Council EVES Cat hotel reprieve to find new homes Neighbors complain of 46 felines DESPITE DIFFERING opinions, there were no cat- calls from the gallery Mon- day night as North Van- couver District Council determined the fate of 46 felines living in the back yard and basement of a Prospect Road house. By Martin Millerchip Contributing Writer As previously reported in the News, Joy Purser has been look- ing after the cats, some of which are quite old, since last year when their previous home on St. George's Avenue ‘was demolished. She has claimed them as her pets. In order to house the cats, she has had a heated shed constructed in her back yard, had her basement specially adapted and had her yroperty fenced so that the cats cannot run free. But neighbors have complained to council that single-family zon- ing prohibits the boarding ‘‘or keeping”’ of animals and that 46 cats are too many to be consid- ered pets. As in previous wecks, council recsived presentations on both sides of the issue as weil as the usual catalogue of letters but ref- used to cater completely to either side’s wishes. Instead, it agreed. that staff should assist Purser in finding suitable alternative ‘locations for: the cats over the next. 12 months and report back to council. The original motion suggested a sixemonth time frame, but a ma- jority of council accepted Coun. Joan Gadsby’s amendment for 12 ‘months. Said Gadsby, “Dr. Purser should. be commended’ for her -kindness to animals. If she was ideally located on acreage there would be no problem, but she is in violation of our zoning bylaws.” Coun. Rick Buchols opposed _ the extension on the grounds that there is a bylaw in place that should be followed. _ “] don’t see why the neighbors should have to put up with the ‘situation longer than~ that (six months),”’ said Buchols,. Coun. Paul Turner told council that he had been to the property SECRETLY ERAT fradex Budget Beaters... @ Editorial Page ff Lifestyles Hi News of the Weird...39 North Shore Now... .19 # What’s Going On....4 Weather ‘Thursday, sunny. Highs 22°C. Lows 10°C. Canadian Publications Mail Sales Froduct Agreement Number 0087238 —_— ew NORTH VANCOUVER DISTRICT COUNCIL 441] don’t see why the neighbors should have to put up with the situation ionger than (six months). 99 ~Councillor Rick Buchols and found it very clean. “But that’s not the issue,’ Turner. “} would hope that Dr. Purser would see that it is in her interests to find good homes for some of these cuts. The alternative is to be very heavy-handed on this.” In a later move, Coun. Ernie Crist asked staff to suggest refinements to the zoning bylaw that would specify the number of cats allowed as pets, as is pres- ently done with dogs. Purser and her supporters told the News that they were pleased with council's care and concern in the matter and that they would endeavor to follow council’s di- rections. They say that while all of the cats are adults of various ages, they are healthy and have been neutered, de-wormed and are awaiting a second round of vac- cinations. Those interested in providing a home for any of the cats can call 929-7344, Prospective adopters will be carefully vetted and matched with cats of the appropriate tempera- ment. Residents From page 1 said Said Ridgewell in response to allegations that young people are causing trouble in the park, ‘‘The kids are only throwing back at society what we’re throwing at them. A lot of it will stop if they have something to do.” But other neighbors are not convinced. Helen Milne presented council with a six-page letter in very small print explaining why the process for choosing the court site was flawed. She demanded that it be put somewhere else. “Young adults hanging around the basketball area late into the night’? would be dangerous. Frightened people will be reluctant to use the park, she said. . In 1987, neighbors agreed to a proposal for a ‘thard surface play area’’ just north of Larson Road, on the east side of Mosquito Creek. For safety reasons, a children’ Ss play area was built on the site _ because it is clearly visible from ’ the road. Following a public meeting in 1991, which many nearby residents say they did not hear about, the city parks department — NEWS photo Terry Pet A UNION head representing local shipyard workers Is angry over a deal between Ottawa end the Polish government that allows Pollsh shipyard workers to come to Canada to work on vessels. There are currently two Polish fishing vessels tled up at Yarrows Ltd. shipyard in North Vancouver. Union challenges Polish ship policy of importing workers Gdansk crews flown in for vessel repair work THE PRESIDENT of a union representing shipyard workers is crying foul over a policy that allows Polish workers to fly into Canada and work on Polish fishing vessels docked on the North Vancouver waterfront. George MacPherson, president of the Marine Workers’ and Boilermakers’ Industrial Union, said he may organize a protest picket line in front of Yarrows Lid. shipyard. An arrangement between the Canadian and Polish governments brings ship- yard workers from Gdansk to North Vancouver to conduct repair work on Polish fishing vessels. But MacPherson maintains that any ship repair work at Yarrows should be done by members of his union. “We're certainly noi allowed to go to Poland and work on their vessels there. We’ve got 400 people laid off from there (Yar- rows),’’ said MacPherson. By Surj Rattan News Reporter MacPherson said the two fish- ing vessels are undergoing exten- sive refits. “We're saying: this cannot happen. They're. taking jobs away from Canadian shipyard workers,’’ said . MacPherson. Many local shipyard workers lost their jobs due to the closure of Versatile Pacific Shipyards Inc. {now Yarrows). MacPherson said that if: Ca- nadian shipyard workers are not ailowed to work on the Polish vessels then the ships should go elsewhere. “] don’t care if they leave raise youth violence ry a EI $ | ai 9 rid: 2 2] a | Proposed New Washroom Location . Children's Play Areas Foll Avenue Larson Road decided to build a lighted basket- ball court 160 feet (48 m) to the northeast of the original site. Residents overlooking the park learned of the new location when four large poplar trees were felled and a gravel pad was prepared for the court in March. ; Council halted construction at Proposed New Location of Court MOSQUITO CREEK PARK Eastside Development Review | , NEWS graphic Joan Pedersen the beginning of April to allow residents to air their concerns at a’ parks committee meeting. At Monday’s meeting, residents told council that the park is al- ready becoming increasingly dan- gerous, with young people drink- ing and using drugs on Friday and Saturday nights, here and take their business somewhere else. i den’t care if they go to Korea,"’ he said. But Yarrows president Don Nicholson termed MacPherson’s concerns ‘‘an old story.’’ Nicholson confirmed that Polish workers are conducting minor ship repairs. He said the two Polish fishing vessels are renting docking space from Yarrows. Nicholson .added the. vessel owners are contributing to the North Shore economy because they are buying supplies locally. “They're not using anything from the shipyard. There’s very little work happening. By allow- ing them to rent docking space from us, that allows us con- tinued use of our water lots,’’ said Nicholson. “It does give employment to- B.C. businesses’ and they’re not taking anything away from George MacPherson’s people,’’ said Nicholson. ‘ The basketball! court, . which - would be hidden. from the road, would only .make the situation worse, they said. Several speakers told of finding broken glass and -used : syringes: scattered throughout the park. Said Mel Watson: “I’m not against basketball, but [ am against a basketball court in that location. If there was trouble back there, nobody would know about it until after it happened.’’. Another plan which came under fire was a $150,000 washroom fa- cility in the park. Said Ron Polly, “We have to address a fot of issues before we spend $150,000 on a washroom.’’ Polly fears violence among. young people in the park wiil escalate, “‘We're getting to the point where some kid is going to‘ get killed,” he said. But Fell Avenue resident Leslie McNamara said there are ro local recreation facilities for children - agiid eight to 18. “The city has approved the ‘density in this area, and | feel it’s their duty to provide the facilities for them,”’ she said. . Council will return to the issue on June 21.