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NEWS photo Paul McGrath

ALL-CANDIDATES meeting on Tuesday evening created some sparks over the issue of a projected

22 per cent tax hike.

City aldermen call for campaign fund disclosure

NORTH VANCOUVER City aldermen Rod Clark, Bill Bell and Barbara Sharp agree that a bylaw supporting the mandatory disclosure of election campaign funds is neces-

sary municipal legislation.

The three had supported a mo- tion calling for an_ election disclosure law for municipal can- didates in 1988, but it failed to win council backing at the time.

The disclosure issue surfaced again earlier this week, following an allegation made by Clark Monday night that Bell and Sharp are in conflict of interest over the issue of deprivatizing garbage disposal in the city.

Both Bell and Sharp, who were endorsed by CUPE (Canadian Union of Public Employees) dur- ing last year’s election, supported a Feb. 18 city vote to deprivatize municipal garbage collection and return the job to CUPE city employees.

But said Sharp following Mon- day’s conflict of interest allega- tion, “The motion we were deal- ing with at the time this accusa- tion came up was about an in- crease in funding for the purchase of garbage trucks because of the G

“The really absurd thing is that all politicians run on issues, and the fact that < am a business rep- resentative for a trade union lends itself to the correct conclusion that I am personally not in favor of privatizing just for the sake of privatization.”’

Said Bell, ‘Clark is a very poor loser, and he has used every possible means of revenge, in- cluding, in this case, slander against his opponents. I pity him,

By Michael Becker News Reporter

ALD. BARBARA SHARP... not in favor of privatization for privatization’s sake.

but I never thought he would be this reckless.”

Responded Clark Thursday, ““As far as I’m concerned, Mr. Bell is in grave conflict. When he sits on council and doesn’t recognize the fact himself, then I have to call that into question.’’

Derek Corrigan, the lawyer rep- resenting Bell and Sharp, hes stated in a letter to Clark that the comments made by Clark Monday night are defamatory.

He has demanded that Clark retract the statements at the next

city council meeting.

North Vancouver City municipal clerk Bruce Hawkshaw said, ‘‘Basically I can confirm that, from my understanding and from my conversation with the municipal solicitor, a campaign contribution is not considered a conflict of interest.’’

Meanwhile Bell and Sharp renewed the call for a disclosure law this week. And Clark agreed that ‘‘A disclosure bylaw is abso- Jutely necessary.”’

Bell said he received $2,000 from CUPE to help pay for his 1990 aldermanic campaign.

In a November News interview, held prior to the municipal elec- tions, Bell said that ‘“CUPE wants people in (council) who are not hardline on labor’’ and is ‘‘look- ing for people who are fair to city employees.””

While political party alliances remain in the background on a municipal level in all three North Shore municipalities, the truly in- dependent aldermanic candidate is a rare breed.

Bell argues that a disclosure bylaw would ‘strengthen the truly independent candidate.””

Bob Fearnley, a chemical pro-

cess technician, ran unsuccessfully -

independent in North

as a_ self-described aldermanic candidate Vancouver City last year.

Said Fearnley in a November interview, ‘‘Without a good in- come I couldn’t afford to cam- paign for office. It’s getting beyond the point where an average person can get into it and avoid the problem areas of influ- ence buying and party influence.”’

Automated trucks could have drawbacks

ty jobs will be added to handle the garbage collection. “It is necessary to take control

From page 4

city council meeting.

Though Mayor Jack Loucks said that Clark’s comments were out of place and inappropriate, he ruled that they were not offensive because. Clark had said he ‘‘con- sidered’’it conflict of interest.

Loucks said he believed Clark’s statement had been revised by the addition of the word ‘‘consider’’ during the discussions that followed his initial statement.

During debate on the garbage truck acquisition issue, both Bell and Loucks said that Clark's comments did not relate to the motion on the floor.

But Clark said that his disap- proval of the deprivatization pro- cess justified his opposition to the

truck acquisition bylaw.

Ald. Stella Jo Dean joined Clark in voting against the bylaw introduction, saying that she too still disapproved of the process used.

Because of the current reces- sion, bids from public tender may have come in lower than the costs estimated by city staff, she said.

Dean added that the purchase of conventional garbage trucks is “*short-sighted.’’

Although fully automated trucks would be more expensive, she said the conventional trucks to be purchased require workers to manually load the garbage.

Dean later pointed out that six unionized Laidlaw Waste Management Systems Ltd. jobs will be lost, while six unionized ci-

of our garbage management system,’’ said Ald. Barbara Per- rault, adding that although using automated trucks is cleaner and more esthetically pleasing, their cost is not their only drawback.

The need for large garbage cans would harm the move toward recycling because ‘‘people want ta fill up’’ the larger containers, she said.

The bylaw to allow acquisition of the three garbage trucks at a cost of $410,000 was introduced Monday and given first, second and third reading.

Council is expected to adopt the bylaw on March If.

Friday, March 8, 1991 - North Shore News — 3

Political mud slung at all-candidates meeting

Gadsby and Jones tangle over CUPE endorsement

POLITICAL mud

was slung during an_ all-candidates

meeting Tuesday night when the campaign manager of Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE)-backed Tim Jones claimed that former district alderman Joan Gadsby had gone to CUPE for endorsement.

While Ian Dailly, Jones’ cam- paign manager and former CUPE member, spoke from the back of a 40-member audience and accus- ed Gadsby of going to the civic employees’ union for support, the former alderman quickly went to the microphone and cut him off in mid-sentence.

“There was no question of en- dorsement. | met with CUPE to open the lines of communica- tion,” said Gadsby during the meeting held in a_ convention

44 From the other three candidates I hear freeze the taxes’. This rhetoric I term anything to get a vote syndrome’. 99

— NV District alderman candidate Tim Jones

room at the Coach House Inn. ‘I am a business woman, and as such, I know I couldn’t get their endorsement... Besides Tim Jones was already in their (CUPE’s) pocket.’’

Jones promptly denied that he was in the union’s pocket, but said he was proud to be backed by CUPE because their membership contributes to the community.

Jones was the only candidate running in tomorrow’s North Vancouver District aldermanic byelection who didn’t take issue with a projected 22 per cent municipal tax hike.

“There is no fat in district hall," Jones said. ‘‘They do an excellent job....1 can’t support service cuts anywhere, although I don’t like to see taxes go up.”’

The proposed tax increase in the district’s provisional budget breaks down to 18 per cent for ex- isting municipal services and four per cent for new services.

Jones said after the meeting that, ‘I’m not in favor of raising taxes, but I’m only confirming that this increase will happen. From the other three candidates I hear ‘freeze the taxes.’ This thetoric I term ‘anything to get a vote’ syndrome.”’

He added that the forecasted tax increase is needed just to maintain existing municipal ser- vices.

By Anna Marie D'Angelo Contributing Writer

“Where are we going to cut programs? We cannot let these vital services be cut. I don’t like it (tax increase), but it’s going to happen,”’ said Jones.

Gadsby, who lost in her run for district mayor last November, said staffing could be cut back in some areas. She said the maximum tax increase should not be higher than the inflation rate.

‘‘Our residents simply can’t af- ford a 22 per cent tax increase,” said Gadsby.

Candidate Bruce Edwards said the district could save money by “trimming fat’? like cancelling a $12,000 children’s park at Mos- quito Creek.

He also questioned the need for a new $10-million district hall.

Candidate Anthony Jasich noted that some district council members had been flippant when they said the proposed tax in- crease would lose votes. Jasich said he would try to freeze ser- vices to keep taxes down.

“‘We are in recessionary times.

JOAN GADSBY... residents simply can't afford a 22 per cent tax increase.

Now is not the time for tax in- creases,”’ said Jasich.

Besides electing one alderman, North Vancouver District voters will be asked if they are in favor of dedicating all the land within the 617-acre Lynn Canyon Park area as permanent parkland.

Saturday’s aldermanic byelec- tion was called to replace former district alderman Bill Rodgers, who resigned the position late last year after accepting an appoint- ment as a provincial court judge.

Profiles of the four district aldermanic candidates were published in the Wednesday, March 6 issue of the News, along with the various polling staticn locations in the district.

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