no complaints the Friday. January 16, 1998 — North Shore News — 3 ; a - Rosemary Lucas. NEWS photo Terry Peters without paying much attention to the dirty terminal. “It’s very convenient,” said Lee. “It could do with a bit of clean up. It gets pretty mucky.” Sally Hinnell said she is an infrequent user of the loop, but added “right now it doesn’t look too bad.” In spite of the lack of outrage on the part of regular users, BC Transit spokesman Trace Acres said the News* inquiry caused his employer to take a closer lock at the site and con- clude it was indeed in dire nocd of a good scrubbing. “The signs are being clean-d and if the results are not sat- isfactory, theyll be replaced,” said Acres. As for the bird droppings, Acres said BC Transit officials will be investigating the positioning of protective netting that is already in place, and will act on their findings. The loop platform where passengers ordinarily wait for their buses ts power washed every two months, said Acres. “That (the power-washing schedule) will be re-evaluat- ed,” he added. Senior sentenced for sex assaults on kids Anna Marie D'Angelo News Reporter News Reporter tan@nsnews.com A Liberal MLA has accused the provincial government of trying to unload the fast ferries being built in North Vancouver to cover up the program’s escalating costs. Doug Symons, the Liberal’s deputy transportation B critic, says the $74 million price tag, for each of the three B high as $100 million by the ume all B costs of the fast-ferry program,” said Sannounced in 1994, the price per M ferry was estimated to be $70 mil- m make a si Ferries,” said the MILA. DR 122-metre boats could actually be as +4 is said and done. ; “An Debr-plagued B.C. _ Ferries, which reported a $76.5-million loss in 1997, currently says it’s on the hook for $74 million for cach of the ferries, which are being assembled in North Vancouver. “By selling the catamarans, B.C. Ferries is trying to hide the truce Symons. . When the fast-ferry program was lion. This week, Symons said the plan to sell and Icase BS back the fast ferries may not be a good deal for B.C. tax- payers. ; “Anybody who buys the catamarans will want to ble return leasing them back to B.C. buys the catamarans will want to make a sizable return leasing them back to B.C. Ferries.” ~ Liberal MLA Doug Symons any potential purchaser will want to make a profit, bur he added private s can also write off the deprecia- tion of the fast ferries. B.C. Ferries, as a Crown corpo- ration, cannot. Suddaby said B.C. Ferries has hired investment deal- er CIBC Wood Gundy to help the Crown corporation determine the best way of approaching the marker for selling and leasing back ferries. “ preliminary work and it’s ongoing and we don’t have a time frame,” he said. He added the leasing program is not specifically geared to the fast ferrics, “We would look at anything thar brings value to the corporation and the province,” he added. Suddaby said B.C. Ferry cur- rently leases two of its vessels. Responding cto Symons’ esti- mates of $100 million per fast ferry, Suddaby said the $74 million figure is firm and he expects the ships to be in service in the spring, Meanwhile, Suddaby said it has always been B.C. Ferries’ intention to. sell) off Catamaran Ferries International, a wholly owned North Vancouver-based subsidiary overseeing the con- struction of the fast ferries. One of those thought to be interested in CFI is bil- lionaire Montana transportation magnate Dennis ody who See Billionaire page & dangclo@nsnews.com AN 82-year-old Sunshine Coast man was recently given a 12- month conditional sentence for fondling and touching the genitals of three girls in the 1960s in North Vancouver. The man’s name is banned from publication by court order. According, to the North Vancouver RCMP, the man was a family friend and related to one of the victims. The indecent assaults took place during family vis- ly man pleaded guilty to three charges. Four more indecent assault were dropped. A total of five voung girls were named as victims in the he police investigation began in 1995 after one of the victims went iibsons RCMP to make a complaint about the man, North Vancouver provincial court Judge Jerome Paradis required the sex offender to perform 75 hours of community work as part of his sentence. The man was also ordered to stay in B.C., nor drink and not be in the pres- ence of any children under age 12 without another adult present. ‘Phe man was sentenced last month, In October, Judge Paradis jailed a 67-year-old man for a vear after he plead- ed guilty to indecent assault and committing acts of gross indecency against two young boys in the 1960s and carly 1970s. One of the boys was [0 years old, according to pol The convicted sex offender's name was banned from publication after Judge Parad ended the usual publication ban to protect the identity of the accused man. Publication bans are usually used to conceal the identity of victims. According to the North Vancouver RCMP, the offender was not related to the boys and was described as a family friend. Police say the man took kids on outings in the outdoors. The sex crimes were committed in North Van District, North Van City and “other places,” according to the charge Police say the assaults involved anal intercourse by the man on one of the boys. Poli y the man, who listed an Alberta address and who used to drive a gravel truck in North Vancouver, had been jailed for a sex crime before the North Van conviction.