events

@ Christmas Windows
light up the season: 41

@ Events leading up to
the big day: 42

@ Crossword... D7

‘@ Inside Stories.............23
a) Municipal Affairs.......11
@ North Shore Alert.....18
B® Sunshine Girl...............32

BTV Listings...................34

fashion

B Looking stylish in
sports gear: 23

Custom decorations
make season merry:

Weather
Monday:
periods of rain, windy,
high 10°C. low 6°C

Ee Gils SAE SOE

ges pope
it tad HES

-

WEST

Display Advertising 980-0511

aging water system could hit

st

| SUNDAY

\ Urtiale wg
eOmsiterecg bes Fb a.
{

Phetiat eng fits
1

}
|

Va < ne MAN GTE CKe os
WEST VRAEOLW

Leen -_

Classifieds UbC.

ah
pe

sae

NEL

TAYLOR TUNNEL

ST fae

NORTH VANCOUVER District utilities supervisor Bob Byers examines a new water pipe. The dis-
trict. faces a huge bill for the repair and replacement of its existing watermain system.

i
al

REACHING EVER

Pye ys

CAULFEILD SCHOOL
School District 45 awards
tender for construction of
res middie school,

$83m

BURIED BENEATH North
Vancouver District is an
aving network of watermains
that is set to flood taxpayers
wilh an infrastructure repair
bill of staggering propor-
tions,

By Martin Millerchip
Contributing Writer

And regardless of whether coun-
cil chooses to defer financing the
bottom line by borrowing, district
residents will ultimately be footing
a bith of anywhere from $22.6 mil-
fion to $83 million.

Asked to comment on the cost
figures, Coun. Jim Cuthbert told the
News that estimating the costs
involved for watermain replacement
could vary dramatically depending
on whether a “preferable” or “essen-
tial” program of upgrading was
undertaken, ;

“IUs a staggering challenge in
terms of the age and condition of the
pipes.” said Cuthbert,

District director of parks and
engineering services John Bremner
estimates that the average number of
watermain failures in the district
currently ranges between 35 and 40
per year,

Utilities supervisor Bob Byers
puts the recent numbers even higher
and adds, “They abways seem to
break on a Friday night for some
reason.” .

Bremner points out that the costs
of a break can be devastating ‘for
both the water utilitv’s contingency
fund (currently $200,000) and
homeowners whose property suffers
water damage,

A watermain break — under
Montroyal Boulevard a few years
ago washed out two complete
blocks of roadbed at a cost to the
district of $250,000.

“Equally serious is the potential
of flooding private property.” says
Bremner.

He points out that the district is
not legally responsible for damage
that. in insurance terms, is deemed
an act of God.

While the district has a “good
neighbor policy” of providing
pumping and cleanup of debris dur-
ing a watermain break, any resulting
loss or damage would have to be
covered under a water damage
clause on the property owner's
household insurance.

Discounting the limited percent-

uve Of the system's original wooden

suive pipes aad the more recent steel
pipe, Che district's watertiains fail

See Pijus page

HORE SINCE 1969

j