APRIL 26, 2000

sags Bright Lights
a Business

Crossword
Kids

HCN Puptcation Compam, Pdisher
WS Lonsaae Avenue. Nont Varcourer
Caragan Piticatons Mat Sans

Stace
CV ant
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40 Pages

NV City
store
operator
squeezed

Jan-Christian Sorensen
Contributing Writer

NORTH Vancouver
City council’s proposal
to restrict pawnshops
isn’t broad enough to
stem the sale of stolen
goods, says one North
Vancouver RCMP
officer.

The city’s 1] second-hand
stores also beg, the attention of
council, said RCMP Const. Tom
Seaman.

“It’s too bad the city isn't
looking at second-hand stores,”
he said. “We've recovered stolen
merchandise from two. If the
is only looking at pawnshops, th
have to realize that criminals w
sell stolen property to: whoever

High Tech p15

Instant connectivity available
with Blackberry Internet edition

Bronze
for

they can.”
Last week council asked that

Sports p29

nedal in sight
Capilano RFC

Segur brothers
bring French
savoir faire to NV

~ \Table Hopping p22

FREE

NEWS photo Mike Wakefieia

NORTH Shore Pawnshop owners, Ron Williams and Christine Henry believe that North Vancouver City is discriminating against their

See City page 3

Jan-Christian Sorensen

Contributing Writes

NORTH Shore businesses are bracing for
tough times when closures of the Lions
Gate Bridge begin next month.

Nancy Stibbard, owner and general manager of the Capilano
Suspension Bridge, said that she expects the number of visitors
to her attraction to drop by at least half during the shutdowns.

The bridge, which draws over 800,000 visitors a year, has its
peak season between May and October, when an estimated
4,000 to 5,000 peuple a day walk through the gates.

“It's a big cut,” she said. “(The closures) are going to hurt
businesses all over North and West Vancouver and as far up as
Whistler, the Sunshine Coast and Northern Vancouver island,”

Sui

Sunday;

Local businesses fear impact of
nightly, weekend bridge shutdowns

said Stibbard, who is also the chairman of Tourism Vancouver.
“That whole corridor is being switched off.”

The closures are necessary to replace the 54 deck sections
that make up the 62-year-old span. The $100-million returbis
Ment project — a joint venture between American Bridge and
Surespan — is expected to be completed this fall.

The British Columbia ‘Transportation Financing Authority
(BCTFA) announced its spring detour schedule on Friday.
Regular closures are as follows:

@ May 12 to May 14: closed from 10 p.m. Friday until 10 a.m.

type of business. The city is looking at banning new pawnshops and prohibiting the expansion or relocation of existing ones.

crunch |

® May 26 to 29: closed from 10 p.m. Friday to 6 a.m. Monday;
@ May 29 to June I: closed Monday to Thursday from 8 p.m.
to 6 a.m. nightly;
B June 3 to 5: closed trom 10 p.m. Saturday to 6 a.m. Monday;
@ June 5 to 8: closed Monday to Thursday from 8 p.m. to 6
a.m.
@ June I te 12: closed Sunday and Monday from 8 p.m. to 6
m.
B June 16 to 19: closed from 10 p.m. Friday until Monday at 6
am
ratfic will be rerouted to the Second Narrows Bridge and
SeaBus during the closures.
Stibbard said she’s especially concerned about the U.S.
Memorial Day long weekend in May, when the bridge will shut

See Delay page 5

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