Testing station workers seek pay increases MOTORISTS WITH vehicles needing insurance have been given the green light by the Transportation and Highways Ministry to insure their vehi- _cles,. even though AirCare ’ workers remain on strike. — By Ian Noble . News Reporter ‘On Tuesday, the ministry announced that the requirement for ' AirCare. approval has beer tem- porarily suspended so that owners can insure and license their vehicles during the strike. _ «The ‘decision follows a Monday walkout . by AirCare employees, including 20 at the North Vancouver AirCare testing station, in their dis- "pute with American-owned employ- es Ebco-Hamilton. > When. striking workers return to work, motorists who missed inspections will be asked to return: . “within areasonable period” to complete their vehicle’s annu- al inspection,’ said the ministry. “Meanwhile, North Vancouver iamak ‘Ashrifinia, 44, will be sentenced on the passport forgery charges ¢ on March 63 in B. Cc. “Supreme Court: ’He is also before the courts on ‘charges that he alently became a Canadian citizen after he was deported from the couutry.: "Ashrafinia was arrested in December 1994 fol- ga six-month RCMP undercover investiga- nin North Vancouver's Iranian community. ‘Seven’ men were charged as a result of that vestigation. in separate crimes that -included dering, opium trafficking, heroin traf- ig and ‘possessing the proceeds of crime., ‘Ashrafinia’s Citizenship fraud charges were iaid after the passport forgery charges. ; An: undercover RCMP. officer of Iranian descent: testified about his dealings with Ashrafinia during a preliminary hearing into the :, passport charges in North Vancouver provincial @ Bright Lights resident Teamkiranis was told to leave the North Shore station after ‘waiting “half-an hour Monday to get his 1978 Dodge van inspected. He said upset people were screaming and others Dimitrios Canadian passport scam sentence to he issued March 6 court in December. At the time, there was a ban on publication of the proceediags. They were held during the same week as \Ashrafinia’s trial. on . Citizenship Act offences. : The passport case was ordered to trial in B.C. Supreme Court by Judge Jerome Paradis. Ashrafinia changed a plea of not guilty lea to a guilty plea on two passport charges after the pre- liminary hearing. A tial will therefore not take ‘place in the higher court. Meanwhile the Citizenship Act fraud case, before Judge Bill Rodgers, is adjourned to June in North Vancouver provincial court. The charges are summary offences, meaning the maximum sen- tence possible will be six months in jail. or a | $2,000 fine. In B.C. Supreme Court, Ashrafinia pleaded guilty to: @ forging a Canadian passport in North Vancouver City on April 19, 1994 by substituting Van yout plan goes to counci honked their horns after being told workers were on strike and no more inspections would be performed. It’s unclear why North Vancouver AirCare employees walked off the job Monday afternoon while an eyewitness-esti- mated 100 drivers waited for inspections. The union says it was locked out and workers were ordered off the premises, but Ebco-Hamilton district manager Steve Olsen said employees Wednesday, February 14, 1996 — North Shore News — 3 befiatd AIRCARE STAFFERS Carmelo Basa (lett), Francisco Valdes, and Bruce McKenzie tell z a : motorist that she won't be having her car inspected Monday in North Vancouver. Workers say they were locked out. Management sald workers watked out. Either way, AirCare is closed. ; tized venture. a photograph of Brian Hanley with that of anoth- er person. Hanley is known to the North Vancouver RCMP, @ forging a Canadian passport on Oct. 21, 1994 : by substituting the photograph of Nader Ismaeli ‘ Ranjbar with that of another person. A charge of conspiracy to forge passports with aman known as “Safavi” between April 7, 1994 and Nov. 28, 1994 and a charge of possessing a stolen Canadian passport in August 1994 are still pending against Ashrafinia, according to B.C. _ Supreme Court Crown counsel Don Celle. In the Citizenship Act fraud case, the Crown is alleging that Ashrafinia returned to Canada in May 19990 afier being deported without a ministe- rial permit. Another charge alleges that Ashrafinia made a false statement on a citizenship application form on Nov. 23, 1993 by not disclosing he had been deported in 1975. Crown evidence states that Ashrafinia had an undisclosed Canadian criminal charge pending at the time he was deported. Ashrafinia became a Canadian citizen .in November 1994 while undercover RCMP officers were watching him in connection with the pass- port forgery investigation. centre “M Clasaifieds | @ Crossword. & Food. } @ Insights | @ Mailbox... ‘i Table Hopping. 1 BTV Listings... | features } & Spring Home i Improvement special feature: 21 WEST VANCOUVER District Council has received an initial plan for the development of a youth centre in Ambleside Park. WEST VANCOUVER DISTRICT COUNCIL By Maureen Curtis “This is something the community is very anxious to see fulfilled.” said Coun. Diana Hutchinson. The municipality plans to use the building just cast of the West Vancouver SPCA. The building has been leased by the Capilano Sportsmens Club for many years. West Vancouver filed a writ of summons in B.C. Supreme Court Feb. 7 in an effort to remove the club from the Ambleside building. {ts members do not want to give up the location. In their report, planning director Steve Nicholls and parks and recreation director Kevin Pike have outlined a plan that would see a youth driven rather than “pro- grammed” collection of activities and services offered at the centre. It will have several functions and will become the home of a youth outreach program. According to the guiding philosophy outlined i in the report, the centre will be: Ma nurturing and inclusive environment; @ a youth-guided facility; Ba multi-activity agency. Mayor Mark Sager said the centre will replace the youth centre which operated successfully at the Inglewood schoo! site for several years, The Ambleside Park operation will be open six days a week with staff on site after school hours and often during the day. Fuil drop-in services will be offered on Thursday and Friday evenings and Saturday aftemoons. Activities at the centre wili include homework assis- lance, youth magazine production, video projects, employ- ment assistance, potluck dinners and discussion groups. The centre will be jointly-administered by the planning and parks and recreation departments. At the council meeting, West Vancouver SPCA repre- sntative Marie Moscovitch asked what council would do when dogs at the shelter bark in response to youth activi- ties at the centre. Sager noted that the firing of guns in the sportsmen's ‘club does not seem to have disturbed the dogs. tests walked off the job. British Columbia Government Employees Union North Vancouver shop steward Barb Remple told the- News her North Vancouver workers and 235 others in the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley make between $7.75 and $11.25 an hour. They are secking wage increases over three years that go to $15.25 per hour, guaranteed work hours for . permanent part-time employees and better medical and dentai benefits, Remple said. She believes the strike will be a long one, because the two sides are so far apart on wages. The company agrees the gulf remains wide. Ebco-Hamilton Partners said union demands of a 34 an hour increase over three years includes a first year increase of $2.75 an hour, and an 81% increase for entry-level workers. Ebco-Hamilton said it ‘has applied to the Labor Relations Board to put its proposal to employ- ees a8 a last-offer yote. The compa- ny’s offer includes a 50-cent-per- hour increase on ratification and a $400 signing bonus for all empioy- ees. An additional 25-cent-per-hour, increase is offered in each of the last three years of the four-year deal. os Ebco-Hamilton also proposed to cut the time in which’ employees reach full pay from three years to two. Negotiations | have been ongoing for six months. The ernployees last contract expired Aug. 31, 1995. The previous AirCare strike; in 1993, lasted nearly three months. AirCare began i in 1992 as a a privas ‘WEST VANCOUVER: Polit are looking for a man: who'| _ ‘tried to rob a front desk clerk ° -at the Park Royal Hotel: nm spokesman. The si He is described as’ being Caucasian, age 25 ¢o 30; 1.8 m: (6 f&.) with a medium build. ‘and short dark hair. He was. wearing jeans and carrying a black briefcase. = - The day before, an armed robber took several rings dur- |. ing a 5:30 p.m. heist at ' Swedish Jeweler in Park Royal Shopping Centre. ‘Police say the suspect: showed a store clerk a black ‘handgun and demanded Jewel: iry. The suspect is described as _being black, 25 to 28 years old, | 1.8 m (6 ft.), 77 kg (170 ibs.)’ |’ with no facial hair. Call 925- 7 . Speed lowered TRAFFIC WAS slowed on the. Upper Levels between Lonsdale and Lloyd to 50 km-h ‘as of Feb, 10. , “This lowered speed limit is to ensure the safety of dri- yers and construction work- ers , through’ the Upper Levels/Westview Interchange project limits, and will remain in effect until the pro- ject is completed in June 1997,” said a spokesman for Walter and SCI Construction. Poiice will be monitoring the area. for more information con-_ tact 980-7773. t