John. Braithwaite ° Stella Jo Dean Mayor Jack Loucks, in office for more than 17 years, has become an institution in North Vancouver City as few remember who he replaced and even fewer remember the city without him. His previous career as a school administrator often comes in handy as he usually succeeds in maintaining a smooth flow of proceedings in council chambers which sometimes resemble an unruly class full of squabbling brats. A lack of experience is not one of Coun. Bill Bell's shortcomings as he closes in on a decade in a councillor’s chair. But a lack of patience may be as he finds himself playing the council clown on more and more occasions. He is still a more than capable politician when he finds it within himself to put up with the sometimes-plodding pace of council deliberations. Strong watchdog over city staff's tendency to run free. ‘ Coun, John Braithwaite prides himself on not running with the pack; unfortunately that instinct.sometimes causes him to mun astray. Although his queries often shed light on an issue's previous- ly unbreached aspects, his arguments don’t always sway other councillors. His tendency to pontificate overshadows his point, but credit has to be given for presenting another perspective. Along with the mayor, Coun. Stella Jo Dean makes up the veteran con- tingent on council. She is a tireless worker on behalf of the city, but finds herself embroiled in numerous personality conflicts with other councillors. While this reduces her overall effectiveness within council chambers, it doesn’t deter her from what often resembles a one-person crusade to beautify North Vancouver City. The only non-incumbent in this sitting, Coun, Darrell Mussatto is not only a rookie, he is also surrounded by experienced councillors short on patience for rookie mistakes. He has, however, made an admirable adjustment, but tends to oversimplify issues by focusing on their human : elements. His heart is in the right place and his preparation will make him effective when it is combined with more council experience. Coun. Barbara Perrault picks her issues and does her homework on’ them. When they are raised in council, she is usually armed with a pre- pared speech containing at least one highly quotable phrase. But her points are too often lost in the long-windedness of those speeches. Unlike Coun. Dean, she i is usually left uninterrupted and allowed to _ finish. . Baebara Sharp i is one councillor who doesn’ t appear to be driven by a desire 19 make a show of making a point. Her questions, although some- times meandering, aim to shed light on the gist of a speaker's point "rather. than his or her character traits. Her queries and requests of staff, however, are sometimes too general and seem to be motivated more by * a desire to embellish her arguments than to illuminate an issue. MORE THAN a year has passed since the last municipal elections, and North Vancouver City Council is approaching the mid-point of its cur- rent three-year term. For the benefit of North Shore News readers, News council reporter Robert Galster, who regularly covers the city’s weekly meetings, has pre- pared the following opinion and analysis piece. It includes the coun- cil’s performance as a whole as weil as an individual, councillor-by-caun- cillor evaluation. The News will present similar evaluations of the other North Shore councils, Vancouver District in the Sunday, April 9, News, and followed by West Vancouver Districe in the Sunday, April 16, issue. Some of the subjective considera- tions included in the evaluations are the degrees of leadership, effective- ness, communication and preparation each councillor exhibited during the current council sessien. Each council member's attitude and ability to cooperate and compro- mise with © other councillors also played a part in his or her evaluation and final grade. | The. current. edition of North Vancouver City ‘Council is, on the whole, an experienced group that has already learned how to work together to achieve common goals in spite of some strong « “individual differences, and most fared well in the critique . categories. As a group the councillors receive Starting with North. “Introduction of the Shops 4 Regulation bylaw, legis-. jf lating a_ store's closing 7 ‘hours. : "Bylaw. was introduced i in’ § ‘response to Capilano’ Mall's. insistenceon_all:§ stores participating ing extended: hours, an “Monday” and Tuesday }- nights. — March 13, 1995 RESTRICT WEAPON SALES New regulations restrict- ing the. sale of both weapons: and ammuni- § tion” < within North q Vancouver City bound- aries. The ‘regulations are not retroactive and do not § include. stores already § Selling these —~ .only | future businesses. — March 6, 1995 An amendment to North Vancouver City’s zoning bylaw which in effect prohibits video lottery terminals within city’s boundaries. City. staff is in’ the process of finalizing the new bylaw, at which time it will come before coun- cil again. — March 13, 1995 LOUCKS..anunne YOR good leadership from the mayor, who LOWER LONSDALE PUB The controversial rezon- ing of the Great Greck Restaurant | site» that § cleared the way jor its ¥ owner, Nick Vavaris, ta seek Liquor Licensing Board approval for a neighborhood pub. — Three public: hearings had to be held to hear all. q the speakers.’ — February 20, 1995 NORTH SHORE | STUDIOS Granting of a temporary- use permit to North Shore | Studios which cleared the: way for the studio's: expansion into Sunrise: Park. The. permit is good for | nvo years and upon a request fromthe appli- cant can be extended for { a final two-year tenn, —— February 20, 1995 aseserseccenee Absent Braithwaite COUNCIL REPORTER ROBERT GALSTER manages to keep i issues from getting bogged down in the various processes involved in everyday council deci- sion-making. He allows all council- lors and speakers to have their say without letting them take over the show. Council should also be praised for the fiscal responsibility it preaches individually and practises coflective- ly. New programs or proposals before - council are always considered on.the basis of cost and merit, which is indicative of a council that is aware of having to make choices. This is not a “tax and spend" group. Perhaps more importantly, i in spite of the public posturing inherent in any elected body, things actually get done. On the few occasions when Meetings get bogged down, and the weekly agenda seems to stretch well past midnight, most council members are able to put aside the rhetoric for expediency’s sake. / In addition to the steady stream of * rezoning applications, the second half of North Vancouver City Council's term will feature the highly con- tentious issue of Lower Lonsdale development. The issue Should gener- ate heated debate and will Tequire the full cooperation of all city council members and city staff. A .