6- rida, January 27, 1995 — North Shore News ie Uae Mat ort Be ad Be NTFADICTON SHCA 41.5 S BILION" AR NCL, nice PER COUNTRY, DBL OCCUPANCY MANY PESTARETIONS Arey HOORAY FOR Hollywood! “The glitter! The glamor! The gusto! And the megabucks. - Now, having said that, how much do you think our toddlin’ Greater Tiddlycove, as I fondly call * West Vancouver, commands in return for lending our most popular . . set — Lighthouse Park — to the movie moguls? » 1 wondered. The thought came. to me Sunday after 1 spent 15 min- utes trying to get parking at Lighthouse. ° a The lot was bulging because yet another movie was being filmed i in - this lovely location. © ..It was full of long trailers ‘used - - as portable dressing rooms, mobile ‘food trucks, rent-a-trucks. Q - Doubtless some locals who. regu- ‘larly tramp around or walk their . dogs in the park just couldn’t find space, "Bair enough; thought 1. But is . the municipality getting enough ._ from the moviemakers to justify “:the inconvenience to the locals? ». Ihe same thought coincidental- ly occurred to Coun. Rod Day. Great minds think alike. . A citizen complained te Coun. Day about what he saw as prob- lems created by the filming. Oh yes, the film. It is called Man With a Gun. Stickers on the windshields of the filmmakers’ cars bear the title. Also the cartoonish GARDEN OF BIASES: f posed on ‘Btars, The name kind of gives you the impression that this is not exactly The Sound of Music we're talking about here. ; . Limiagine it is not what you'd call a.“message” film. In fact the complaining citizen said he'd counted 17 “gunshots” ° from the area where Man With a Gun was being filmed for pésterity. ; (West Vancouver parks and recreation department planned to check if wildlife was disturbed by the noise.) The complaint led Coun. Day to ask how much filmmakers pay the municipality to use our prized Nan A a NP NPS: ha Ja .C“§ NDP government has done the right thing in killing the. Kemano Completion Project.. Though the move could also kill 1, 000 jobs and short-circuit a cheap source of electrical power, the project presented far too great a risk to dwindling West Coast salmon stocks to offset its benefits. In announcing his government’s decision to pull the plug on the project, Premier Mike Harcourt said the 1987 deal cut between alu- minum giant Alcan and the federal and provincial governments was based on faulty _information. The deal allowed Alcan to divert up to 88% of Nechako River water to generate power; it also exempted. the company’s project from environmental assessment studies —- a good deal for Kemano, a bad deal for B. C.’s envi- LOONIE get AA LURAY a AAEM ELE EME ETRE Woe ad bea ty BCA EI aI SC NE TIRANA LALLY SLL tere Hatt Harcourt also claimed that B.C.’s Social . Credit government of the day did not have’ enough information about’ reduced water: flow in the river when it signed the 1987 deal. Again good for Kemano and bad for B.C, During subsequent debate about the pro- ject and the suspect Kemano deal itself, led relentlessly over the past two years by CKNW hotliner Rafe Mair, what became increasingly clear was the negative impact, both known and unknown, the reduced water flow would have on already threatened salmon stocks in’ the Nechako River and throughout the Fraser” River system. No amount of power or money is worth the’ irreversible destruction of what was once one — of the most abundant fish resources in the world. Lessons learned on the east coast of Canada can ill afford to be disregarded on the ronment. The figure is $750 a day. Day reportedly exploded: “It should be $5,000 a day!” It was an off-the-cuff number. Later he mused that, whatever is appropriate, $750 isn’t enough. (All moviemakers also pay a $500 application fee, the cost of daily on-site supervision by a park board employee and his/her out-of-pocket . expenses, and for any damage to the park.) Like Coun. Day, I think the fey ure is astonishingly low. But Bob Kusch, who handles ” such park usage, said it’s the high- est charge in the Lower Mainland. ‘When the fee was revised in’ 1993, Vancouver was charging only $500. “You can’t really put’ a value on damage to sensitive areas,” Coun. Day told me. “It’s certainly not worth it for that kind of money ... I think there are certain things you just don’t sell.” He's awaiting more information. “As long as we're responsible, we can get around this,” he conceded, acknowledging that the film indus-: try is adesirable one. = |’ ‘ Which is putting it mildly. There’s evidently an unspoken rule around this province’s higher elevations: “Kindly do not knock the moviemakers.” The industry gets a big, plush “Welcome” carpet in these parts. British Columbia is, officially, star- struck. Employment and Investment Minister Glen Clark country’s west coast. recently rejoiced that film-making brings in millions, and, possibly with a trace of exaggeration, declared that the boom is currently so big that not another film could be shot in the province. Obviously, the bottom fine is that the filmmakers enjoy a buyer's — market. Every town pants to get in the movies. You can bet there’s a ‘Jot of subtle pressure from Victoria ‘ to keep location charges low — for an industry that pays its biggest stars millions. The glamor! The glitter! And the cheap, cheap sets provided by _ . the taxpayers. West Van municipal staff want- ed to be quite a lot rougher with | colorful Hollyburn Ridge cabin- owners Monday night. But council sent them home happy. The civil servants recominended that the cost of permits for.the old, Tustic, no-power, no-water cabins — mostly built by squatters 50 or 60 years ago — jump from 1994's . level of $275 a year in stages to | $1,000 in 1998; ' Evocations of the bucolic, if rather buggy, life in the bush filled © the air. Mayor Mark Sager, a preservationist at heart, later warm- ly recalled his first rite-of-passage trip to a Hoflyburn cabin when he was in Grade 7. Nostalgia won..The cabin-own- ers will pay only $275 plus the rise in inflation, or the equivalent B.C. matlhox amam | Thanks to. all for ’ Dear Editor: So many caring people in West Vancouver! It is not possible to extend personal thanks to everyone. ; Through the courtesy of’ North Shore News the West ‘Vancouver... Santa’ Claus Fund. is ‘taking «this opportunity | to’ ‘report that: 274; homes were able to enjoy a ‘merrier ; : time during. the’ festive | season "because of such generosity. ’. This fund is operated by volun - teers. A group of ladies and gentle “men devoted hours’ of their‘ time: unpacking, sorting and filling food and toy hampers.: The West: ‘Vancouver Fire Department housed: our,“operation and . without: their. 100% cooperation it would not be”, possible: to spread some, cheer n- our municipality. . The . West’. Vancouver Santa ‘Claus Fund would also like to thank ° the North Shore News for i its faith _ ful support. Peace’ and happiness for all, i in 1995! : ana : Ruth Stout’ Executive officer -. ‘ : West Vancouver Santa, Claus Fund 4 ; words “Bang Bang Bang” superim- °° park. Park rate, whichever is larger. “Trixl Agrios ., ’ " Promotions Manager ' 985-2131 (137) ‘Classified Manager. - 936-6222 (202) . MEMBER- Poter Kvamstrom Display Manager. , 980-0511 (103) Linda Stewart : Sates & Marketing Director 960-051 4 (3 9) 985-2131 “.. Thnethy Renshaw ° Operations Manager ° - ~ Managing Editor i 905-2131 (141) 985-2131 (1 16)» ' North Shore News, founded in’ 1969 as an, Bog Foot Chris Johnson Comptrolier ~ 985-2131 (133). Publisher. 0! 985-2131 (101) “196 5 msece 0” pon sow went vnsscouven Administration “1189 Lonsdale Avenue ~ North Vancouver B.C. o" ) M7M 2H4 North Shore Managed . independent suburban newspaper and qualified under’ Schedule 111, Peragraph 111 of, the Excise Tax Act, is published each Wednesday, , Friday and Sunday by North Shore Free Press Ltd. and distributed to every door on the North Shore, Canada Post Canadian Publications Mall - Sales Product Agreement No. 0087238. Mailing fates available on, request. Submissions are welcome but we cannot accept responsibility for unsdiicited materia! including manuscripts and Pictures, which should be accompanied by a stamped, sell-addressed envelope. oe . 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