‘Recreational trails
threatened by new
NVD development

HARD OWN the wheels of neon-clad bikers,
horse fanciers can now be heard in the battle

to save Seymour recreational trails from
development.

- By lan Noble
News Reporter

Narth Shore Horseman's Association senior
administrator Teri Banks said if developments wipe
out the trails, which were constructed with more
than $100,000 in federal government money, horse
riders will effectively be shut out of the area.
Alternatives such’ as the. Seymour
.. Demonstration Forest are closed to riders or are too
_Steep or rocky.
Ina Feb, 20 letter to Dykeman, Banks stated: “.
equestrians have very specific needs for their trails
» regarding terrain and footing, you cannot just relo-
‘cate these trails wherever it is most convenient.”
'_. ‘With an estimated 150 horses on the North
Shere, horse riders are not the biggest user group of
“the trails located north’ of the Mount Seymour
Parkway, west of Indian River Drive and east of
_ Berkley Avenue, said Banks, “but I'd hate to see
» them gone”’
_ > The trails face threats from the Northlands
development now under construction and potential
Mountain Forest and Cove Forest developments
“which North Vancouver District Mayor Murray
-Dykeman_ stresses are in preliminary stages of
, Study.”
The trails were built with more than $53,000 of
government money between 1979 and 1982. Also,

restoration work on the Twia Bridges which lead to .

«the trails received $15,000, while a further $21,000
‘ was plowed into trail- maintenance in 1983 and
‘another $20,000 in 1984. ° ‘

As trails coordinator for the horseman’s-associ-
< ation, West Vancouver resident Brenda Soeder can-
~-vassed the funds from the feds and lottery corpora-
tions to build the trails, ~

:Soeder: said the. government would not hand:

over the cash until Soeder could guarantee the land
; would be used for recreation.

1995 BUDGET

apital fun

killed i in.

NEWS photo Brad Ledwidge’

SHARON JACKSON and eight-year-old Jennine Banks of the Laura Lynn Equestrian
Cenire are two riders worried about losing their Seymour trails to deveiopment. ‘

To comply, trail: planners tried to ensure trails
were built on land owned by the district rather than
on Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corp.
(CMHC) land.

That way, said Soeder,’ 2‘ recreation corridor
could be factored in if development occurred,

Although the district has been “very supportive”
of the trails in the past, Soeder said she is not sure
of the district’s future intentions.

She-added she wants the district to consult
recreation groups in the early stages of the devel-
opment process and work in recreational activities
with development. she believes is inevitable.

Support for the nascent GUARD (Group United
Around Responsible Development), which oppos-
_ €s proposed Mountain Forest and Cove Forest
‘ developments, has been gathering steam following

a Feb. 17 News story.
Callers to the News seeking the phone number
of GUARD's founder and mountain biker Frank

Wolf (929-3408) have expressed dismay about
development proposals.

North Vancouver resident Peter Campbell called

them a travesty, adding if they go through they will
scar the mountains and diminish the public’ s enjoy-
ment of the area. « ”

Last week, district assistant manager of ‘plan-
ning Jim Masterton said “very hypothetical” fig-
ures in the Seymour official community plan call
for about 900 housing units in Cove Forest, which,

‘is in the Deep Cove area, and 1,300’ units in

Mountain Forest,which is in the Seymour area. |

CMHC, «hich owns land in Northlands and
Mountain Forest, wants to develop’ Mountain
Forest land suitable for development for residential
housing, said the corporation’s senior project man-
ager Tony Tse. He added that he woutd be happy to
meet with residents .concemed about. potential
development and said the issue will likely come up
in the future through! the planning process.

{

ing crunch

accident

“38. YEAR-OLD North
Vanooueee woman was killed
at, Saskatchewan Wheat Pool
on the North Vancouver water-
‘front early Friday morning in
an industrial accident involv-

“ing a ‘grain-cleaning machine.
By ian Noble
» News Reporter

4

Debbie Nicol, a, married
mother of two, was nearing y the
end of her shift between 5:30
am:-and 6° am. when the
industrial accident occurred,
said © general Superintendent
Dave Kushnier.

The.. grain elevator’ was

cclosed and employees went
home. after the accident, he
said. :

‘Kushnier, said the accident

will be investigated,

APPROXIMATELY $21 ‘6 million worth of capi-
tal projects. will remain unfunded in North
Vancouver District’ s 1995 capital budget.

DISTRICT COUNCIL
By Martin Millerchip

That was the news district taxpayers received at a
precedent-setting, up-close look at the municipality’s bud-
get process this week in the first of a series of public meet-
ings.

In a continuing attempt to make i its budget more under-
standable and accessible to the public, council chose this
year to move its budget debates out of the previous in-
camera format and into the public arena.

"Tuesday night saw the first:in a series of at least five
meetings that will determine what gels funded in the dis-
trict this year out of the global figures set in the Provi-
sional budget.

Staff presented a list of 32 recommended items that
together totalled $32,933,926. :

Municipal department heads then ‘hightighted their pri-

. orities from a capital wish-list that is'$21.6 milion under-

funded. i
The intent of the meeting was that alter listening fo
staff submissions and public input’ c “council would then

ANNES RRR

vote, item by item, on all of the expenditures on both the
“proposed” and “unfunded” fists.’

Items not receiving a majority vote would be dropped
and decisions would then be: made on which of the
remaining projects or purchases would have to be deleted,

deferred or modified to stay within the $32. 9-million cap-

ital budget.

Director of recreation Gary Young, faced with 42 items
totalling over $1.3 million on the “unfunded” list, pleaded
for the recreation commission’s “top-12 list of priorities.”

These included acoustic treatment of the Karen
Magnussen wave pool to reduce noise, new weight equip-
ment at William Griffin and replacement of computer ter-

minals and keyboards that are some five years past their "' §

predicted life span.

Director of financial services Michae) Hoskin told the
News that it was good for the public to see department
leaders define funding priorities and for the public to
judge how the district is living up to its mission statement
and business plan.

Big ticket iterns to be decided on from the recom-
mended capital budget include: _
$8 $3.6 million for the new RCMP building ($7.12 million
will be required in 1996); -

&2 $5.6 million for phase two of the Northlands golf
course:

§ $5.5 million for the re-alignment of the Low Level
Road {the district's share: is only $1.84. million, the

See Meetings page &

man
fights

return
to iran

A NORTH Vancouver man
who pleaded guilty to sex-
ually assaulting a 13-year-
old girl three months after
being denied refugee status
in: Canada was _— in
Vancouver provincial court
on Friday for sentencing.
By Anna Marie D'Angelo

‘News Reporter

Afshin Kamalvand, 27, was
charged with one, count of sex-
ually assaulting the girl at the
Tanoor restaurant, 1445
Lonsdale Ave., on Aug. 11,
1993. ;

. To press time on Friday, the
proceedings had not been com-

“pleted and the judge had not

made his decision.

Kamalvand currently has
“no stance” in Canada, accord-
ing to his lawyer Phil Rankin.

A clean-cut Kamalvand had
a Farsi interpreter by his side.
during court proceedings.

Rankin aske. * -dge Herbert -
Weitzel to give his client a con-
ditional discharge (which does
not carry a criminal record),

Rankin brought in
Amnesty International refugee
advocate Denise Beaupre to
speak as a character witness for
Kamalvand during the sentenc-
ing proceedings. ;

“If he (Kamalvand) gets a
criminal record, he will ‘be
deported to Iran,” said Beaupre, -
adding that the accused would
be tortured there. - :

“I don’t agree with their (the
refugee board’s) decision. I.
think they were wrong,” said
Beaupre.

Despite
Rankin’s lengthy comments to ||}
the contrary, Rankin stated. at. !
one point, “We are not here to;
try the refugee claim again.”

Rankin said Kamalvand left
Iran in January. 1991 and has /
lived .. mainly , in, North i
Vancouver. {|

The defence lawyer said his |
client was clinically depressed /
at the time of the sexual assaule. |

“I'd prefer. an absolute dis-
charge, but I think I’m pushing
my luck on a conditional dis-
charge,” said Rankin.

He said Kamalvand has
been living on welfare after he
lost his job and a work permit.
Rankin said that. the accused
has a new job at a North
Vancouver gas station. :

Rankin said he didn’t think
the “public knows what: the |
public interest is.”

He added “... we have xeno-
phobia rampant out there.”

He said sending Kamalvand “J
“packing. back to fran" would —

Beaupre’s

' See Victim page 8,

sand =f