APPEALS FOR a “‘cease fire’? during the Christmas season
went unheeded in a special Monday morning meeting, when
West Vancouver District Council passed a second ‘ex-
propriation bylaw for 1734 Argyle Avenue.

Despite protests from the prop-
erty’s owners, Thorcon Enterprises
Ltd., and other 1700-block Argyle
residents, council’s decision was
unanimous and came hard on the
heels of Thursday’s introduction
of the revamped bylaw.

Acting Mayor Mark Sager ex-
plained later that council had to
move quickly, after the Dec. 15
B.C. Supreme Court decision that
quashed the original bylaw, to
prevent the developers from get-
ting a building permit for a duplex
in a block that is zoned duplex, but
has been slated for use as a
seawalk connection since 1975.

“Council is not going to move
to expropriate the other properties,
unless the owners decide to be
developers, too,’ Sager told the
News.

The residents of the remaining
four properties sought by West
Vancouver in the 1700-block
Argyle for the seawall project have
the option of remaining in their
homes until they decide to sell, or
of coming up with a joint proposal
for multiple-family residence
development, which would involve
building new structures farther
back from the waterfront to allow
for the seawall to proceed in frant,

The proposal would have to be a
joint one, because Argyle Avenue

would then cease to be a public
road and become a driveway into
the development. ;

But Thorcon’s George and Peter
Cragg charged that plans for such
a proposal were submitted to
council in September and were not
acknowledged.

“This is a rude way to (reat tax-
payers,’? charged block resident
Lloyd Williams.

“Instead we were served by ex-
propriation papers — not a very
good feeling of negotiation,” said
Peter Cragg.

Sager said that the door was
closed on discussion when the
Craggs challenged the expropria-
tion in court.

“No negotiation was possible at
that time,’’ he added. .

Council scoffed at George
Cragg’s statement that he was
“doing his democratic duty’’ by
taking the expropriation matter to
court. ‘

As long as the Craggs do not
decide to challenge the expropria-
tion again, negotiations can pro-
ceed — for Thorcon, right up until
the time the municipality pays
them an officially arbitrated price

6.4 PER CENT SALARY HIKE

City council gets early Xmas

NORTH VANCOUVER City Council members voted 5-2
Monday night to give themselves a 6.4 per cent salary in-

crease.

Council usually adopts in-
camera agenda items with one en-
compassing vote at the end of the
public portion of council meetings,
cut Ald. Stella Jo Dean asked for
one item of Monday's in-camera
agenda to be voted on separately.

She was subsequently denied the
chance to speak against the motion
because of a time constraint, but
Jater revealed that the resolution in

By MARTIN MILLERCHIP
Contribuing Writer

question will increase the mayor's
salary from $32,130 to $34,170
with the annual aldermanic salary
going from $9,645 to $10,250.

““T don’t feel that it is ap-
propriate for a new council to vote
itself such a pay increase so early

for 1734 Argyle.

The new bylaw, in council’s
opinion, answers the technical
points raised by Mr. Justice Josiah
Wood, by more clearly defining
the municipality’s purpose in ex-
propriating the property, namely
for ‘‘pleasure, recreation or com-
munity uses of te public.’

“This is a cleaning up of the,
original bylaw,” explained Ald.
Alex Brokenshire.

“lm happy to vote for this,’” he
added.

Sager denied charges from Peter
Cragg that the haste in proceeding
with the bylaw was to ‘‘make
things easier if we weren’t there.”’

In the Dec. 20 News story
chronicling Justice Wood’s deci-
sion, deputy municipal manager
Doug Allan said the municipality’s
lawyer phoned the Craggs’ lawyer
at I p.m. Thursday to inform him
of the special 4 p.m. meeting called
to consider the revised bylaw, but
was unable to contact him. A
notification was subsequently sent
via electronic mail to his law office

‘at 2 p.m., but Cragg’s lawyer. said

he did not learn of the meeting un-
til after it was over.

“That’s not the fault of the
municipality,”’ said Sager.

The Craggs questioned whether
the plan to extend the seawalk and
park along the waterfront, with its
incumbent costs, was in the best
public interest.

“I’ve never heard mention of a
public meeting to back this,’’ said

in its term,” she said.

Contacted later Ald. John
Braithwaite, who proposed the
motion of salary increases, pointed
out that the increased figure was
calculated by using the same for-
mula proposed in 1986 by past city
administrator Ed Raymond.

The formula uses the three fiuc-
tuating criteria of population, the
general purposes budget and tax
assessment. i

‘It is ridiculous to suggest that
there is anything inappropriate in a
raise of 6.4 per cent this year when

3 - Wednesday, December 23, 1987 - North Shove News

Peter Cragg.
Conducting his own informal
opinion poll of 50 local residents,

Cragg said that many were shock-

ed at the hardship and cost
necessitated by the plan for the

seawalk, which he described as a

“rat hole.”*

ACTING West Vancouver Mayor
Mark Sager...‘*Council is not go-
ing to move to expropriate the
other properties, unless the owners
decide to be developers, too."’

‘Judge Wood confirmed that
the municipality has had long-

range plans since 1975 to develop a |

seawalk and trail from 25th Street
to Cleveland Dam,’’ Sager said,
“and every person who has served
on council since then has fully
supported this plan. The seawalk is
the most popular recreational fa-

present

We aie Ganig ive vines sutinula that
gave us a raise of less than one half
of one per cent last year,”’
Braithwaite said. “‘We earn about
the same as Port Moody (which)
has a population of less than half
the City of North Vancouver.”

Braithwaite said that if council
reviewed its salary annually on a
set date using an agreed formuta
there would be no suSpicion of
secrecy or controversy,

“Of course, some year we could
get a pay cut,” he pointed out.

Lights
of Xmas

CAROL SHIPS make a
bright addition to the
lights of the Lions Gate
Bridge during «a recent
floating parade along the
North Shore. The carol
ship tradition has been a
festive holiday favorite
for many years.

cility in the community.”’

But the other 1700-block resi-
dents were mostly concerned with
how the Thorcon expropriation
would affect them.

“You've taken away from us the
security and enjoyment of our
homes,” said a tearful June Col-
lins, who lives next door to the
Thorcon lot.

“You talk about a seawalk for
your grandchildren — we have
children living there,’’ she added.

“This acquisition policy was put
in place with one reason and that is
to reduce the value of properties
on Argyle,” said Lloyd Williams,
who claimed that the $15,000 limit
on remodelling the homes on

, 1700-block Argyle was ‘‘rank
discrimination.”

“You are, in effect, taking our
properties off the market and
making yourselves the only
buyers,’’ Williams added.

The residents have submitted
two unacceptable joint proposals
for development of the 1700-block
properties — in addition to the one
delivered to municipal’ hall in
September.

“A group proposal is not really
what we want. We prefer as in-
dividualists to live and work on
our own,”’ Collins said.

“TI think we do have an obliga-
tion to answer some of your ques-
tions,” said Ald. Brokenshire.

The Craggs have not decided
whether to challenge the bylaw in
court again.

NORTH Vancouver City Ald.
John Braithwaite...nothing ‘‘inap-
propriate’ about salary increase,