SENIORS DEVELOPMENT SGUGHT Housing project fails to win approval in WV WEST VANOUVER District Council rejected Monday night a proposed seniors and family housing project for the Klahanie Park area near Earl’s restaurant on Marine Drive. But council is hoping their rejec- tion of the necessary bylaw for the project will not prevent a similar development that would be based exclusively on seniors residency. “We want to underscore the need fer seniors housing — we need it desperately,’? Ald. Pat Boname said. Representatives from the B.C. be: *. WEST Vancouver Ald. Pat Boname ...‘‘desperate’’ need for seniors housing. Housing Commission and the three North Shore rotary clubs sponsor- ing the project had, at the previous Sept. 25 meeting, stressed that the necessary government funding would only be approved for a mix- ed seniors and social housing de- velopment. “We should be working with the government to see how hard and fast that rule is,’? Ald. Alex Brokenshire said Monday. Ald. Rod Day successfully pass- ed a motion requiring municipal Business .............. 5B Classified Ads..........60 Dr. Ruth...........-6..89 Editorial Page...........6 Bob Hunter............ 4 Lifestyles .............-48 Plailbox .........--..-- 7 North Shore Now.......23 Sports ..............-. 19 TV listings............42 Wednesday, cle. ty with a chance of reir. Thursday, mostly cloudy. Highs near 14°C. Second Class Registration Number 3885 Contributing Writer staff to report back on the amendments or procedures re- quired to accommodate a seniors- only housing project on the site. Essential to council’s decision against the current proposal was that access to the area, while being a part of West Vancouver, is actu- ally available only through North Vancouver District. Area resident Bruce Brown in- timated that the Klahanie Park site was only considered ‘‘ideal’’ by West Vancouverites because, being physically separate from their municipality, it ‘‘is totally non- offensive to the residents of West Vancouver, who have certainly made their objections known to other such proposals in their district.” Other local residents spoke out against the project, pointing out the adverse effect it would have on area traffic patterns, and the lack of such nearby facilities for young families as schools. Their concerns were backed up by North Vancouver District Council, which decided that they could only support the project if it was limited to seniors. But if the local rotarians decide to proceed with such 4 venture, a new bylaw would have to be drawn up, followed up by another public hearing. “fAs I see it, North Vancouver District essentially has a veto on this issue,’ said Ald. Day, who sympathized with the need on the North Shore for affordable hous- ing for both seniors and young families. 3 — Wednesday, October 4, 1989 - North Shore News NEWS photo Mike Waketieid GRADE 2 and 3 students of Westover Community Schooi try out the new adventure playground built at the Nortis Vancouver schcol. Pupils’ parents raised funds for the playground last year and erected the structure last week. Neptune representatives defend pollution policy From page 1 Baak said a straight economic cost analysis did not take into ac- count the cost on the environment and the space. He added that while Neptune pays about $400,000 in taxes, ‘‘in relation to the total tax-base of the city, that’s hardly anything.”’ But Neptune also received strong industry and business support for its expansion proposal, inciuding representation from the longshoreman’s union, the North Vancouver City Chamber of Commerce, a Neptune employee representative, a previous employee, Cantin's shipping ser- vices, and the Vancouver Port Corporation. Bob Wilds of the B.C. Maritime Association said construction of the potash storage shed was im- portant to Neptune’s economic future. “*The very competitive nature of ports today requires (industries) to maintain state-of-the-art facili- ties,” he said. Company representatives said Neptune had made efforts to deal with noise and air pollution. Since 1980, the company has spent $4.3 million on pollution controls, and has budgeted more money in the coming year. Neptune president John Willcox said his company was not respon- sible for all the noise and air pollu- tion outlined in resident com- plaints. Willcox said testing by B.C. Research had shown that not all the dust on residential] homes came from the plant. “The dust is black, the dust is present,’’ he said. ‘‘(But) our feel- ing is that a lot is traffic and road dust.”” And Willcox said the dust had not affected bird and wildlife in a nearby park. He said there were geese, rabbits and pigeons close to the site. “Occasionally windblown dust, if it’s not controlled properly, has escaped,” said Willcox. He added that his company had tried to address problems of noise. Company representative Fred Lederer said that to his knowledge, the audible sounds were within noise control limits. But Ald. John Braithwaite pointed to a study done in 1988 that showed decibel readings of 64 and 65 (10 to 15 decibels icuder than allowed), that had occurred 11 times in one day during the study. Council also discussed the pos- sibility of replacing Neptune with alternative port facilities. “There are many inquiries to in- crease port facilities, since Van- couver is the largest port in Canada," said Port of Vancouver representative Tom Shortridge. He said Neptune was ‘‘an eco- nomical use of the space.’’ But Shortridge added that the port was not responsible for the actions of its feaseholder. “We expect our leaseholder to adhere to all rules and regulations (set down by municipalities, pro- vince and the Greater Vancouver Regional District),’’ Shortridge said. One resident suggested transplanting Neptune to another Site. “Invest money in building at Roberts Bank or somewhere where it will not bother anyone,” said resident Doug Bradley. But Willcox said moving the operations was not economicai. “The costs of a brand-new facil- ity would be prohibitive,”’ he said. NORTH Vancouver Ald. Barbara Sharp ...‘‘it was time that someone listened to the little guy.”” But council members subse- quently voted 5-2 against letting Neptune build the storage shed. “The people are saying, no, we don’t want that (the storage shed),’’ said Ald. John Braithwaite. Ald. Stella Jo Dean said ‘tas far as I’m concerned, taking into ac- count the past performance of Neptune, I’m skeptical of the commitment.’’ Ia voting for the shed proposal, Ald. Rod Clark said Neptune had been making an effort to reduce pollution. “We are getting bogged down with coai and past sins,’’ he said. “The application is with respect to potash shipments. The view im- plications are rather few. Neptune has been responsive, they’ve called a public meeting, and committed cold, hard dollars.’” Mayor Jack Loucks also voted to allow Neptune to build the ad- ditional storage facility. Council decided against deferr- ing action in order to draw up a legally-binding document to en- force Neptune’s commitments. Ald. Bill Beli said taking action immediately would leave council without any leverage with Neptune in future controls on their pollu- tion emissions. “There are problems down there now that the citizens are facing,’’ Bell said. ‘‘Neptune is not going to go away just because we don’t support the expansion. It (a legal document) is a tool to help clean up what’s going in there now. There is no incentive, once we turn down their application, for them to clean up their act.”” But Braithwaite said there would be ‘‘no deals.”” He said if Neptune wanted to come to council with a expansion proposal again, there would be the expectancy that it would have reduced pollution emissions and cut down on noise.