Praeerss NEWS photo Stuart Davis HEIO! KERSTEN of the Nann Wilson Caledonian Dancers practises in prepazation for a pertor- mance on Robert Burns night, Jan. 25. The St. Andrews and Caledonian Society will sponsor an evening at the North Shore Winter Club with Highland dancing and piping. 7 _ Bowling alley contravenes 4 West Van’s smoking bylaw FACED WITH a large proportion of bowlers who smoke, Brunswick Recreation Centre’s Lions Gate Lanes is prov- ing to be one of the more difficult facilities in which to uphold West Vancouver’s smoking bylaw. Although he doesn’t smoke, Brunswick's general manager Byron Petrides appeared before West Vancouver District Council Monday night to explain why the Park Royal facility is not comply- ing with the bylaw or with North Shore Health’s directive to have smoking restricted to the bowling alley’s existing lounge and 50% of its spectator area. Petrides estimated that 80% of bowlers smoke; Brunswick’s solu- tion, he said, has been to allow smoking everywhere but in the ac- tual playing area. Because Brunswick's lower playing area also includes much of the spectator seating, smoking is officially allowed only in its upper lounge area or concourse. While North Shore Director of Environmental Health Bill Kim- mett stressed the importance of well- signed, clearly designated smoking and non-smoking areas, Petrides said it would be extreme- ly difficult to divide the playing/ spectator area into smoking and _non-smoking sections because the “ regular teams rotate in their use of the various lanes. He said the concourse, where smoking is allowed, makes up less than 50% of the bowling centre. Petrides said that the smoke is By Maureen Curtis Contributing Writer less of a problem than it could be thanks to the facility’s superior ventilation system. The existing non-smoking areas are also well policed, said one non-smoking bowler, who told council that conditions at bowling lanes in North Vancouver are more uncomfortable. North Vancouver City and District and Vancouver City have excluded bowling alleys from their smoking bylaws. Kimmett advised against Brunswick’s request for a similar exemption, noting that West Van- couver’s smoking bylaws are in- tended {0 protect non-smokers rather than smokers. He said that other exempted fa- cilities, such as cocktail lounges, cater to adults only, while bowling alleys cater to children and young adults. “T will not vote for anything that will lessen or mitigate or weaken our bylaw,’’ said Ald. Andy Danyliu. As a parent and a reformed smoker, Danyliu described the habit as a disease and an addic- = Howlers versus smokers WEST VANCOUVER DISTRICT COUNCIL tion that some prospective. parents have used to ‘“‘mutilate”’ their un- born children. West Vancouver Mayor Mark Sager said that he was also con- cerned about the integrity of the bylaw because of the young peo- ple who frequent bowling alleys. Council chose to defer a deci- sion on the matter (o allow Kim- mett and Bruaswick to work out a solution, “T suggest the current bylaw stays in place subject to any amendment that Kimmett might find reasonable,’’ said Sager. The mayor asked Petrides why so many bowlers srnoke. “T's just the nature of bowling. People get nervous when they bowl,” said Petrides. Jan. 20 to 26 has been desig- nated national non-smoking week. Friday, January 24, 1992 - North Shore News - 3 Motions aimed at making city Streets safer Buses to stop on demand; better municipal lighting NORTH VANCOUVER City Council’s desire for safer city streets inspired the passage of two motions Monday night. By Pamela Lang Contributing Writer The first motion called for B.C. Transit drivers to stop buses on demand for women travelling late at night; the second motion called on city staff to suggest improve- ments to the city’s lighting systems. Both motions were submitted by Ald. Stella Jo Dean, who said, “crimme prevention must be dealt with seriously, and we as elected representatives can do something about it.”” Dean said that because many crimes result from opportunity rather than prior planning, council should take whatever steps it can to minimize the opportunities for crime, That opportunity, she said, often resides in ‘‘badly lit streets, parks and homes.’’ Dean added that while many streets and public places should be better lit to make them safer for pedestrians, some city streets have no lighting at all. “I’m surprised that we haven't had complaints,’’ Dean said. Ald. Barbara Sharp asked city staff about a five-year plan to improve the city’s lighting net- work — a plan that she said was initiated by Dean three years ago when Sharp called on council to take initiatives to provide better municipal lighting. But although city staff said the plan was still in place, with some initiatives coming up for budget approval in 1992, both Ald. Bill Bell and Dean said more should be done now to speed up the plan’s implementation. Bell said ccuncil ‘‘should take a hard look at the finances’’ to find NORTH VANCOUVER CITY COUNCIL money for lighting improvements. Dean said the city can help by taking initiatives such as: @ spending some municipal money on lighting in public spaces; @ encouraging building owners to add more Eghting to existing buildings; @ and requiring developers to add adequate lighting to new build- ings. The for requirement some “women to walk long distances late at night heading to or from work also adds to criminal oppor- tunities, Dean said. She said that women who work late at night should be able to demand that a bus driver stop along the bus route to ‘‘eliminate the necessity of long walks'’ be- tween the bus stop and their home or workplace. Bell said that while the idea may not alleviate the problem of violence against women, ‘“‘it will at Ieast alleviate some of the anx- iety’’ felt by women who have to walk alone at night. He also suggested that bus stops on demand should be available not only to women, but to boys and girls coming home after dark. Sharp won support for her amendment to the motion that suggested it be sent for endorsa- tion to the Union of British Col- umbia Municipalities, the provin- cial ministry on women’s equality, and the federal task force on vio- lence against women. While she said the plan was a good idea, Sharp said B.C. Tran- sit’s bureaucracy may make it dif- ficult to institute. Sharp said the motion was ‘“‘a grain of sand on the beach’ in solving the many problems facing women. But she added that it was ‘a step in the right direction.”” Cruise ship work declined A NORTH Vancouver shipyard that was approached by the owners of a U.S.-based ocean liner wil! not be doing any work to convert the vessel into a cruise ship, an official of the shipyard has said. Tom Ward, general manager of Vancouver Shipyards Co. Lid., said the focal shipyard was approached by the owners of the ocean liner United States in hopes of having the vessel, said to be one of the world’s largest ocean liners, converted into a cruise ship. “The owners of the vessel did approach us with a prelim- inary proposal, but the ship is much bigger than we would be willing to tackle,’ said Ward. “It’s a big ship. We don’t have a berth that could accommo- date a vessel of that size.”’ Richard Hadley, the owner of the 40-year-old United States, has reportedly said that he would like most of the work on the vessel done in B.C. A spokesman for Labor By Surj Rattan News Reporter Minister Moe Sihota said Hadley’s company has ap- proached the provincial gov- ernment asking it to guarantee a $180-million loan to have the work done in B.C. and to ac- cept the mothballed ship as collateral. “On a ship like that you would first want to make sure all of the financing was in place,’’ said Ward. The Marine Waskers and Boilermakers Industrial Union said it too would advise the B.C. government against giving Hadley the loan guarantee.