| Stadium rally protests cuts to education in District 44 Crowd told to lobby Victoria PEOPLE CONCERNED about education funding cuts in North Vancouver School District 44 should pressure the provincial government to give more money to the local school district, a Sunday rally at North Vancouver City’s Kinsman Stadium was told. The rally was held to protest the $10 million in District 44 budget cuts for the 1992-93 school year. But North Vancouver NDP MLA David Schreck told the crowd of about 300 that they should be patient, adding that it was highly unlikely that his gov- ernment would provide District 44 with the $10 million. “Pll do everything I can, but you can’t take a promise to the -bank. Be prepared if it ($10 mil- lion funding) doesn’t happen. It’s highly unlikely that we will get that $10 million,’’ said Schreck. But North Vancouver parent Barb Scobie said that while Vic- toria increased education funding on a provincial level by over $300 million, District 44° received only a 2.4% increase. . **That’s not even cost of tiving. So for your (Schreck’s) comments to come back to our community to say it’s an issue between the ‘. Jocal school boards and the teach- ers -is really short-sighted,”’ said ' Scobie. “Teachers are not going to take a 20% pay cut. You just '. can’t go backwards.”’ But Schreck said he was not at the rally- to negotiate teachers’ salaries. He added that people concerned about education funding cuts in North Vancouver should supply him with the data he said he needs to convince the provincial gov- ernment to give District 44 more money. — But Scobie said Education Minisicr Anita Hagen’s office has ‘sefusec her requests for informa- tion on education funding. By Surj Rattan News Reporter “We have written to Anita Hagen...and asked for those numbers. She hasn’t replied to me. I don't have access to that in- formation as a parent,’’ said Scobie. District 44 board chairman Richard Walton said he told the provincial government in December about the funding ‘shortfall faced by District 44, but he said he felt then that the gov- ernment did not believe the numbers being presented. “Let’s face it, when groups lobby they tend to inflate the numbers a bit more or say the sit- uation’s worse than it is. But I think in this case we were not. The number that I presented the education minister with was exact- ly what we experienced as a defi- cit,’ said Dalton. West Vancouver-Capilano MLA Jeremy Dalton, the Liber- al’s education critic, said District 44 “is suffering the most of any school district in B.C.” North Vancouver City Mayor Jack Loucks, a former teacher, criticized the provincial govern- ment for the $10 million cut to District 44’s budget and said the local school district is being treated unfairly by Victoria. “It’s like people saying you have to take fat out of the budget. But when you take $10 million out of the budget they’re not taking away fat, they’re taking out a lot of meat.”’ ‘WV five-year capital plan totals $108.2M IN ADDITION to the regular 1992 municipal budget, West Vancouver District Council took to third reading Monday night a five-year capital expenditure program totalling about $108.2 million. By Maureen Curtis Contributing Writer The program includes: @ $41.8 million for land and buildings; @® $30 million for municipal projects; @ $5.6 million for vehicles and equipment; e@ $5.£ million for furnishings and equipment; © and $24.65 million for con- tingency expenditures. The plan for the land and building allotment is to spend: @ $4 million on the fire department; @ $1 > million on municipal hall; @ $5.5 million on the West Vancouver recreation centre; @ $5.7 million on the Eagle Harbour centre; @$1.2 million on the municipality’s seniors’ centre; assorted be dine | WEST VANCOUVER DISTRICT COUNCIL @ $2.9 million on parks; @ $4.5 million on a civic arts centre; @ $4.8 million on the West Vancouver library; @ and $12 million on property acquisition. Public works and similar projects would get about $30.7 million over five years, in- cluding: @ $2.2 million for sewers; @ $9.6 million for roads; @ $2 million for highway bridge crossings; @and $6 million for creek flood control. Approximately $5.6 million has been allotted for expen- ditures on vehicle and mobile equipment for police, fire, public works, recreation, the library, and similar facilities. Wednesday, May 6, 1992 - North Shore News - 3 NEWS photo Paul McGrath DEPUTY CHIEF Gerry McDowell got a grand send-off from the crew at West Van Firehali No. 1 last week as he retired from the West Vancouver Fire Department. The longest serving employee of the municipality started with the municipal works yard in October 1952 before becoming a firefighter in 1955. Mayors disagree on vote to resume watershed logging Sager and Campbell square off on issue WEST VANCOUVER Mayor Mark Sager and Vancouver Mayor Gordon Campbell disagree on wa- tershed logging. By Anna Marie D'Angelo News Reporter Both mayors are on the Greater Vancouver Regional Board (GVRD), which last week voted to allow logging to resume in local watersheds. Sager. a GVRD board member, said the GVRD held a quick vote to end a four-month moratorium on watershed logging. Campbell, GVRD chairman, said the vote was routine. Sager said there was no resolu- tion passed to prevent the British Columbia Medical Association (BCMA) from speaking on how the policy would be interpreted before the vote. Campbell said the board agreed not to hear any more delegations and that the BCMA was told about that. Sager said that, more impor- 44 1 suppose when people grow tired of an issue, they grow impatient. 99 tantly, there is a ‘‘purported”’ change in logging policy in the watershed that needed to be debated. Campbell said there is a definite change in logging policy that includes a transition pericd. Said Sager. *‘This is the whole problem, a new direction (concer- ning watershed logging) was pass- ed, but the question is how does the staff interpret it. And if, in fact, would staff interpret it any differently than the earlier direc- tion.”’ Campbell said the logging poli- cy now has a definite preventive. approach so drinking water quali- ty won't deteriorate. The focus, he said, is to maintain and -im- prove water quality. “41 don’t think anyone (on the GVRD board) is working in bad faith, they are working in good — WV Mayor Mark Sager faith to protect water quality...1 understand Mayor Sager, and just because he disagrees, he should be careful what he says (about the GYRD),” said Campbell. . Said Sager, *‘l suppose when people grow tired of an issue; they grow impatient.”’ A GVRD staff recommendation to log nine cut-block areas totall- ing $0 hectares to reduce water- shed forest fire hazards. was ap- proved by the GVRD bozrd at last Friday’s meeting. The Capilano, Coquitlam and Seymour watersheds provide drinking water for the Lower . Mainland and have been the focus of a contentious logging debate: The watersheds also contain valuable old-growth timber and rare animal species such as the spotted owl. Business will pay 6.5% more in NVC From page 1 utility rates. The GVRD has taken on a number of programs to improve Lower Mainland water and air quality, a mandate passed on to it by the provincial government. . In North Vancouver City, basic municipal tax rate increases will vary from 2.8% for homeowners to 9.5% for major industrial companies and utilities. Business and light taxpayers will pay 6.5% than they did last year. Rates for the various business taxpayers were found to be 20% to 30% tess than in other municipalities, city treasurer Ken- neth Tollstam said in explaining the variation in rate increases recommended to council. But two city councillors called for a lower budget increase to reflect the current tough economic times. Ald. Stella Jo Dean said she would have preferred to see no industrial more more than a 3.5% increase. Dean pointed to the homeown- ez’s grant reduction, reduced in- come and job security, and the low average annual income for ci- ty residents as reasons to keep the tax increases as low as possible. Ald. Rod Clark said he was not supporting the city’s budget for the first time since he joined council, because the recession has caused higher unemployment and the closure of city businesses. ‘*These are extremely difficult times. It’s time for understanding of the community’s ability to pay,”’ Clark said. Calling the increase a tax grab, Clark said council could have found ways to balance the budget without any tax increases. He said that even with no tax increase, careful pruning could have retained city services at cur- rent levels. Ald. Bill Bell said that city resi- dents get good value for their tax doilar. He said that some of the cuts made in the budget were unfortu- . nate; referring to the social hous- ing reserve fund which he said has been reduced from $210,000 to $25,000. Ald. John Braithwaite called the tax levy increase a‘ good com- promise because members of council wanted increases between zero and 10%. Mayor Jack Loucks agreed that council was approving a reason- able increase. He added that the city has traditionally had one of the lowest tax increases in the GVRD and that this year’s increase will prob- ably be the lowest on the North Shore and one of the lowest in the GVRD. The city’s budget, tax rate and capital expenditures bylaws passed through council’s third reading Monday and are expected to be finally adopted May 11.