8 - Wednesday, September 10, 1997 — North Shore News LGB solutic sadly lacking Dear Editor: Hello! Which caveman is responsible for the latest NDP hare-brain scheme and how can we beam him/her into reality today? Can someone tell me how adding one lane to the First Narrows crossing is going to ease the bortleneck traffic we have today and help our future additional traffic into the next century. Any person with a breia watching the traflic partern ‘over Lions Gate Bridge can see we already have two lanes during rush hour to and from Vancouver and it’s a mess. How can a new bridge with the same number of lanes to accommodate rush hour be an improvement? Or will we be sending motorists to their potential deaths on the white-knuckle trip down the centre lane again? To top it off, we will have the privilege of paying a $2 toll to line u Talready do that for free! Am I missing something here, or is it just me who doesn’t get it? - _ Stand on Taylor Way any Sunday afternoon and one can plainly see that cars from Whistler, Cypress Mountain and ‘Horseshoe Bay ferries are the majority of Lions Gate Bridge users, not North Shore citizens. ¢ lines formed on weekends for the bridge are far - worse and slower than weekday rush hours. Will these peo- ple who do not have the suggested electronic scanner be ‘stopping to pay a cash toll to cross? joesn’t anyone in municipal or provincial government : planning committees stop to think of the incredible back- log this will create? Even slowing down to honk and read those damn political signs every election season causes havoc. Hang the $2, they'll be pitching teats and selling lemonade, ‘Can anyone out-think the Ist century besides the X-Files? Randene Hardy West Vancouver [Fall MI Dra ery Sale Sjarts Monday » r Sept 22nd 25%. OFF. most fabrics Make. your. a selection. ws north shore news MAIL Box Dear Editor: The failing marks against North Vancouver District in the recently pub- lished report by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) should not come as a surprise. While the report, conducted through personal interviews of its western members, emphasized points of special interest to business, it also judged municipalities on “how local government apply their revenues as being just as impor- tant as to how they collect them.” Anybody who foliows district affairs knew that something was wrong in a municipality where agendas are controlled by the mayor instead of the clerk and where resolutions not to the liking of the mayor are endlessly delayed and often never heard of again. the CFIB The real rise in the report, showing shat we are the worst managed municipality in Western Canada is that we did not do worse still. But this is because not even the CFIB may have known all the facts. Even so, they have discovered that we are sadly wanting. Somebody who knows what they are g about and cannot be accused of parochial loyalties, finally dis- covered that the district is being badly mis- managed. We can only speculate what the verdict might oc had the CFIB known that the dis- trict is using up its heritage land to cover operating expenses. Out of $108 million AirCare° Making a clear difference in the air we breathe October will be a busy month at AirCare. If you require an AirCare test, take advantage of the lower traffic volumes during the month of September. Remember, you can get worth of land sales in the last 10 years, over $60 million has been used up for such pur- poses. But even with this substantial subsidy, district taxes, as indicated in the report, are higher than in most places. Funding received from our district land source, courtesy of our children (without their consent) is on top. It is not listed in your tax statement and you certainly won’t read about it in the District Dialogue. But on to another example. A resolution for a study on data to determine to what extent district taxpay- ers are subsidizing (I have already done my homework) — North Vancouver City (the city is building the higs while the district pays for playing fields) has been stailed for almost a year. The engineered delay means that the deadline to go to referendum in time for the ‘next clection and press forward, with amalgamation or £ out of all the arrangements with the city costing the dis- trict money is being jeopardized. When the Northlands golf course was in the designing stage, we were told that to make it pay and reimburse the Fleritage Fund, the golf course would require a min- “...the City is building the high-rises while the District pays for playing fields...” imum of 165 acres, enough to accommo-f date not only the golf course but also a dri ving range plus a club house and restaurant large enough to hold conventions. Instead of 165 acres, the total area was whittled down to 132 actes. Both the driving range “, a and the large restaurant were sacrificed. : Selling off land to feed our bad babi instead was more important than a lo: term guaranteed income for the district taxpayers. The result Bag fees — instead of $30 are $40 and projected to go to at least $50 i ere ore, but a0 they does not allow it... The bottom ‘line is.that obvi u takes more than “ . tion. for Machiavelli’s Prin 2° tO municipality successfully. It munky ace. apa folks, is how I take it as well. . Knights of Columbus Announces New. Officers 2 West Vancouver, B.C., Suly = 3, 199 f in West Vancouver, today announced its ne’ 1 en your AirCare test at ary time. Monday - Saturday 8:30 am to 5:00.pm. Burnaby Station closed Seturday Call the AirCare Information Line West Vancouver Chaplaia Rev. ° Vincent - Haw! Anthony's West Vancouver, Deputy Grand Knight [West Vancouver, Chancellor Gordon Valente ‘West Vancouv Officers named are: Financial Secretary I lorst Sieg West Vancouver, Treasurer Richard Gaul,': West Lectirer and Advocate Humphrey Waldock, West The Board of Trustees includes: George O'Leary, Barr, and Stefan Hejduk, all of West Vancouver. © k Columbus for forty years, serving: in positions of ¥ Chanceltor,. Deputy. 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