Classified 986-6222

Council ‘losers’ may wind up being winners

THE DEFEAT of North Vancouver District’s
bylaw freezing expansion of the Canadian Oc-
cidental (Hooker Chemicals) chlorine manufac-
turing plant, overruled. in B.C. Supreme Court,
may well be purely academic. The sagging
economy has forced Hooker to introduce its own

production limitations.

The zoning bylaw, which
would have prohibited ex-
pansion of Maplewood
Chemica! Industries — aim-
ed primarily at Hooker —
has been declared invalid by
B.C. Supreme Court Justice
Charles Locke.

Though the ruling was

handed down January 25, it
only became known by the
affected parties last week,
following inquiries by
counsel for Hooker and the
neighboring ERCO chemical
plant, with the explanation
that it had been lost in the
court bureaucracy chain.

sedi NNN TR MEET

JACK-KNIFED seent-craffer took owt the high cedar fencing on the south
side of Upper Levels Ulighway in the 1200 block of West Vancouver
around 5 p.m. Wedaceday, jawuming ap castbord traffic for about an

CHRIS LLOYD

Justice Locke called the
bylaw — passed by council a
year ago on the recommen-
dations of a report by the
Community Hazards Task
Force appointed by District
— discriminatory, unreason-
able and vague.

The bylaw had been
challenged by Hooker and
ERCO when Hooker was:
refused permission by coun-
cil to install additional tanks
to store muriatic acid.

But the satisfaction of

wheel.

Hooker General Manager
Bnan Thorpe with the
declaration is tempered by
the fact that the firm has
presently abandoned the
idea of plant changes
because of a drop in demand
for its product, caused by
economic conditions.

“In light of the current
economy, we are going to
review the whole thing,” he
told the News.

He said of the company's
purpose in fighting the
bylaw: “We were looking to
the future, in terms of B.C.
growth, and all these things

are on the back burner.”

But he added: “The
economy is so bad in the
province this year that we
have been able to satisfy all
our customer needs with no
problems.”

Though better than pro-
jected, he conceded that
sales of chlorine, used
primanily in the pulp paper
manufacturing business as a
bleaching agent, are down
OD previous years.

The fact that Hooker now
has no immediate plans to
take advantage of its green

CONTINUED ON PAGE All

bour and a hall. However, there were no injuries in the accident which
occurred when the truck swerved to avoid a Chevy which lost a rear

PERMANENT
HOME BY 1986?

W. Van
straight

‘A’s
“By WENDY HAYSO

ARTS GROUPS in
West Vancouver were
given straight As and a
glowing first report
card last Monday. And
hopes soared that the
stage is now set to
make their dream of a
community arts centre
a reality within the next
few years.

Delighted members of the
community arts council —
the umbrella organization
representing 21 arts groups
-- lastened as Part One of a
special task force report was

presented to West Van-
couver council
“The community arts

council ts not only alive and
well bul deserving of greater
support.” said Bob Hicks. a
former alderman and chair
man of the seven membcr
task force which has been sct
up to study the state of the
CONTINUED ON PAGE Alo

SUNDAY

Sunny with
cloudy pernods

MONDAY
( onunuing cloudy
with sunny pertods

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