Truck bylaw irks water comn Missioner NVD moves to restrict truck traffic A BYLAW passed by Morth Vancouver District (NVD) Council to ban oversized vehi- cles from certain roads has left the commissioner of the water district puzzled. By Kate Zimmerman News Reporter Ben Marr of the Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD) is perplexed by NVD staff's claim that vehicles weighing 30,000 kilograms, such as heavy logging trucks, damage roads. “We're not sure we fully under- stand how they came to that con- clusion,” said Ben Marr of the GVRD. “We've asked for clarifica- tion.” North Vancouver District Mayor “Murray Dykeman said that after staff released a report on the dam- age caused to roads by vehicles with heavy loads, it was authorized “by council to prepare a bylaw limit- ing vehicles of 30,000 kg and over - from’some of the municipality’s major roads. These include “Capilano and Lillooet roads, which are used by GVRD logging trucks * to gain access to the watershed. “The bylaw is to restrict the . . 7 maximum loading that can occur and ensure we get the normal usage of our roads,” Dykeman said. |. The bylaw was passed by coun- * cil in August, but is now subject to Ministry of Highways approval. Marr said if heavy logging. trucks: are to be banned in’ North Vancouver District, other kinds of trucks of the same size would also have to be banned. They might include some of the trucks the GVRD uses to repair the dam, he said. Dykeman acknowledged that this might be the case but said the highways department would take that into account when it decided whetherto approve the bylaw. Marr said if the municipality decides to keep large logging trucks off the Capilano and Lillooet roads the GVRD would have to use smaller trucks, which would be more expensive because they would have to make more trips to carry the same number of loads. He said the added cost would lave to be absorbed by the municipality because it is a member of the water district and the roads the trucks are using are public. “I don’t believe that the GVRD would be in a position to ‘fine’ the district,” said Dykeman. He said the GVRD might well have to re-think how it handles the logging process in the two water- sheds. “They have to meet the con- ditions we have imposed as a municipality,” he said. According to Marr, logging in the watershed is not a profit-mak- ing venture, but revenue received from it goes toward reducing water Aug. 5. rates. The victim is a North Vancouver resident and Capilano College student. She was described as being in her late 20s. The sexual assault involved forced oral sex. Crown lawyer Jay Straith said the victim managed to get away from her assailant and out of the car, but was caught and forced back into the vehicle. The vic- tim was then forced to masturbate her assailant. Environmentalists say logging in the watershed is unnecessary and harms the ecosystem as well as the water supply. But Marr's depart- ment maintains that logging is nec- essary for fire prevention and man- aging the watershed. NEWS photo Terry Peters EMERGENCY CREWS attended an accident scene at Third and Forbes in North Vancouver on Aug. 29. A Honda and a Budget rental truck collided. N. Vancouver man jailed one year for sexual assault A 31-YEAR-OLD North Vancouver man was recently jailed onc year in connection with a charge of sexually assaulting a woman in a car on March 20 on Skyline Road in North Vancouver District. Schmitz met the victim at the Lynnwood Inn in North Vancouver. He said he would drive the victirs home before the incident, said Straith. ; After the assault, Schmitz. apologized to the victim and drove her home. Schmitz surrendered to the police Michael Schmitz pleaded guilty to the charge on two days later. The victim had already filed a police report. A charge of unlawful confinement was stayed in connection with the incident. Schmitz also received 12 months’ probation. The jail sentence was recommended served at the Stave Lake Correctional Centre. Judge Doug Moss sentenced Schmitz in North Vancouver provincial court. stole .. From page 1 stripped hulk from an ICBC salvage auction. ‘The car is put together again by the body shop and sold to an unsuspecting third party. @ Refurbishing an old vehicle: An owner of a base-model car steals a top- of-the-line late model version of his car. The stolen car is stripped of desirable parts such as fancy wheels, and in some cases, complete inte- riors and drive-trains. The new parts are installed in the base-model car. The stolen hulk is abandoned. A stolen 1992 Ford Mustang was used to “refurbish” a 1979 Mustang in an example of this type of crime listed in the auto theft report. @ VIN (serial number) switch: Using a licensed broker, a wrecked vehicle is bought through ICBC salvage. Another vehi- cle of the same model, year and color is stolen. The VIN from the salvage is switched to the stolen vehicle. “ The newly “rebuilt” vehicle is inspected by ‘a licensed mechanic who checks that it is mechanically sound, The “rebuilt” car is regis- tered with ICBC. The salvaged wreck is dis- posed of, without its VINs, at a “no questions asked” auto crusher. Private sale VIN switch: A cheap vehicle is bought through a news- paper, according to the auto theft report. The purchased vehicle is typically advertised as being suitable “for parts” (as opposed to dri- ving). . A car in good condition and of the same model, color and year is stolen. The VINs are switched. The “for parts” vehicle is disposed of. The better vehicle is registered or, more CALL US: 933-2208 arts scams abound 66 An auto owner lobby group formed after its members unwittingly bought rebuilt ICBC write-offs supports the notion that a potential owner should have access to a car’s history. 99 commonly, sold to an unsuspecting third party. @ Cross-border buy: A wreck is bought from an auto wrecker in Washington state. The wreck and sales bill is shown to Canadian Customs officials at the border. The car is registered in B.C. at the bor- der where duty and tax are paid. A similar vehi- cle is stolen in the Lower Mainiand. VINs are switched and the wrecked car is disposed of. The stolen car is registered with the VIN from the salvaged car. A 1984 Mazda RX7 from Washington state and a stolen 1985 Mazda RX7 were used as an example of this type of crime in the report. Econo model! upgrade: A base-model owner of a car wants to DRA EP ATI Index %4 A Day in Court...............40. “upgrade” his vehicle. The car is typically one #4 Budget Beaters. that does not change drastically from year to year such as 4 Porsche 91.1 or a Jaguar XJ12. A newer mode! or a top-of-the-line model is stolen and the VINs are switched. The vehicle registration is maintained as if it belonged to the old car. The report states that in one situation, a 1990 Jaguar was registered as a [984 Jaguar. Bi Business........... ME Classified..........cccscseeee B Doug Collins & Crossword ~ B “Reportedly” stolen car: A legitimate owner of a car in excellent con- dition hides the vehicle and reports it stolen, Typically, there are several photos to prove that the allegedly missing car was in mint condition. ICBC settles the claim. The car owner buys a similar model car from a Washington state auto sFactyles wrecker or through ICBC salvage. BB Lifestyles... sess 47 The VIN numbers are switched and the good B Mailbox car is registered either as a rebuilt or it gets a . new registration from Washington state. @ News of the Weird ICBC paid $23,000 in the fraudulent theft claim associated with a 1975 Porsche 911 in Mi North Shore Now this type of swindle. An auto owner lobby group formed after its members unwittingly bought rebuilt [CBC write-offs supports the notion that a potential owner should have access to a car’s history. A B.C. Victim Society spokesman said reg- istered owners should not be the only people privy to the information. Meanwhile, West Van Police found 128 marijuana plants at the chop shop. Further investigation resulted in the West Vancouver Police and Maple Ridge RCMP netting 405 marijuana plants at a Maple Ridge home. Two men are facing narcotic charges in connection with the Maple Ridge seizure. More charges are expected. B Insights... @ Kids’ Stuff... see TA 88 TY Listings... @ What's Going On. BI Noel Wright... cessed 6 Weather Thursday, mostly cloudy with showers. High 20° Canadian Publications Mail Sales Producti Agreement Number 0087238 THIS WEEK’S QUESTION: Do you think Canadian gun restrictions are adequate?