Dollarton
crossing to go
to referendum

Martin Millerchip

News Reporter
martin@nsnews.com

A proposal to widen the
Dollarton Bridge to
four lanes will likely go
* before the eleczors in
November for financial
authorization.

If approved. a new two-
lane bridge will be built north
of the existing bridge to serve
west-bound traffic coming off
what will be a re-aligned four.
Jane Dolhrton Highway.

But North Vancouver
District council is deeply divid-
ed over whether the proposed
$6 million expenditure for a
new Dollarton bridge is the
right choice to relieve traffic
congestion coming out of the

_ Seymour area.

A staff report presented to
council Monday claims, “The
single most important improvement that could be undertaken to
improve the traffic situation east of the Seymour River is twinning
the existing no-iane Dollarton Bridge over the Seymour River.”

, Three members of council disagreed vehemently.
“This will not solve the traffic problem; it will exacerbate exist-
ing problems. We will merely move bottlenecks,” said Coun.
Ernie Crist. Added Coun, Lisa Muri: “If this is the best we've got,
.. it’s the inost expensive solution I’ve ever seen.”

But Mayor Don Bell and Couns. Trevor Carolan, Janice
Harris and Glenys Decring-Robb ail supported the statf propos-

“This is the option that works best for transit. We don’t have
a better option at the moment ... for the price,” said Carolan.

”. & trew Dollarton bridge will provide a direct east-west
' connecter for Seymour traffic heading to Nerth Van,

_ And Coun, Janice Haris suggested that some of the opposi-
tion had more to do with the long and divisive battle over land

- ase surrounding CanOxy’s Dollarton chlorine plant. The realign-

mene of the Do ni ighvsy will service recently rezoned land
owned by CanOxy and slated for development as a business park.
“Associated roadworks for the proposed new bridge will include
widening the existing Dollarton [fighway from Amherst Avenue
‘to’ the Highway No. 1 on-ramp. Some private property will have
‘to be acquired to carry out this widening to the northeast of the
existing crossing. Some retrofit work will be carried out on the

“ existing bridge, including the addition of a bicycle ane.

\ + .. The new bridge itself represents approximately one-half of the
total cest and will relieve 26% of the rush hour ac-ups according
to staff. Aresident survey concluded 15% was a more likely figure.

a© What council would prefer to see ouilt, at provincial cost, is the

~ so-called Keith Road Flyover— an overpass over Highway No. 1

.. froxn the Seymour River Bridge on Mt. Seymour Parkway west to

'; the Keith Bridge on Keith Road. Doe, .

” Frovs page|

” before the bri

Purchased from companies in Cleveland,

UPPER LEVELS HAGHIVAY

=\

i
1

BUSTING ERGE LANE

NEV:3 grephic Nories Anderson

BLENCING traffic fromm Dollarton into the Main Street on-ramp wouid provide
safer and quicker access te the Second Narrows. The $1.5 million price tag has
yai to be approved by the province.

Council prioritized the Seymour Parkway/Highway No. 1
intersection when asked by the ministry to rank proposed high-
way upgrades preparatory to the Lions Gate Bridge upgrade. But
the proposed flyover solution is now projected to cost approxi-
mately $20 million, up from $15 million when first proposed, and
the Ministry of Transportation and Highways (MoTH) has

icked off two much cheaper options for upgrades — the Lynn
falley Road on-ramp to the eastbound highway; and the west-
bound off-ramp at Capilano Road.

Staff say the province is “actively looking” 2c the flyover pro-
ject but “there is ne approved funding and implementation will
take several years.”

Therefore, say staff, the new Dollarton Bridge should be pur-
sued “since there are sirhilar inter-community traffic benefits and
the Dollarton Bridge dees the most for transit at a for fess cost.”

One other improvement to the Second Narrows approaches
that staff and council would like to see is the extension of the
Dollarton on-ramp te link with the Main Street on-ramp.

The current single-lane on-ramp from the Dollarton Bi way
goes directly into two lanes of traffic on Highway No. 1 just

. The same applies to transit buses which must
merge from Phibbs Exchange. The merge length of this on-ramp
is short and a safety concert. :

Meanwhile the Main Stv.2t on-ramp from the west flows bet-
ter and handles more traffic since it is the start of its own bridge
lane. To better balance brid; ehead trattic flows, the Dollarton on-

ramp could be extended south via a new bridge adjacent to.

Highway No. } to link with the Main Street on-ramp.

Such a project is being reviewed by MoTH on the basis thar,
using an appropriate controf system at the new merge, the Main
Strect traffic would not be impacted significantly and there would
be improvements for Dollarzon traffic and transit buses; especial-
ly with a new Dollarton Bridge ;

The estimated cost for this project is in the $1.5 million range
and district staff say a decision is expectcd soon by the ministry to

- provide some benefit during the Lions Gate Bridge rehabilitation
work next year. Staff also hope the rainistry and/or the Greater -

Vancouver Transportation Authority will contribute to the new
Dollarton bridge. . oo

However, MoTH spokesman Dan Mayberry told the News
that the Transportation Financing Authority would ultimately
make funding choices and that “your guess is as good as mine as
to when funds might be available.”

Council has several source options for the needed $6 million,
but agreed Monday to put the choice of borrowing all or part of
the money to the electors in 2 November referendum. .
. _ Staff say that approval early in 2000 is likely to result in a fully
working Seymour River Bridge and associated roadworks by 2002
— well after work on the Lions Gate Bridge will have been com-

leted with resulting extra traffic added to. the Second Narrows
leneck, o ;

‘around

order direct. But for some reason they ordered use.

Wednesday, July 7, 1999 - North Shore News -— 3

News Boxes
reguiaied in
N. Van City

Kevin Gillies
News Reporter

NORTH Vancouver City council will regalate
news boxes placed on sidewalks within its
municipal boundaries.

City engineer jim Langhlin told councillors tise the city
has received public comments and complaints about the boxes
which, in some places, number six or seven.

“The current legislation we have doesn’t allow for quick
removei of newspaper boxes,” Laughlin said.

A proliferation of newsboxes, specially on Lonsdale.
Avenue, led to council’s decision last weck to adopt the sam:
guidelines that th City of Vancouver adopted last year.

The guidelines say:

@® Publishers must pav for
insurance against liability.
Newspapers must pay
permit fees of $20 (plus
GST) for cach box on city
property (coin boxcs are
exempt because their own-
ers must buy vending
machine licences to comply
with the city’s Business
Licence Bylaw}.

@ Publishers must produce
annual inventories of news-
boxes with fines of $40
being doled our for unre-

jorted boxes. ;

The number of boxes in
one location, or one block,
will be limited.

B The number of boxes for one publication will be Emnited per: -
location. For high demand locations, an agreement will be
sought between the newsnapers. Ifone cannot be reached, the
newsboxes will be chosen for that location by sotrery. “
@ Every newspaper box placed on a Morth Vancouver City :
sidewalk will need city approval. x
Unserviced newsboxes will be rentoved by the city, bur at
the owners’ expeitse. ;

“How do you
know it’s an elec- :
tion year? So far
we’ve heard calls
for the (chewing) :
gum police, the :
bus stop police
and now the news-,
paper box police.” :
~~ Coun, Bob Femmaiey

&® The boxes must remain clean, well-maintained, and free of - > ;

graffiti. Graffiti removal and maintenance must be
within 24 hours of notification by the city.

“8 The city will have the right to remove any box at tie dis-

cretion of the city engineer. —
B The bones mis contaythe size tions coloar and
lesign must be approve ¢ city and no third-party adver- -°
tising will be allowed. a . cop
Aremoval deposit of $80 per location will be required with

~ no publisher paying more than $1,000 total. The money val

cover the. costs of removing newsboxes not meeting.

* guidelines. .

th But oincllor Barbar : Perrault and Stell Jo Dean all:
¢ proy recommendations didn’t s 1
said they favoured the stance taken by the City Victoria

which does not allow newspaper boxcs on public property
me’ ‘no control when it’s out in the open,” Perraukx

.  °She said an cutright newspaper box ban, except on private

property, would prevent their proliferation. She ‘said stores
cod sl the newepaper and make a mall prof oe
. t there were too man: i
Peers Perry

“We've put in over $700,000 into our ” she said.

“They're ugly looking,” Dean said of tite six boxes...”

Coun. Darrell Mussatto noted some of the bores have
been in place for a long time and businesses are ‘not open:

¢ clock for those late-night and early morning read-:

ers: “I don’t think we should go too extreme.”

Coun. Bob Fearnley went a step further...

“How do you know it’s ‘an election year?” he asked. “So
far we've heard cails for the (chewing) gum police, the bus
stop police and now the newspaper box police.” = ©.

_ front of the new city plaza on 14th Sircet

NV co. attempting to ship equipment to Mideast

He said the‘meters are’ used for’ medical ;

‘ally. brought before the. courts,” said, Susan.”
Schooley, of Revenue. Canada’s. Vancouver

Intemational Airport office... ~

. << She said she couldn’ even contirm that the
“.,, goods had been seized.” a

~ ' When asked if Kanira was angry abour the

‘seizure,'a company spokesman sai, “Yes we

* “are,” before referring all subsequent questions
to Spears. S

oT - don't know, what customs is doing but»

they have their reasons,” said Spears. “In this
case, it was simply the person shipping it went
through a freight forwarder, an air cargo per-

° son, and a document wasn’t filled out...”

Ohio; Sarasota, *Fiorida; ‘Beaverton, Oregon;
Soauwel; California; and Audurn, California, the
equipment included radiation survey meters, 4

~ human tissue slicer, oscilloscopes, hydrophones

and other items. : :
Kanira had sold the equipment to the
Middle East companies on March 24, ;

. //“¥v’s for a university I believe,” Spears said.

Some of the equipment’s manufacturers
said they were aware of the seizure but had
questions. :

* “We didn’t realize that the final destination
was UAE,” said Mark Brodderick, president of
World Precision Instruments in Sarasota,
Florida. “Normally our (UAE) customers

through a company in Canada.” :

He said the equipment is not unusual. ~

“It’s just basic laboratory: equipment,”
Brodderick said. “We manufacture specialized
laboratory equipment. Our main market is
physiology and pharmacology.”

But Bruce, Russnack of Cleveland, Ohio’s
Innovation Radiation Measurements said many
of the company’s radiation meters — similar to
those that are part of Kanira’s order — are
termed as “dual use.”

“Usually whar happens if it’s a dual-use
device, there is a legitimate, practical use for it
and there’s also a military use for it,” Russnack
said. “Our survey meters would fall under dual

applications, industrial applicaticnis, : nuclear
power plants, and hazardous matesial units.
“There are export licences. required,
Russnack said. “I don’t know what the export
licence requirements are for Canada. I know.
what, they are for some of the ones for
Russnack: said U.S. customs regulatio
require an “end destination” before equipment
is allowed to leave the country. i ‘
“We have to know where it is going tobe
used, and who is supposed to receive it.
for many items we are not allowed to export,
csid sens ‘