Crown sin CROWN corporations on the North Shore and elsewhere around the province are having their way with munici- pal governments and the result is increasingly discomforting for local residents. Are you listening out there in Horseshoe Bay? North Vancouver residents interested in their municipal tax bills might also want to lend an car. Current legislation exempts Crown corporations from such work-a-day realities as paying, property taxes. It also frees them from the yoke of Jocal zoning and fand-use bylaws. For an example of the fric- tion caused by the latter exemption look no further than the current broil in Horseshoe Bay, where ferry terminal facility expansion plans initially unveiled last November have Bay residents gnashing teeth and barking at the moon. A new maintenance facility complete with fuel tank installed near Gleneagles ele- mentary school ran counter to rie resident common sense, as did a three-storey above-ground parkade and a much expanded administrative and passenger ticketing structure outfitted with a muldinude of new retail outlets. BC Ferries came back eacli- er this year with a revised plan. No fuel tank near Gleneagles elementary school or three-storey parkade. All those new retail outlets were likewise scotched. Bur there's still a huge parkade —this one with capac- ity for approximately 625 vehicles — it's just going to be partially underground. And the maintenance facility will move from near the school to beside one of the ferry dacks. There'll also be a holding area for an estimated 1,200 vehicles. But there still has yet to be a study of the terminal upgrade’s environmental impact. And there are no plans to move the Nanaimo ferry route trom the Bay, which residents have been demanding for years. And gnash teeth as they might, acither Bay residents nor West Vancouver council have any real say over what the BC Ferry Corp. eventually does in Horseshoe Bay. It could add a 30-storey parking tower if it so desired. Crown corporations march to the beat of their own drummer. Further cast in North Vancouver, part one of the aforementioned Crown corpo- ration exemption kicks into gear. Thar’s when that different drummer marching gets expensi Especially for local govern- ments and taxpayers. Consider, tor example, that the 11 1-acre Vancouver Wharves property used to contribute approximately $800,000 in property taxes to North Vancouver District cach year. The privately owned bulk loading facility did so until Horseshoe Bay walkabout planned BC Ferries president Bob Lingwood will host a walkabout tomorrow at 1 p.m. at the Horseshoe Bay ferry ter- minal conference room regarding the corporation’s plans to expand their facilities there. BC Ferries is looking to construct new terminal and maintenance buildings as well as a 10-lane holding arez for vehicles. The expansion would involve the removal of an estimated 35,000 cubie metres of rock from The Citizens Against Ferry Terminal Expansion (CAFTE) group and the Horseshoe Bay Business and Community Association have raised concerns over the environmental and commercial impact the proposed expansion would have on the com- munity and nearby traffic routes. BC Ferries has invited CAFTE, the mayor, council and staff of West Vancouve er District, the ministry of transportation and highways and chambers of commerce representatives to the event. The public is also welcome to 1997, when BC Rail took over its operation. Because Crown corpora tions don’t pay property taxes, that $800,000 disappeared trom North Vancouver District’s budget. Guess who made up the shorttall? If vou live in North Vancouver District, check your municipal tax bill. Instead of property taxes, Crown corporations con- tribute grants in licu to the municipalities in which they have facilities. But those grants are a frac- tion of what property taxes would be if those same facili- ties were operated by private sector companies. Prior to its Vancouver Wharves acquisition, BC Rail annually contributed approxi- mately $65,000 to North Vancouver District in grants in lieu. After the takeover of Vancouver Wharves’ opera- tions it contributed $173,450. That's just over $100,000 in additional grant money, but approximately $700,000 less See MLA page 10 ; Clifford Family Gailery 1825 Ambleside Lane 922-7737 (Dirveily bebind Windsor Meats) S.LAURSEN & SON draperies & bliads tid. Serving the Lower Mainland for over 28 years www.sidrapesandblinds.com Custom Rods, Upholstery & Bedspreads : (Ask about our Seniars Discount) For Free Estimate call 922-4975 or 987-2966 Drapery Laboue $14.95 per panel lined. 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