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ed for 1995-96, the district may
run a deficit similar to this year’s
estimated $1.7 million.

The district is seeking permis-
sion to run a deficit for this year,
MacLellan said. “We're really ina

crunch now.”

According to government sta-

_ tistics, over the past five years
enrolment in the district increased

. 13.2% to 17,495 while block fund-
ing jumped 21.6%. But MacLellan
said those figures do not tell the
whole story. Inflation must be fac-
tored in and increasing hydro and
‘insurance costs add to District 44
costs, she suid.

However, North Vancouver
‘Lonsdale, NDP MLA” David
Schreck said the fact government
funding has exceeded enrolment
shows the government makes edu-
cation a priority,

: He said District 44 requests for
more money based on the techni-
f.cal report, which he. said was
“= rejected: by other B.C. “school
“trustees, lack credibility in the face

“of “luxuries” District 44 has that,’

I other . districts. don’t. and the
: $300,000 sick leave payouts made
recently to four district senior |
~ administrators... a
“The contentious _ $300,000
. ‘administrators received when they
“left the district could have paid for
“100. multimedia Computers or six
eachers for a year, Schreck said.
p) The: numbers, he said, show
«that District. 44 is being treated
‘fairly...

“ment like ‘that, they. would think

tney have died’ and gone to heav-
” he said. i

: vn West Vancouver’ ‘School

District :45,: board chairman’ Ken‘.

“ Haycock ‘expressed concern that -

‘the district's -

increase’ will: be: less: than’. the - :

provincial average of $45.2:
He™ added ..’ that ’ per-student
lock ‘funding in West Vancouver
is S less, than 94% of the provincial.

‘if boards i in ‘Alberta got treat-

66 We re
really i in a
crunch now. 99

— District 44 chairman
Barbara MacLellan

average. District funding is actual-
ly $6 less per student than it was.
five years ago, he said.

Haycock said he is “disap-

“pointed” with current. funding

“considering that the taxpayers of
West Vancouver contribite the

‘highest proportion of residential

taxes in the province.” .

Total District 45 funding for
1995-96 topped $33.6 million.

A preliminary. District 45 bud-

get will be presented to the public |

on Aprit:11. A final version will
_ be adopted before the end of ‘April.
said Haycock.. . “

Cost-per-pupil “funding. in i

“North Shore » ‘public schools is:
-$26-per-student . --approximately $5,900,. which ‘is .

" funded entirely by B.C. taxpayers.
‘Some private schools receive

" partial funding from. the govem- J

ment and tuition can be as high as

‘$6,000 for 4 10-month school year. |"

A SLIDE at the Hollyburn spur road last yeer brought debris down a creek feeding the » Capilano, : s

reservoir, according to environmentalist Wil Koop.

Fre rom page T

video that he said contradicted a
GVWD contention that slides in the
watershed are natural and not
affected by logging activity.

In the video, taken surreptitious-

‘ly on the Hollyburn logging road in
‘the Capilano watershed, narrator
Will Koop said uncontrolled runoff ..
. during recent heavy rains caused

the downward slope of the road to
give way. Water district staff said
the Hollyburn road is older and not |
up to the standards of roads built in
the. 1970s and. 1980s. It. is used
mainly for fire access. Staff added
the water district manages 330-kilo- ”
metres (205 miles) of road at an
annual cost of $150,000.

The slide was not mentioned in a
recent GVWD report of 22 signifi-
cant landslides that occurred due to

“heavy rains, A remark by. Hundal

accusing Morse of a cover-up drew
heated response.

Northey’ said the meeting was
not a “witch hunt” for staff. “Leave
names out of it or you're out of

‘ here,” he said to Hundal,

NORTH VANCOUVER City council-
lors’ opposed the position of nearly 50
angry “people. Monday. and passed : a.
motion.to, prohibit the sale or repair of
firearms within’ the city’ s boundaries.”

NORTH VANCOUVER
io CITY COUNCIL
iBy Robert Gaister .

: na “public hearing, council heard submis-
si from loca! ‘citizens as well as individuals

from’ “areas as ‘geographically ‘removed as

Coquitlam’ and Surrey, all-opposing the pro-
sed ban.: a

oT as-a Jong-timne resident of the city ‘and

North Shore, cannot accept my. tax dollars

being used to restrict me. of my legal right to

. Weapon enthusiasts miffed by move

: seek service in my own community because of
someone’s bias to my sport or recreation,” said
_ Stuart Martin in a letter to council.

Other speakers ‘attacked the wording of a
bylaw which in many instances refers only to
“weapons”
“firearms”.
’ : Francis Gorgianfar, a North Vancouver res-
ident, told council that the term.“weapons” is

- $0. vague that even baseball bats could be con-
strued to be included in its definition.

“Basically anything that’s in your hand that
is not soft can. be used as,a weapon,” said
Gorgianfar.- :

But Coun. Stella Jo Dean, who initiated the
bylaw, was quick to inform council and speak-

"ers that the proposed bylaw is not at ail vague,
She went on to explain that." “weapons” is

and not to ‘the more specific °

defined within the bylaw to mean “firearms and
ammunition.” .
She added that since no gun shops currently

‘exist in the city, nothing was ‘about to change.

Dean also likened the situation before coun-
cil to the. opposition experienced by seatbelt
regulations when they were first introduced.

“Seatbelts are not only for the individual,
but also for the protection of the community,”
said Dean. .

Roy Reinmuth told council the proposed
bylaw does nothing to stop’ violence or crime.

“The people that are the problem don’t even
know this meeting is going on... they don’t give

a damn about: anything,” he. told, councillors,

during an emotionally charged presentation.
‘Coun. Darrell Mussatto disagreed and
made reference to his experiences as‘ a 10-

Photo subvaitted

' NEWS ‘Souephie Linda Dougies 7

ENVIRONMENTALIST WILL: Koop has, identified numerous 7

year paramedic.

He said ‘there is ‘an unparalleled . fi ality. ;

associated with calls involving firearms... |". -,

“Every time I’ve seen somebody attempt
suicide with a gun, they stay. dead,”
Mussatto, adding that resuscitation is usually:
not possible, :

Another group of speakers before council
accused the councillors of jumping aboard the
politically correct bandwagon.

‘fronically, immediately after the bylaw
passed by a 5-2 margin, council unanimously
passed a staff recommendation embracing the :
use of gender-neutral language in all city docu-
ments. -

Coun. Bill Bell, who along with Mayor Jack
Loucks voted against ‘the gun’ bylaw,: said he.
did t think the bylaw would accomplish, any-
ing. .
' T-won’t. be supporting ‘this bylaw.
doesn’ t mean I like guns, * Bell said.

said |