me

Fire truck requires sl

Mishel Comte
Contributing Writer

WEST Vancouver’s shiny new red fire
truck is too big to fit in the municipali-
ty’s fire hall, assistant chief Gerry
Harrington told council Monday.

_ The 30-metre long aerial ladder truck purchased
for ST million was to be housed at the 16th Street
fire hall when it is delivered at the end of April
Next year.

But first, the hall’s ceiling must be increased
by .15% inches (39 cm) and the floor must be
upgraded to withstand the weight of the 75,000-
pound (34,000 kg) truck.

Several options on how to make it fit were dis-
cussed including building an additional bay
beside the station with a stretch of windows so
the public could admire the new truck.

_ But the one favoured by council invelves mak-
ing more room within the existing structure by

West Van’s new aerial
ladder truck will be too
hig for existing fire hall

replacing trasses along the ceiling with a steel
beam and relocating a work shop 10 another cor-
ner of the building. This would allow for ade-
quate room on either side of the truck to reach its
cabinets and cab doors as well as adequately
increase the ceiling height.

The cost for the renovation is $103,000 and
would take up to twe months co complete in
good weather, Other trucks muse be parked out-
side during renovations. Their water pumps
would be in) danger of freezing during cold
weather.

Another problem with the 32-year-old build
ing is that it does not meet the municipality's
earthquake safety standards. The problem has

Woman near tears
ver church project

From page 1

‘ing our neighbourhood,” said East 22nd
homeowner Stephen Smith. “There are
consequences to development and expan-

* sion.”

Smith and others packed city chambers
to hear the details of the church’s plans.

Many voiced concems about such
issues as parking, traffic, noise and views.

There was also much discussion sur-

‘ rounding a potential school that could see

up..to 350 students use the facility.
Currenuy Lions Gate Christian Academy
uses the church. for a school serving 50
children. |

But church officials maintained that
the school was a separate issue and that

‘their expansion plans were not driven by —

it. . :
=. “Weare not building a school,” said
Buhler in a lacer interview. “We are build-

“ing’a’church.”

- Buhler said. schoo) use of thé new

charch facility was simply “good steward-
‘ship” and that the expansion plans would

ot change even if the school clement was
eliminated. a
Glover added that the church arrived
“maximum hypothetical number of
tudents” simply to satisfy city staff plan-
ing and. engineering: impact review

_Feguirements. '

‘The ‘expansion ‘application first came
re council in June 1998 and again in
February of this year.)
‘According to. Glover, the rezoning is
‘designed to incorporate .a series of five
ots. (which lie along the southside of
23rd Street) into the current CD 102
zoning of the church’s first five lots.
“The site lies across from the North

‘Vancouver provincial courthouse (on the

orth side of 23rd Strect), and adjacent

Katharine Hamer
Contributing Writer

to the Memorial Gym (located on the
southwest coracr of 23rd and St.
Georges Avenue). The enlarged site
would stretch down the cast 200-biock
of 23rd Street, occupying all but three
of the block’s lots.

The building itself wou!d have four
storeys (three above ground), which
would house a lounge, prayer chapel,
meeting rooms, reception arcas,
approximately 28 offices and 16 multi-
purpose rooms. There would also be 2
gymnasium, underground parking and

* a renovated sanctuary.

The design plans have been shown
to the city’s Advisory Design Panel,
the Advisory Planning Commission,
the city engineering department and
the recreation commission. The
church has aiso provided the city with
an independent ‘traffic and parking
impact study. :

But. area residents were not con-
vinced that a project of the magnitude
proposed should .be allowed in their

* single-family area.

Ana Lopez, who was near tears,
asked council to reject the “mam-
moth” project and-retain the area for
single-family use as outlined in. an’
1980s courthouse land study.

Others agreed.

Said June Morris, “The church is an
institution, but so is the family.”

Church officials said that their new
facility would have a positive influence
on the area. Its features, they said,
would include youth activities, healing

_ ministries and outreach programs,

“God is not just working in our
church, bur in many of our North
Shore churches,” said = Buhler.
“Healthy churches are like babies. If
they are healthy, they grow.”

auseway accident ac

Motorcyclist troubled by lane width

Wednesday, October 6, 1999 ~- North Shore News — 3

elier

been acknowledged since 1993 when the fire
department reported it te council. Inthe event of
an carthaymake, the dears could buckle,

“Whats the usc of buying this track for 51
million if when we have an carthquake, it ends up
in the basement,” Coun. Allan Williams said.

This sentiment was echoed by several council-
lors, including Coun, Fraser who suggested that if
any renovations are done, the building should be
seismically upgraded at the same time.

“We ask everybody else to meet our standards
and it would be tough to say Swe dan’r have to,”
he said.

An additional $423,000 would be needed to
fully seismically upgrade the hall. But said Coun.
Bill Soprovich, “We've lived with the risk of an
earthquake for a few years, we can five with ita
few more.”

A final decision on the renovations has been
postponed until other less expensive alternatives
to fully seismically upgrading the hail are exam-
ined.

NEWS photo Terry Peters

NORTH Shore Alliance Church Pastor Brian Suhier shows a
sketch of an expanded church planned for North Van City.

ing the legitimate views of West Van
council.”

| ANALYSIS
speech
righis

| hit by
protest

ON Sepz. 30 retired
North Shore News
columnist Doug
Collins attempted to
speak at an event orga-
nized to raise funds to
help off-set the iegal
fees he faces in his bat-

VANCOUVER Board of
Parks and Recreation’s deci-
sion to stand firm on lane.
widths in the Stanley Park
causeway continues te rile

Lions Gate Bridge commuters.

- North ‘Vancouver resident Streb
Collins was involved in a motorbike

“gecident on the causeway which he

says could have been avoided, in part,
had the lanes beers wider.

~ A few years ago Collins, 67, slid
into the back of a car while riding his
motorcycle along the causeway. He
admits that the incident was his fault.
“J must have fallen asleep or not been

aying attention,” he said. Collins

licves that the chain of events which

‘unfolded were exacerbated by the

state of the road.

Collins’ motorbike was damaged
to the tune of about $4,000. The dri-
ver of the car in front, he said, was
more concerned about Collins’ well-
being than any damage to his own
vehicle.

Collins fell away from taflic, but
his bike fell into it and was promptly
run over by an oncoming car whose
driver was unable to swerve out of the
way.

“I don’t know. what the weight of
a vehicle going over your head does
toa crash helmer, but I don’t wish to
find out,” said Collins, who thinks it
could just have easily been him that
was hit. -

“Pm thanking my lucky stars,” he
said, “It could so casily have gone the
other way. Wider lancs would have

rendered the accident harmless.”

Collins is not the only member of
his family to have had a near-miss on
the causeway. His son became an acci-
dent victim while travelling as a_pas-
senger in a friend’s car. He suffered
severe whiplash.

“My son’s view is that if'a car runs
inco difficulties, it has no choice but
to stop in a lane,” said Collins. “Cars
bang into each other because they
don’t know that a car has stopped up
ahead.”

Collins says at the time of his acci-
dent, he assumed that it was simply

- bad luck that the lanes were so nar-

row. “I thought I was simply putting
up with the law,” he said.

Now he believes that, by refusing
to consider widening the causeway
lanes, “the parks board are denigrat-

He says the parks board is “settin
itself up as a messiah in terms of par!
space. In B.C., there’s lots of wilder-
ness. The parks board’s stance in
demanding that arca remain wilder-
ness denies Vancouverites access to
other park. facilities, like exhibition
halls or muscums. Far more use could
be made of the space.

“They don’t care about the safety
of people using the causeway,”
Collins said. ;

“What they have done is take a.

lovely refreshing drive through green
woodland and turned it into some
sort of horrendous racetrack experi-
ence in which nothing happens, but
you build up tension trom the
moment when you leave the bridge to
when, with a great sigh of relief, you
enter the wider Georgia Street.” -

tle to challenge B.C.’s
anti-democratic
Human Rights Code.

The event took place at
the main branch of the
Vancouver Public Library.

Protesters, however,
biecked access to the public
mecting for many who want-
ed to attend.

As reported in the Oct. 3 -
News, the protesters broke
through police lines, forced
their way ‘to the lower level
of the building and kicked
and pounded on the door of.
the meeting room for the
duration of Collins’ speech. _

Collins was forced to yell
over the challenges of a pro- ~
tester throughout his speech.

The protest to stifle the
columnist’s democratic right
to free expression and inter-
fere with public rights of free
assembly was organized by a

roup that receives. funds:*-:
rom the provincial govern-
ment.

That same government,
through the attorney gener-
al’s ministry, is attempting to
block Collins’ judicial review
of a human rights tribunal”
decision and thereby derail a.
court challenge to sections of
B.C.’s. Human Rights ‘Cod
that limit free expression.

The protesters - and. th
government. are ‘bent
undermining basic democra
ic rights.in this province.

” ‘This newspaper finds both
actions abhorrent.
The: following :is
abridged version ‘of. Coll
statement on the protest and.
the actions of the provincial
government: ee pO

“] said there was.a lot of :
talk about hate groups these |
days, and that the law-abid-.”
ing Free Speech League has :
been described that way. But
if anyone wanted to see hate:
in action; they. had only to
be present tonight (Sept.

30) in the Vancouver’ Public
Library. 0 re,

“I described the rioters as
B.C. Attorney General Ujjal --.
Dosanjh’s shock troops —
Red Fascists whose aim was”
to terrify people into. staying
away from the library. :

“Why the A.G.’s shock
troops? Because the chief
organizer of this riot was.”
Alan Dutton of CAERS, the
Canadian Anti-Racism’ and |
Research Society, which.
should more properly be
called the Anti-Free Speech
League. ee “

“Dutton is a communist”

and receives government ?°!-:-

grants through the .-
Multiculruralism-and ; 2:
Immigration Commani
Liaison Branch of about:
$100,000 a year, 3 unit con

See Protesters page