J. Claire bids Cates adieu MEANWHILE, back on the waterfront: J. Claire Johnston is work- ing up a head of steam with his pipe and Caprain Black tobacco. He is rocking back in his executive chair in his south- ~ west harborside office of C.H- Cates and Sons Ltd. _ Onthe walt behind Mr. Johnston is a golf club tricked out as a fishing rod. On his desk is assorted » flotsam and jetsam of work-a- __ day paper work and the -. debris of executive responsi- bilities that go along with his position as president of the : North Shore’s oldest ship- berthing and harbor freight ‘hauling operation. But none of that is inter- fering, with the task at hand: "the generous allocation of the - d_president’s time toa -~ Stranger; the common —_ i ers of a stalway tcom-: ; swapping 5ea StO- is range from tug. Saltier:adventures fur- around miy years shipping aboard ‘commercial fishing ; : vessels up and down B.C. West Coast: >, , “Hey; how about the tale “of how the NDP expropriat- “ed Cates’ waterfront property he early-70s. Foggy rea- Socialist: agenda revitalize the, - ith ICBC head Office, the SeaBus, etc. : : lackguards! Heavy dis- charge’ of Captain: Black; obace dna city non-smok-’ the ‘Ar ws Gibsons Landing for ripping yarns Lonsdale. Another piece of the North Shore’s rich history preserved. Saved from the socialists hordes. C.H. Cates and Sons Lrd. President Jof.nston bears a large tattoo on his left fore- arm — a memento of his 22 years with the Royal Canadian Navy and a sailor’s adventure in China. Another salty tale for another time. Prior to his career with Cates, he worked with | | Robert Allan Architects for 512 years as a marine survey- or. He joined the legendary tug company in 1979 as its -personnel manager. Johnston * subsequently filled a host af positions ranging from fleet - engineer to purchasing agent. Hc has been the president i 3 of Cates since 1992. “Buta nosy new: spaper type can still walk into his office unannounced and shoor the breeze for 45 minutes. This, after ail, is Cates Tugs — a North Shore origi- “onal, not some faccless corpo- . rate appendage with head office somewhere in.the mys- terious cast. |. ~ Old Charles Henry Cates pulled i into Vancouver harbor from Machias, Maine, in the “1880s and began plying local “waters aboard his self-pro- pelled barge the Cates Ark. Among other assignments, t hauled stone from Vancouver's court house and the parliament buildings in Victoria. Captain Cates, brother of shipbuilder George Emery Cates, also built the first wharf on the North Shore. He establishes his busi- ness on Aug. 21, 1886. It became C.H. Cates in 1913 and adopted its present C.H. Cates and Sons name in 1921, Charles Henry's company, which currently employs approximately 90 staff and operates 12 tugs, has been a North Vancouver waterfront fixture for most of the 20th century, and will doubrless continuc to be a fixture well into the next. miflennium. From the mid-1930s, when the; Cates braintrust astutely set the company’s course on harbor ship berthing, until 1993 Pvhen behemoth harborside neigh- bor Seaspan waded into the fray, the North Vancouver company was the ship- berthing operation of choice. There was no other. But J. Claire will not be a - part of that new age Cares ‘entity. The'old seadog is sct to retire April 30. Taking over the presidential wheel on the company bridge. will be cur- cent Cates vice-president Doug Towill. Johnston leaves with a host of regrets — his harbor- side view of Vancouver har- bor traffic.and its ever-chang- ing scenery is alone worth “more than most executive placements — and the Cates operation retains the family personality that its founder instilled in his company when it was launched. While. competing firms such as Seaspan and RivTow's Tiger Tugs have cut into the Vancouver harbor ship berthing pie, Cates remains the predominate Vancouver harbor tug company. According co Johnston, it handles 85% of all ship- berthing in Vancouver harbor on any given day, which cur- renily runs to about 16 deep- sea freighters. That’s a lot of tug work. Johnston sikens it to the Vancouver commuter rush- hour. Times are busiest in carly morning (4 a.m. to 7:30 a.m.) and late afternoon (4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.). That rush hour will soon be but a memory for Johnston. ; Come retirement, he intends to cast off for adven- tures further afield. Adventure No. 1: circumnav- igate Vancouver Island in his 24-foot “tupperware” (fibre- glas) craft. Pipe of Captain Black’s at the ready. Once a seadog, always a seadog. Smooth seas to you, Capt. Johnston. Afvaentcas. Of, Lube & Filter ‘fully warranty: 27 pt Safety check. 15 minutes - FAST! approved includes up ta 5 ives of 10w30 Quakerstate 1362 Marine Drive 980-9115 J yonSa 8:0 8:00am-6:00pm. MS ESP Som, ‘Expires May 6, §.Laursen & Son Draperies Sand Binds Ltd. Serving the val ox = Lower Mainland sin since 197, NX Anather one of our designs. ” For Free Estimate call ~ 922-4975 or 987-2966 (Ask abous our Seniors Discount)’ Labour $12.50 per panel unlined, $13.50 li Custom Rods, Upholstery.8¢ Bedspreads Low Low Price. PETE’s full name is. PolyEthylene — Ter Ephthalate. But don’ t blame his parents. — - PETE i is ‘actually a type of olastic. And as of © May 1st; any plastic bottle with this symbol’ -stamped in the bottom will be recyclable i in.’ your Blue Box.” ; : It’s just one of the great new improvements to the North Shore. Recycling .. Program coming your . way on May Ist. Watch your door during the week of April 27 for the « arrival of your guide to the new recycling services. : Silk flowers, plants. & trees, floral arrangemenis : (will take custom made arders) - Decorative | Kitchen Greenery, 39% reg.” 199. . 3' Plant Sale $19” reg $39” “s Plane Sale $39” reg “me 1093 Marine Drive at Lloyd Ave., North Van’ os OPEN. 7 DAYS. 10-6 . of ’s GIANT 7 mattress ait SAE is s the: way toa good night’s sleep! ATL mattress toppers, are Jong lasting and hospital quality. » Sale e prices i in n effect from Saturday, Aprii2: 251 to Saturday, May 23, 1998.