1987 car accident victim recelves $2.2M in decision THE LEGAL ordeal of a former West Van- couver recreation worker is almost over. . The ordeal of everyday life, however, is far from .abating for the victim of a 1987 car ac- cident. By Brent Mudry ‘Contributing Writer Neville West, 40, was awarded $2.2 million in a judgment released Wednesday by the B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver. Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) pol- ' jey limits, he may never see more than $1 million of the award. West, program director for the West Vancouver recre- ation department from 1977 to 1981, was the hit-and-run victim of an impaired driver. In. October 1987, the ‘former award-winning Australian journalist was packed at right in a curb lane, waiting for his wife. A speeding Jeep, driven by Larry Douglas Cotton of -]|, Nanaimo, struck West at over * 60 km/h. The impact damaged both vehicles and threy West’s car into a telephone pole. Several But because of | EE NORTH VANCOUVER CITY COUNCIL VICTORIA Park Avenue North has moved another step closer to being closed to make way for a 16- storey apartment tower. By Stephen Wisenthal Contributing Writer North Vancouver City Council voted Monday night to claim title to the small connecting road, wkich runs north-south between the park and West Eighth Street, just east of Chesterfield Avenue. Nearby residents have com- plained that the development will block their views. They have also said they want to continue to be able to use the toad. Pat Kuechler, who said she was representing renters in the neigh- borhood, called the road a source of “light and air and space’ in a high-density area. But Delia: Bortignon, repre- senting her parents, who own the building to the west of the pro- posed development, said: ‘‘When the tower to the south was built, that greatly beautified the area — everything around it was opened up.” Council heard that Noort De- velopments, which owns the pro- 13th STREET ST. JOHNS the Evangelist Church Sunday, February 28, 1993 - North Shore News - 3 Developers propose 16-storey tower for Victoria Park site Park area residents protest loss of space as road closure looms PROPOSED STREET CLOSURE PORTION OF VICTORIA PARK AVENUE perties on either side of Victoria Park Avenue North, would pro- vide a 22-foot (6.7 m)-wide cor- tidor for a footpath to replace the road, Deputy city engineer Don Bridgman said the road segment, which is 50 feet (15.2 m) wide, has been valued at about $750,000. it currently carries about 300 cars a day, which is low enough that the engineering department would not object to its closure. Architect Larry Doyle, speaking for the developer, said that a tall, thin building was planned to minimize the impact on existing views. “Developments of this density need open space around them,”’ he said. He added that Noort would buy the “tunused development rights’’ of the building to the west (at the corner of 12th Street and Chester- field Avenue), which would mean the tower could have higher densi- ty, but the existing 2'%-storey building on the corner could not be replaced with a bigger struc- ture. The legal process — ‘‘stopping up and closing’’ — by which the city gains title to Victoria Park Avenue North will take about three months, Before the road can be sold or closed, or any development can proceed on the site, the city will have to go through a ful! planning process, including another public hearing. During the vote on the applica- tion to obtain title to the road, Couns. John Braithwaite and Bill Bell said they opposed starting the process of approving the devel- opment. Braithwaite said he did not want to see the road closed and that if the first step was taken, it was likely the whole development would be approved. Added Beil, ‘‘Some members of council think that this is just one step. We're not just talking about the extra density they get from (buying the road),: we're also looking at them buying density from another building in the area.”’ Coun. Rod Clark suggested that the city, as the key stakeholder, should become the developer and entertain development proposals for the site. Disabled access to buses blocked Drivers ignoring special zones TECHNOLOGY AND transit planners have made public buses accessible to those of us who are unable to walk, but thoughtless drivers are causing a commuting nightmare for passers-by witnessed the col- lision. Cotton left the scene, but was chased by two witnesses. He was charged and subse- quently convicted of an alcohol-related driving of- fence. Although West was discharged from hospital on the same evening as the acci- dent, a severe head injury gradually became apparent. As a result, West can no longer work or enjoy the ’ athletic and artistic life he led before the accident. The post-accident ordeal was an ongoing nightmare. West: was frustrated by a series of slow, inconsistent and incorrect diagnoses. In May 1988, he was diagnosed as having muitiple sclerosis. Four years | iater, further testing showed that diagnosis to be incorrect. But the hardest part was the insurance dealing with company. ICBC lawyers challenged the existence of the victim’s injury and attacked the cred- ibility of his wife. But Madam Justice Janet Sinclair Prowse rejected ICBC’s arguments, stating “she (West’s wife) was very candid in giving her evi- dence.”’ The judge praised West’s wife for her unflinching sup- port. “Very few marriages would have survived the extraor- dinary circumstances that the disabled, according to an advocate close to the issue. In West Vancouver, from Oc- tober to January, bylaw enforce- ment officers issucd approximately 55 tickets to drivers who park vehicles in bus-stop zoncs. The drivers are blocking the ac- cess of disabled commuters at- tempting to use lift-equipped buses. Said West Vancouver Police Sgt. John Looye, ‘‘We're only catching a few here and _ there. Even the bus drivers are com- plaining to us — people arc constantly parking in these zones. “We're making all these buses available and at the same time we're buggering it up for these people.”’ North Vancouver resident Pam Horton gets around with an elec- tric scooter. Prior to the BC Transit and Blue Bus introduction of lift- equipped buses, Horton depended on the HandiDart bus service. “This idea of planning my life six days in advance — that’s fine if you've got a regular committee meeting, but it doesn’t allow for spontaneity. By Michael Becker News Reporter “For me, it (public transit) has opened up a fot of opportunities to do something without having to rely on someone else,’’ Horton said. For a one-year period following the implementation of the. lift-bus service on the North Shore: in 1991, Horton logged approximate- ly 350 bus wips. But many of those trips were made dangerously difficult by. er- rant drivers who park in bus-stop zones. Said Horton, ‘It means that we somehow have to get the bus driver to stop and block traffic. “Once we've got the bus driver to stop it’s a matter of making a decision — do we go to the nearest corner and travel through the traffic to get to the bus? *“*We can only do that if we’ve already determined the driver. will deploy the lift out in the middle See Lift-equipped page & Mailbox BB Vintage Years they have faced since the ac- cident,’ said Justice Prowse. NEWS photo Nell Lucente NORTH VANCOUVER resident Pam Horton is happy that she can travel on public buses equipped with lifts, but her commuting in- tentions are often foiled by drivers who block bus zones with parked vehicles. The problem is chronic and makes iife difficult for disabled citizens. @ What's Going On Weather “These people have been sub- Monday, sunny with cloudy periods, High 9°C, Low 3°C. jected to extraordinary pressure with every aspect of their lives being examined."” Canadian Publications Mail Sales Product Agreement Number 0087238