_ FRIDAY
November 29, 1

-| | Councils grappte with NOP revenue drop

‘Heavy lifting
A cyclist approaches a giant crane that temporarily closed a portion of North Van's
east 13th Street on Wednesday. The crane hoisted an alr-exchange unit on to the roof
of Lions Gate Hospital as part of a renovation of the facility's palliative care unit.

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News Reporter. ; .
FOUR months after taking over North
-Vancouver-based Cannell Productions,

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be let go, only’ stying “a lot.”
“Te's all tenta
Douglas, who ac
” She said layofi

: [t's all rumor at this point,” said
vowledged she’s-one of the nervous ones.
sare linked to July’s $2.5-billion buyout
deal under which Mardoch’s News Corporation swallowed
New World Communtsations Group, which owned Cannell
and North Vancouver's. Two Productions. :

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By lan Noble
News Reporter

NORTH Shore councils are
scrambling to balance

‘municipal budgets after los-

ing millions in revenue due
to provincial cuts
announced on Tuesday.

Municipal Affairs Minister Dan Miller
said total revenue reductions to municipali-
tes will be held to 3% of rotal revenues.

But municipalities say the curs will have
to be offset by a combination of higher
taxes and fewer services equal to as much as
5% of a municipality’s tax take.

The cuts come just before the arrival of
fiscal 1997, which begins in January for all
three local municipalities,

On Tuesday, a provincial goverment
trying to trim what is expected to bea sub-
stantial deficit-in 1997-98 pared $113 mil-
hon. from $805-million worth of grants ear-
marked for municipalities.

Miller defended the cuts, saying Ottawa
is cutting funding to B.C. by $435 million
this year and $731 miWon next year:

“We've been shielding focal govern-
ments from Ottawa’s cuts to B.C. We can’t
do thar any longer” 2

But newly elected West Vancouver
Mayor Pat Boname isn’t buying, Miller’s
story. Na

“They've made monumenital blunders as |
far as their accounting gocs.and they are
passing them on to us,” she said.

Because the municipalities'‘can't run a
deficit like federal and provincial govern-
ments, the downloaded bucks must stop at

WEATHER
Saturday: Periods of rain
High 9°C, low 8°C.

local municipal halls.

North Vancouver City and District were
both hit with the maxinium reduction of
3% of municipal revenue, while West
Vancouver was saddled with a 2.9% revenue
cut.

That means North Vancouver City’s
$33.1 million in revenue will be reduced
$976,400, the district’s $61.3-million pic
will be sliced $1.8 million, and West
Vancouver's $55.4 million in revenue will .
be cur $1.6 million.

\ ;
West Vancouver: =.
For West Vancouver, the cuts come in’
the wake of an-announcement that the
West Vancouver court house will be closed
—-an NDP. move that district staff said.
could cost: the municipality up to ‘
$573,000, © \
[f both policies are enforced, the worst=
ease scenario for the upscale municipality
means cuts equaling 6.9% of annual taxes,

, West Vancouver Mayor Pat Boname said
the. fiscal quandary. will likely be taken to

the public, who will be asked what mix of
tax increases and service cuts they pref:
Boname traced the funding history of »
North Shore Family Services, which pro-
vides counselling services, to highlight the
downloading. Yo. :
‘The feds cut approximately $32,000 in
funding of the $65,000 family services bud-
get and that‘finding was picked up by the
province for d.year. The province has now -
dropped its funding. ~ , ;
’ “That's the fastest downloading I've
seen. Absolutely direct,” she said. ;

See-Budget page 3

in that.so that’s what's kind of going on naw in both L.A.

and (North) Vancouver. offices.” :

Roth Cannell.and Two Productions reriv. production and
administrative offices at North Shore Studios. :

Pox productions filmed locally include ‘the X-files and
Millennium, Douglas-said Fox has a different management
structure from Cannell. ; -

\

‘global media baron Rupert Murdoch is

handing out the pink slips.
Cannell manager of media relations Kim Douglas said the
lay-off process is going on now. 7
“os. Over the next two weeks cach of the approximately 20 ner-
vous employees, many’of them with cight to 10 years experi-
ence, are being told individually if they have a future with the
production company, she said. ; :
Douglas said she doesn’t know how many employees will

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News Corporation coveted New World's 12 television sta-
tions in the United States, Ten of those stations were affiliated
with News Corporation's iox network, Co

“In any business when 2 hage corporation buys another
huge corporation some peupl.are brought over and some peo-
ple. kind of fall to the wayside because their jobs are duphicat-
ed,” said Douglas, Vo

“They are still working ou.;cho they will require, who
they would like to keep on. Ale? of people are not included

\
“Obviously they are going to stick co their system and there-
fore there are some people that don't fit into their system,” she
added. . > CN So :
». The cuts only affect Cannell corporation employees and not
crew members on productions such as Tira. : .
Shaws produced by Cannell include 2/ Jusp Street, Booker, 's
‘The Commish, and Strange Luck. nn
Cannell hasbeen at its present North Shore location’sinee
September 1989. 0, , :

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