RONMENT, Ch Hathietd, . president of Hatfield Consultants expert in West Vancouver, sees benefit in Team Canada trade missions. By fan Noble Wednesday, ~~ 8, 1997 ~ North Shore News - 3 ir trade missi wena, | West Van companies join Team Canada By Michael Becker News Editor NORTH Shore business representatives are among the more than 400 members of the Team Canada trade mission to South Korea, the Philippines and Thailand. The group, led by Prime Minister Jean Chretien, the provincial premiers and territorial leaders, travels Jan. 8 to 20. The mission: stimulate Asian appetites for Canadian expertise and products. West Vancouver-based Canada Korea Business Association and Hatfield Consultants Lrd.. also of West Vancouver, are among the local companies rep- resented. Representatives of Hatfield Consultants Ltd. will meet the Team Canada trade mission in Thailand and attend the meetings and technical presentations planned. “I think the politicians deserve medals for going on these things. It’s damn hard work,” said Hatfield Consultants president Chris Hatfield. His company offers environmental, natural resource and aquaculture consulting support to clients throughout the world. “We've found the federal government agencies to be crucial to our overseas ventures. We wouldn't be there. We're just not of a size where we can just go off internationally on our own. “A lot of business people don’t like government agencies very much but in this case these agencies truly do us a lot of good,” he said. Hatfield i is not looking to close deals through the mission. He sees valuc in the profile afforded by the _ effort: “Looking at it through Asian eyes, they're very much face-oriented, prestige and influence-ori- ented. If they see that the big boss is really support- ing this initiative, well they"r re very impressed. It real- ly has a big impact in Asia.” Hatfield started the company in Deep Cove in 1974. The office moved te West Vancouver in the carly 1980s. He’s a fisheries biologist by training. Hatfield worked for Environment Canada and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans until he had his fill of government bureaucracy. en got a desk, a telephone and hung out my shin- ” he said. “When he first started people would pat him on the head and say something like, “Well out here in the real world we can't afford to do environmental studies.” “Now environment is considered one of the issues in the developing world or anywhere,” said Hatfield. He sees the interest, as it has progressed over the past 10 yeurs, as a combination of legislated stan- dards and the experiences countries are having with the adverse effects of shoddy environmental plan- ning and pollution. “It comes back to haunt you and it aftects your cconomy in the long run. You can only dirty your nest for so long,” he said. Many clients are based in the resource develop- ment area — mining, oil and gas, forestry, and fish- ing companies addressing new development. Much of the work Hatfield takes on involves environmental impact assessments and helping com- panies to qualify for environmental permitting. “A big driving force now is if they are getting financing for these projects, even with the commer- cial banks, the banks themselves are getting nervous enough about environmental exposure that they're saying that financing will come with Proper environ- mental assessments,” he said. More than half of Hatfield’s business comes from outside of Canada. The company has ‘offices in Santiago, Chile, Bangkok, Thailand and Jakarta in Indonesia. Hatfield employs 25 in West Vancouver and another 30 people overseas. : Staff in West’ Vancouver include aquatic - and marine biology specialists, wildlife and forestry spe- 7 cialists, an engineer and an environmental. chemist. - The company recently conducted a $1. million environmental impact assessment in’ ‘southern. ailand. ey The study looked at an expansion. pla : Aquastar, 2 shrimp” farming. company owned © by British Petroleum. The project involved expanding the operation from 400 hectares of ponds to 10, 000° hectares of ponds. : . Putting to use expertise developed i in ‘tackling the problem of dioxin pollution generated by-B.C, pulp. mills, the company is studying ‘the latent. effects of the use of the Agent Orange defoliant!in: Viemmam.: . Dioxin was introduced as a contaminant in ‘the man. ufacturing process of the defoliant. The projéct.h -yet to be completed. For more on. this é ame see fe Page 24: N. Shore bucks regional sales trend sd | loors to North “Vancouver City will semain open.to ew ‘tesidents, but some councillors wish the volume of could be'slowed. erced Monday to “consider the Greater Vancouver Regional District’s (GVRD) Creating Our Future initiative when planning for the ‘city. The G 'VRD réport estimates the population in.the region will top ‘three million by the year 2021. As a “growth concentration area” North icouver ‘City-will be expected to take on some of the growth, even its current population (about 42,000 People) i is only. 3,000 peo- lan fromy the city’s Official Community capacity o! £45 000. ity engineer Chiick Gale said he estimates 55,000 people could be dled by the city’s infrastructure with replacement of old o¢ failing sys- In discussion Monday, Coun. Darrell Mussatto said people will move into the city illegally if housing is not available for them. “What do you do? Do you pull up the draw bridge — is there a moat ‘around this city?” asked Coun. Barbara Perrault the day after the meet- ing. She said the city has already done the “yeoman’s share” in providing housing for recent arrivals to the area, but has little choice when it comes ‘to growth. “I would like to sce West Vancouver and North Vancouver District pick up some of the slack. It’s ali very well to spend money on parks and forests, but these are human beings we are talking about.” 1 age Bright Lights asetnnneenesteneeccnvesees 10 f gi Susiness. wan h WHE CONES... nnerrteeensesserenree 7 Worth Shore News, founded in 1969 as an independent suburban newspaper and qualified under Schedule 112, Paragraph 111 of the Excise Tax Act, is published cach ‘Wednesday, Friday and Sunday by North Stwte Free Press News Reporter NUMBERS all pointed in the right direction for North Shore real estate agents and home sellers in - 1996. Like other Lower Mainland municipalities, sales were up in North and West Vancouver for 1996 over 1995. However, the © three municipalities bucked a downward trend in median selling prices that hit the rest of the Lower Mainland. Those higher prices have been reflected in assessmenis for North Shore homes. John Boden, the president -of the North Vancouver division of the Greater Vancouver Real Estate Board, said declining prices did not reach this side of Burrard Inlet because it’s a great place to live and work. “We have a pretty vibrant econ- omy. There’s less crime ... and more amenities. That’s why the prices are rising — because people want to live here,” he said. In North Vancouver, single- family home sales in 1996 rose to 1,356 from 1,115 in 1995. The median price — the selling price of a home at the mid-point of the sales range —— edged up to $356,000 from $353,000. Townhome prices rose from $247,000 in 1995 to $255,000 in 1996 and sales from 313 to 408. Apartment sales hit 798 at a $165,000 median price in 1996 from 548 at $154,900 in 1995. The story was the same in West Vancouver. Median single-family home prices jumped to $623,000 from $566,000 in 1995 while the number of sales in the category rose to 727 from 635. Townhome prices of $580,000 and 56 transactions in 1996 com- pared with prices of $495,000 and 46 sales in 1995. Apartments sales of 182 in 1996 feil from 1995’s 195 bur the medi- an price rose from $267,000 in 1995 to $295,000 in 1996. December 1996 sales and medi- an prices on the North Shore were generally higher than December 1995 sales and prices. The higher values in 1996 are reflected in rising assessments for North Shore residents in 1996. ' In West Vancouver, assessments are up between 3% and 9%, with an average of 6% for the municipality, said B.C. Assessment Authority’s | Calvin Smyth. He said a single-family home that would have ‘sold for $525,000 in the summer of 1995 went for $556,000 in the summer of 1996. Some pockets of — West Vancouver real estate, ‘such as waterfront properties and homes in the Pilor House Road areas, shot up more ‘than the average, said Smyth. In North Vancouver City, house assessments have increased ‘slightly. A $290,000 home in increased to $300,000 in 1996. Townhouses retained their value and condominiums maintained their value or increased slightly. North Vancouver District had a wider fluctuation, with some’ areas such as Woodlands and Sunshine ©.‘ Falls, which recently received new roads and services, experiencing assessment increases of up to 15%.. An average -single-family home in the district that would have sold for $375,000 in 1995 went- -for .. $393, 000 i in 1996. District townhomes: maintained “We have a pretty ©. vibrant economy.. ‘There’s less crime and more amenities * «+. people want to. live here.” — John Boden, Greater Vancouver Real Estate Board, North Vancouver Division value with minor Bains c or losses. The assessment of 100,000 - propertics in. the’ Whistler, : Pemberton, Sechelt Peninsula, and - the North Shore is completed by. 30 appraisers, said Smyth. "Meanwhile, a Chartwell ‘area home has been fisted for $8.8 mil- lion, approximately $800,000 more than the North Shore record $8 million fetched by Emily Griffiths’ - waterfront home in 1996. . That home was originally placed: on the market for $9.75 million.