NVC decision
deferred after

public hearing
CAPILANO MALL mer-
chants received yet another
assurance from North
Vancouver City Council, on
Monday night that. they won’t
be left holding the bag in their
dispute with mall manage-
ment over extended mall busi-
ness hours.

‘EOL ATE CR A

NORTH VANCOUVER -
' CITY COUNCIL —
By Robert Galster

Counci] deferred making a
‘decision on the shops closure
hours-bylaw pending review. of a
letter Capilano Mall's genera}
manager Richard Wood — has
promised to deliver to the mall's
merchants. ;

The letier.is to outline Wood's
intention to allow merchants .to
‘decide for themselves’ whether
’ they. want to participate in extend-
ed Monday and Tuesday hours.

Council exacted the written
guarantee of the mal}'s. intentions
after hearing stories from mail
merchants of, personal suffering
and mistrust related during Monday's public
meeting on the new bylaw.

“Both my: parents are looking very tired
‘these days, naturally after putting in 70 hours a
week each,” said 12-year-old Mikail Fancy,
whose father Shiraz runs Marvelous Muffins.
“We have always gone to. the movies on
Triesday together, until recently.”

Council originally moved to re-regulate.

-store hours in the city after hearing a delegation
“~of..Capilano. Mall merchants. last December
_cémplain about the unprofitability and personal
hardships associated with the extended hours.
. Since then the mall has withdrawn its insistence

that all the’ stores stay open and has outlined the

During Monday. night’s public meeting, .°
Wood reminded council! that individual mer-/

chants already have a choice.

a | hope you (council) give consideration to
maintaining the status quo and allow the mer-
chants of North Vancouver to set their: own
operating hours,” said Wood.

But when Coun. Darrell Mussatto asked him
to clarify his position on allowing present mer-

chants to renew their leases under the same con- .
ditions, Wood would only say that “market con-.":

ditions wil] dictate that at that time.”

Silver Dise’s Gordon Everinghum told coun-

cil that Wood and his staff tend to be elusive
and that a farther guarantee is needed to set the
merchants’ minds at ease.

NEWS photo Paul McGrath

GORDON EVERINGHAM of Silver Disc makes a point in favor of legislation controlling store closing
times. Nearly 100 concerned merchants attended North Vancouver City Council hall to express their
opiiion during a public meeting concerning the shops closure bylaw currently under consideration.

‘merc hants’ sight to choose), because we do not
want.to be in a breach of the lease, we are told
the opposite.” said Everingham.

Coun. John Braithwaite said he wants to get
a legal opinion of any letter council receives.

“[ want'to get some sort of assurance ..
whether what they're going to be doing can
stand up and be enforceable,” said Braithwaite.

But Coun. Stella Jo Dean, a staunch support-
er of the status quo. urged her fellow council-
Jors to rescind the first two readings of the
shops closure bylaw and change nothing.

“Are we going to have ... a club over not
only Capilano Mall but also over the rest of the
City of North Vancouver?” she asked. “I don’t
think it’s just. | don’t think it’s fair. 1 don’t even

“move in a letter to its: merchants and city coun-

cet,

‘66 it was the
instructor. That's
“what they -
claimed. 99

-_BilrBel’s ear received

“$3,400 damage during
one new driver’ 's session.

rivil

From page.

perienced drivers make the area unsafe.
Coun. Bill Bell, who also lives in the area frequent-

ed by driving schools, agreed.

On Tuesday morning at 7 a.m., Bell saw a new dri-

- ver attempting to parallel park in front of his home — a

sight that makes Bell’s heart skip a beat.
A driver previously damaged his car to the tune of

. $3,400.

“It was the instructor. That’s what they claimed," he
said. However, the instructor did not speak English well
so there may have been a communication problem, Bell
said.

ft_seems the schools are. from outside the North

" Shore and not licensed in North Vancouver, which com-

pounds Stotts’ displeasure.
Motor Vehicle Branch driving services acting man-
ager Chuck Laidlaw said he's heard similar traffic com-

. plaints for about the last two years, He understands the
» reasons for the complaints, but there is not much he can
{

do about the problem.
He said he asked schools not to use the 300 block of

. East 8th. Not all schools complied with the request.

The area, which is within a 10-block radius of-the
licence branch at 125 East 13th St., will naturally get a
lot of driving school traffic because that is the area tests
take place, he said.

Instructing in that arca is legal, Laidlaw said, but itis
not legal to show the student the road test route.

“When anyone calls for confirmation (of the
Li)
Gs

think it’s business-like.”

But Eddie Tang, owner of the New Drivers Driving;

School, said defining the exact exam route is difficult.

He said his East Vancouver-based business teaches.

complain wherever students are taught, he said, but no
place exists where students can learn off the road.

He said he wants to know where he can take his stu-
dents and at what time. “We'd like to find a solution
too,” he added.

Laidlaw said the problem of more driving schools
using local roads began with the closure of the Bumaby
Motor Vehicle Branch office in 1991.

He hopes some of the pressure on the North :

Vancouver office may be alleviated with the opening of
a new office in Burnaby this summer.

Laidlaw said new drivers may prefer taking tests in
North Vancouver because the area is not as busy as those
surrounding other Lower Mainland motor vehicle
branches. ;

North Vancouver City administrator Francis
Caouette said the city investigated a complaint of heavy
school traffic two years ago and tried to get schools
using North Shore streets to buy municipal licences.

Some did get them, but judging by the number: of

schools reported by Stotts and Laidlaw, many remain
unlicensed in North Vancouver.

Support to tackle the problem comes fram the top. “I
certainly think we should take action to discourage it”
said Mayor Jack Loucks. ;

. its North Shore customers on the North Shore. People’

Police
seeking
helo in

Ki

solving
mystery

From page 9

Wennberg, a bush pilot, was
found at 2:30 a.m, lying on his
back on a gravel shoulder.in the
2400-block of Nelson Avenue in
West Vancouver.

He was found by one of his
roommate's friends. ,

“He could have been lying
there all night. | don't know how
someone could have a con-
science and do that." said
Goepel.

Goepel, Trina duPlessis and
about 18 of Wennberg’s friends
have distributed flyers through-
out the area hoping to shed some
light on what happened.

Wennberg was taken to
Lions Gate Hospital and then
transferred to St. Paul's Hospital
where he has undergone two
brain surgeries, according to
duPlessis,

Wennberg, a former Hillside
secondary student, had been at
Gas Town’s Town Pump before
coming home that night.

Wennberg, some friends and
a host’ of fellow West
Vancouverites were at the
cabaret to see a show by the
popular West Vancouver band,
She Stole My Beer.

Wennberg left the Town
Pump by himself at about 1:30
a.m.

His friends believe he likely
took a cab home. as he was
known to do after drinking.

West Vancouver Police Det.
Tim Pollitt said Wennberg had
bruised shins that appear to have
resulted from a car's bumper hit-
ting him.

Pollitt said a full-sized car
that was going the speed limit:
likely struck Wennberg, who
suffered a “non-depressed skull
fracture” from hitting the car
with his head. *

The car’s skid marks indicate
it was heading east.

Said Pollitt, “I think it’s
important to say that we do feel °
it is an accident.”

The police believe Wennberg

‘was carrying his jacket just’

before he was hit by the car. °
“It appears that someone got

“out of the vehicle and walked

back, had a look and placed the |
jacket over his face,” said Pollitt. -

The police say the tire noise
at the time of the incident would
have been a grinding and scrap-
ing sound rather than a _ squeal-
ing noise.

Wennberg’s parents have
come from their’ home in
Sweden to be with their son.

His friends would like any-
one. who saw Wennberg leave
the Town Pump to. call the
police.

Anyone with information i is
requested to call Crime Stoppers
at 669-8477 ‘or. the West
Vancouver Police at 922- 4141