14 ~— Friday, June 27, 1997 — North Shore News

First baby, first ticket

North Vancouver City finds heart to forgive a fine

By Deana Lancaster

News Reporter deana@nsnews.com

ANDREW Lucinski went to North Vancouver City Hall not only to pay the $15 parking ticket he’d been dinged with, but also to ask if he could keep it .. for framing.

He explained himself to the clerk in- the Parking Enforcement Department.

The ticket was issued on the morning of Wednesday, June 11, because Lucinski’s van had been parked on 13th Street near the emergency entrance of Lions Gate Hospital for more than one hour. Actually, it had been there all night.

He'd spent it in the delivery ' room with his wife, Teresa, while she gave birth to their first-born,

Matthew Adam Lucinski.

“We were at home on Tuesday, we were going to go shopping for some things for the baby, and then Teresa started having contractions, secon they were four or five min- utes apart,” said Lucinski.

They decided to head to the hospital, where they discovered the van was too high to fit in the hos- pital’s covered parking. Lucinski parked at a meter until the 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. regulations cased on the street. Then he moved it to the 13th street location.

After that, the Lucinskis had other things to think about.

Weighing in at 7 Ibs., 4 oz. (3.3 kg) and measuring 51 cm. in length, Matthew met the world at 9:28 a.m.

An hour or so later, Lucinski remembered the van — it was over its hour limit. He left the hospital to move it.

“I saw the ticket from far, far away. It was sticking out from under the windshield.”

Lucinski laughed to himself and decided right away that he’d like to have it as a souvenir ... his first parking ticket on the North Shore written the same morning

his son was born.

No can do, said the clerk in the

Parking Enforcement Department. She old him the original was needed for the City’s records; however, he could have a copy. Then she congratulated him on the birth of his child, and, in view of the extenuating circumstances she cancelled the ticket.

The News was stymied when it attempted to find our the identity of the compassionate clerk.

“We don’t cancel them for many reasons,” said an official at city hall, who didn’t wish to be named. “But it is our policy that they may be cancelled in the event of a medical emergency.”

Staff are concerned that if word leaks out of the policy. there will be a sudden flood of “medical emergencies” to contend with in the Parking Enforcement Department.

“But a first-born son,” said the official, “that’s certainly a reason we might cancel one.”

And Lucinski appreciates it:

“You hear so much bad news all the time, this was really nice,” he said.

Before Judge Jerry

Paradis in North Vancouver

provincial court on May 7:. Paul Alexander Smith, 19,

‘of North Vancouver, was

THE following people appeared in North and - West:Vancouver courts recently to face various charges:

fined $200 after he pleaded guilty to breaching probation on Dec..17, 1996 by being found outside his residence between 11:30 p.m. and 6 a.m.

The probation order was related to a Young Offenders Act sentence. —

Before Judge Jan Walker in North Vancouver provin- cial court on April 4:

William Garry Prince, 20, of North Vancouver, received

Ae WATCH FOR IT JUNE 29th!

Celebrate canada Day!

This Sunday check the North Shore News for exciting activities for you

and your famil Canada Day.

ly on

18 months’ probation after he was found guilty of assault with a weapon and assault causing bodily harm of a man on Sept. 17, 1995 in North Vancouver City.

Prince was required to per- form 100 hours of communi- ty work service during his probation.

Park Royal mall recently.

Music makes money

PIANISTS Wayne Weng (left and Kamyar Razavi

NEWS photo Mike

performed at the j@ members of the Donna Fishwick

Piano Ensemble were fundraising for a tour of Eurape in 1998.

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