Ferry info faulted From pagel - the summer of 2000. Wednesday’s report was followed by the en masse resignations of both BC Ferries’ and CFI’s boards of directors. For West Vancouver resident and former chairman of the CFI board Jack Munro the res- ignation marks a sudden change of heart from statements he made as recently as last Friday. “It’s (his future with CFI) up to the minis- ter,” said Munro, who just two weeks cartier was honored in Otrawa where the former provincial labour leader was appointed to the Order of Canada. “I sce no reason for him to fire me and I’m not quitting ....” All that changed on Wednesday with the release of Gordon’s financial audit. ‘Robert Galster and Katherine Hamer robert@nsnews.com PLANS te construct a high-rise mau- 6 soleum near Capilano College may soon go up in smoke if North Vancouver District councillors have their way. Seasons Memorial Park, Inc. — a develop- ment project of North Vancouverite Alvin Mitchell — was initially approved by North s Vancouver District council two years ago. At the time, the mausoleum was billed as the largest of its kind in North America, with a Rerospective nine storeys and room for 30,000 aults, The company conccived the building as a sort f luxury tower for the dead, and planned to ded- cate each floor of the building ro different ethnic proups. Generous amounts of marble and stained lass were intended to surround residents and vis- ‘ors alike in luxury. The project first ran into difficulty when its Marimary financial backer, Eron Mortgage orporation, went into receivership. The land’s current zoning is for “parks, recre- ion, and open spaces,” a designation which also lows for cemeteries and mausoleums. “With respect to the fast ferry program, the Board of BC Ferries was provided with poor and, at times, inaccurate information which misled them,” Gordon stated in a summary of his report. “Despite continued efforts to obtain more comprehensive information trom senior management, the boards did not suc- ceed in having available to them the quality of information necessary to oversee a construc: tion project of this size. “In late 1998, when the boards became aware of the possibility of significant cost over- runs, the documents reviewed do not indicate that they informed the minister responsible tor BC Ferries of their concerns.” Nevertheless, then-minister responsible tor BC Ferries Dan Miller was dumped from the portfolio and replaced by Wilson. rth Van mausol posal remains Receiver submits a new building permit; investors seek solution But councillors, cager to see more student housing on the site, voted last week to give first reading to a bylaw that rezones the land for sin- gle-family housing. After the initial building permit for the mau- soleum was rescinded, a second was submitted to council by Seasons Memorial Park receiver Campbell, Saunders Inc., and approved for con- sideration in January of this year. The application process for the permit has since been put on hold for a 90-day period. “My duty is to maximize the valuc of this pro- ject,” said David Gray, of Campbell, Saunders Inc. He added the best way to do that is to remove the uncertainty surrounding the propos- al. Gray said that even if the district cooperates he would not be interested in building a mausoleum on the site. “Basically 1 would have to go out and find $1 million,” he said. : Gray has the backing of the 52 people who NEWS photo Terry Peters. THE first fast ferry sits in drydock mcorad at the foot of St. Georges Avenue in North Vancouver. An independent financial audit released last Wednesday shows the cost of the controversial vessel will climb to $117 million, up from an initiaily projected $70 million. NEWS photo Terry Peters PICTURED in happier days, Jack Munro displays the medal he received after being appointed to the Order of Canada. invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in the project via Eron and are now urging the district to reissue a permit. In total, ust under $8 million was raised. Letters from project investors have started to reach district council. They vary in tone from pleading to angry. Peter Kwok is a member of a committee of investors lobbying the district to reissue a build- ing permit for the site. “The thing is that these 52 people have been screwed by Eron and are now being screwed by the district,” said Kwok. Kwok said the land would be worth three to five times more if the district would re-issue the building permit and abandon its plan to re-zone the land to a single-family classification. “The sheer density ... with a mausoleum you could pack a lot more bodies in them,” said Kwok. “It’s a gross way of putting it but basical- ly the density would be higher.” Bur even with the building permit in place, the value of the land would be significantly lower than the $8 million invested. District councillors currently have no plan to reopen the discussion into the land’s proposed rezoning before the original 90-day hold on the site’s building permit application is up in early May. NORTH Shore shipbuila- ing pioneer Arthur McLaren died last week. Allied founder McLaren dies Robert Galster News Reporter robert@usnews.com NORTH Shore ship- building pioneer Arthur McLaren died last week at the age of 79. Owner of the — Allied Shipyard on North Vancouver's Harbour Road, Mei.aren got his start in the industry as the assistant manager of the West Coast Shipbuilders vard in False Creek. Fifty-five Liberty Ships were produced by the yard dur- ing the Second World War. In 1948, McLaren founded Alfied Builders and began pro- ducing personally designed small tugs and barges. In 1967, he moved the shipyard to its present North Vancouver loca- tion, where it was eventually renamed Allied Shipbuilders “He (Arthur) was ina sense retired for the last nine vears but that didn’t stop him trom being interested in things,” said his son Malcolm McLaren. “He hasn't been active for some years, he's been interested though.” That interest stems from a lifetime of fascination with ship design and building. Born in Montrose, Scotland, on Sept. 2, 1919, MeLaren came to Canada eight years later. Soon after that a package arrived addressed to Arthur, It was mailed by a family friend trom Scotland who heard the young boy exclains he wanted to build ships when he grew up. The packages contained the bound volumes of Transactions of the Tustitution of Naval Arclatects, which “tended to be descriptive rather than technical, so I could understand the text,” recalled Arthur in his memuirs several dozen years later. After he grad- uated from UBC in 1941 with a degree in mechanical engi- neering, his life-long passion became augmented by protes- sional training. “He (Arthur) also designed what he built,” said Malcelm. “He wasn’t just a builder.” Arthur is survived by his wite of 55 years, Dorothy; sons James, Douglas and Malcolm; five grandchildren and one great-grandchild, A memorial service and reception will be held at the West Vancouver United Church, corner of 21st Street and Esquimalt Avenue, on Saturday, Feb, 27, at 1 p.m. In liew of ‘flowers, send donations to the Lions Gate Hospital Foundation.