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PROVISIONAL BUDGET

12.3% tax hike projected in

RESIDEN’YS OF North
Vancouver District could see
up to a 12.3 per cent in-
crease in their property taxes
under a provisional budget
adopted Monday.

- By PAUI. HOULE
Contributing Writer

The increase is to pay for higher
costs for waste disposal, wages,

NV District Council

police protection and illegal suite
inspections,

The tax jump is outlined in the
district's 1988 provisional budget,
but the figure could be trimmed as
council and staff review the budget
over the next three months to en-
sure the increase is kept to a min-
imum,

The total district budget is
$35,939,981 — an increase of 4.5
per cent, or $1,554,235 over last
year’s budget. While the budget
has increased 4.5 per cent, taxes

split over casinos

NORTH VANCOUVER
District Council is divided
over the question of regula-
tion of gambling and casinos
in the municipality.

By PAUL HOULE
Contributing Writer

Council voted Monday to defer
consideration of a bylaw to regu-
late the hours of operation and the
space allowed for bingos | or casi-
nos.

The bylaw would allow bingos
and casinos to operate nine hours a
day, three days a weck, between
the hours of 5 p.m. and 2 a.m. As
well, the room designated for
gambling would have to be sec-
ondary or ‘‘accessory to’’ the main
meeting areas in a facility such as a
church or hotel. This specific pro-
vision’ .is' designed. to prevent
establishments ‘being devoted ex-
clusively to gambling. .

‘Said Ald. Joan Gadsby: ‘We're
not Las Vegas North...1 can’t sup-
port this bylaw in eny fashion
which would allow more casinos to
be open till 2 o ‘clock in the morn-
ing.’

Ald. Bill Rodgers seconded
Gadsby’ $s concerns: ‘‘The occa-

sional use of a church for a casino

— that might be acceptable. The
wording of the proposed bylaw
would permit (gambling) on a reg-
ular, every weekend basis."*

However, Ald. Ernie Crist sup-
ported the bylaw provisions. ‘1
don't think we have to worry
about another Las Vegas here, or a
Reno. The fact is...the world is
changing and we are trying to ap-
peal to tourists and believe it or
not, a lot of the tourists nowa-
days...don’t see anything wrong in
going down to some room in the
hotel or some area where they play
roulette,’"

The district will be examining
the City of North Vancouver's
proposals for regulating gambling.

Rodgers suggested different

“bylaw provisions. ‘‘Perhaps what

we should be doing is setting out in

_our bylaw that a church, for ex-

ample, could be used for a bingy
once every three months.

“But, to have it go on
weekend, after weckend,
weekend, that’s wrong,’’
Rodgers,

Said Crist: ‘tl don’t think that
the world will come to an end
because some hotels or some in-
stitutions are prepared to have an
area where they can play casinos,

“It's not a main use, it is an ac-
cessory use.””

every
after
said

Hit ‘and runs combatted

From page 1

. ‘guy is just making it look good.

‘There’ s a scam around for
everything.”’
*. But. said Kennedy: ‘‘We’d like
“people to leave some information
as to the suspect in a hit and run,”
‘he said.

Police stand a better chance of

“CPL: Ewen Freethy...‘‘people are
More apathetic and don’t want to
get involved.”’

‘solving this type of accident if they
-have a licence number, color of car
vand time of accident to use as

leads. If witnesses leave names the
“police can then try to flesh out ac-
- ‘cident details and link the driver to
the cai’.

‘But in many cases, as much as
.60 per cent of cases. according to
ICBC, the ‘hit and run’ driver is
the victim attempting to pass off a
fraudulent claim.

eR Pe ee cD

Freethy said some drivers will go.
as far as staging accidents to cover’
self-inflicted damage sustained in a
hit and run accident. ‘‘They go out
to make it look worse by hitting a
moving vehicle to try to shift the
blame, or if they don’t have colli-
sion (insurance) they have a second
accident to hide the original dam-
age.””

In an effort

to combat

fraudulent reports made to. the -

department, Freethy said police
will be taking a tougher stance this
year.

“The victim will have to make
more of an effort to prove a hit
and run. They'll have to be here
within a maximum 24-hour period.
We used to be more lenient. If they
can’t prove when, where and how
it happened, then we're going to
write it up as an accident,’’ he
said.

Unknown damage means a loss
of a driver’s safe driving discount.

Said ICBC media relations

manager Ken Hardie: ‘‘If we deny

a hit and run claim, the person
would have to claim under their
own damages coverage and that
would affect their own premiums.”
But. said Hardie: ‘‘Drivers are
fortunate in B.C. In many other
jurisdictions, the money for hit
and runs comes straight out of col-
lision coverage or if there is no col-
lision coverage, their pocket.”’

may have to be increased by up to
12.3) per cent to make up for
decreased funding from other
sources, treasurer Michae! Hoskin
said.

Provision is made in the budget
for a pay increase for district staff,
but the exact amount of that in-
crease is st'll being negotiated. As
well, there may be an increase of
up to 3% persons in the district
planning department.

3 - Wednesday,

The budget allocates $337,000 10
provide more civilian RCMP staff,
mainly in the area of communica-
tions and complaints.

About $204,000 is set aside to
provide for inspection of illegal!
suites. A team of about five in-
spectors will be hired to work dur-
ing the period that illegal suites are
required to be registered in the
district.

The waste disposal

fees for

January 13,

W988 - North Shore News

VD

district use of the new transfer sta-
tion total $1,070,000. At the same
time there is a reduction of district
revenue duc to the closure of the
sanitary landfill operation.

Council will be doing a line-by-
line analysis of the budget over the
next few months. The Municipal
Act requires that the provisional
budget be adopted by a resolution
of council by the third Monday
after Jan. 1

GAS GUZZLERS got'a gift Tuesday when the North Vancouver Super-Save-Gas station at 1348 Marine
Drive fuelled a price war that has spread to other North Shore gas bars. A 39.9 cent a litre price on gas had
customers coming in fast and furious. Station manager Shawn Chapman estimated the station. serviced 10
cars every five minutes with the two pumps and four gas nozzles available. Stephen Murray pitched in to

help with the crush of cars.

Weather:

Wednesday, mestly cloudy
with isolated showers.
Windy. Highs near 6°C._
Thursday, periods of rain.

‘ According to police, 60 to 70 per | }

cent of hit and runs occur during
the day in cramped shopping mall
parking lots and result in damage
of $400 or less.

hoor any

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