WEDNESDAY
June 7, 1995

GUARD lobby
moves counc!i!

YOU REALLY can take on district

hall and win, the persuasive force of

over 10,000 signatures in support of
forest preservation in) North

Vancouver District proves the

point, residents say.

(PN TC
NORTH VANCOUVER
DISTRICT COUNCIL

By Martin Millerchip

That was what members of the Group
United Around Responsible Development
(GUARD) were telling each other Monday
after North Vancouver District Council
reversed its previous position and agreed to
consider designating the forests abeve
Northlands and Deep Cove as Park,
Recreation and Open Space (PRO) lands.

“A vote is a powerful thing and a voice is
a powerful thing.” elated GUARD represen-
tative Lisa Muri told the. News after coun-
cil's surprising 6-1 vote in favor of proceed-
ing with the PRO process.

Months of political lobbying and public
pressure by GUARD culminated ut a cour-
ci} meeting dominated by over 400 demon-
strators and a huge petition,

Wearing green ribbons and waving curd-
board tree signs, the GUARD. supporters
presented council with a petiuon containing
10.619 signatures, or almost half the total
population of Seymour, opposing plans to
develop the Ove urban reserves of Mountain
Forest and Cove Forest.

But the darker side of political pressure
was also evident: when Mayor Murray

_Dykemar revealed in debate that he had
received life-threatening phone calls as a
result of the issue,

Reacting to the pressures of the evening,
and some derisive laughter from the gallery
Dykeman said that sometimes “H's really a
pain in the you-know-what to be a politi-
cian.” :

{In a voice trembling with emotion,
Dykeman continued, “tts also very difficult

See Callers page 3

Decision worth mill

NORTH VANCOUVER | District’s
senior administrator says hundreds
of millions of dollars are at stake if
council proceeds to reject develop-
ment for the urban reserves of Cove
and Mountain forests.

Municipal manager Mel Palmer took the
unusual step Monday night of asking council
to request a staff report on the financial impli-
cations of proceeding with down-zoning the
development Jands to Parks, Recreation and
Open Space (PRO). ; ;

Palmer: urged council and the public to
“obtain complete information before they
mate such a significant decision.”

In a report to council, Palmer suggested
that the district's business plan and) other

iopenereiine ain ree
bebe ira
ae

ions
approved policies “would be seriously
restricted or eliminated by this rezoning.”
According to Palmer, some of the impli-
cations of the PRO zoning would be:
losing hundreds of millions ef dallacs of
taxpayers’ financial resources;
B the loss of any ability to develop a sub-
stantial long-term Heritage Fund would no
longer exist;
ne funding for future major capital
expenditures coming largely front increased
taxes which is contrary.to the objective of
maintaining tax levels;
@ a serious Himiton the district's ability to
meet the housing needs identified in the OCP
and housing strategy which will put pressure
on existing neighborhoods for redevelopment,
Palmer also says that the district, has

SELES AE TG ERSTE eae Ra
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a REE ACHIN dicen aes

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diane re:

NEWS photo Paul MeGraih

SIX-YEAR-OLD CAMILLE Beaudet was one of many Seymour Forest users demon-
strating at North Vancouver District Hall Monday night. Council supported their cause.

NORTH VANCOUVER
DISTRICT COUNCIL
By Martin Millerchip

entered into “development cost charge”
agrecaients in the area which the district.
rather than developers, might now hive tw
absorb since there woud be no development
fram which to recover the costs.

Palmer points out that the land east of the
Seymour River represents approximately half
of the Jand in the municipality and holds a
population of approximately 22,000 people.

The land west of the Seymour represents
the other half of the manicipatity but supports
a lar‘yreater percentage of the district's lotal
population — approximately 55,000 people.

Council did not ask fora financial report.

4,

bp

Thursday: Sunny and warm
Miah 266. low 11°C.

the news

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13

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