24 Terrace Review — Wednesday, June8, 1988

Northwest -

sees self
on video |

TERRACE — About 50 local
people showed up last Wednes-
day for the premier showing of a
new promotional tool for the
Northwest — an 18-minute
video that makes the region look
like Shangri-La with Kermode
bears.

The video project was a joint
venture of Pacific Northern
Gas, B.C. Tel, the B.C, Ministry
of Economic Development, the
Regional District of Kitimat-
Stikine, and the various munici-
palities in the region. It consists
of a core presentation and pitch
for the Northwest, with a brief
profile of the individual com-
munity using it.

The show was produced by
the Pentact Group Lid. of Van-

_couver over a petiod of nine
months at a cost of $370,000.
The regional district’s share of
the cost was $5,000 and.the City
of Terrace contributed about
$10,000.

Suggested uses for the piece
all revolve around attracting
people and business to the area.
Pentact advises Northwest com-
munities and business people
that the most effective approach
is through persona! contact, and
the video when used properly
can persuade organizers of con-
ventions, trade and travel
shows, sports and recreation
teams-and other types of gather-
ings to use the Northwest as a
venue for their activities. Thé
video can also be a valuable
argument for convincing devel-
opers, businesses and investors
to locate here.

One major problem in the
Northwest that the video could
be brought to bear upon is the
chronic shortage of certain types
of professional people, particu-
larly medical and health special-
ists. In portraying Terrace and
other communities in the region
as modern, progressive places
with an abundance of recrea-
tional opportunities, well-
developed social and cultural:

amenities, strong educational
systems, reliable and frequent
transportation to the urban B.C.
centers and solid municipal in-
frastructure, the video makes
the Northwest seem like an at-
tractive area in which to settle
down.

The Pentact Group has pre-
vious experience in this sort of
~- production, having done a simi-
lar piece called Venture Inland
for communties in the central in-
terior of B.C. Pentact repre-
~~ sentative Ken Grant, when asked
~- about the success of Venture In-
land, said the level of satisfac-
‘tion in the communities for
which it was produced depended
. largely on what use they made of
it.

‘‘The ones who left the video
sitting around in boxes were ob-
_ viously not impressed with what

they got for their money,”? he
said. ‘In order to make it work,
you have to use it.”

Further information on
‘availability of the video is
~ available from the City of Ter-
race and the Regional District of
Kitimat-Stikine.

. Incoming Rotary Club executive listened intently as their various duties were prociaimed to them last Saturday.

From left to right are: Gerry Martin, President; Orest Chaluplak, Director; Bob Park, Serg

Vice President; Bill Edmonds, Treasurer, Mark Twyford, Past President; Wayne Epp,

_Director; Brooke Hodson, Director; missing from photo is Director Frank Harnilton. Ro
guests enjoyed a superb meal prepared by Inn of the West staff. A highlight of the evening was the presentation

of a Paul Harris Fellow award to Wayne Brald and Joe Whitney for their outstanding service to Rotary ideals over

the years.

eant-at-ime Phil Hartl,
tarians, their ladies and

ecretary; Joe Whitney, _

“'.€. Club Pholo -

~ Public informati
on free trade, privatization

TERRACE — Union members
were busy delivering packets of
information door-to-door last
week as a prelude to a public in-
formation meeting scheduled for
7:30 p.m., June 21, at the Ter-
race Hotel.

by Tod Strachan

Paul Johnston, business
manager for the Northwest
District Council of Carpenters
and Joiners, said that the
primary topics of discussion at
the meeting are going to be the
effect of free. trade and

privatization on working people. .

The information package was
meant to provide background
information on these.and other
topics.

He said that everybody should
understand how free trade and
privatization may affect
everything from health care
right through to jobs. ‘What
we're trying to do is raise the
issue in the public eye,” explains
Johnston, “because free trade
for example, is going to be
devastating to this country and
devastating to social programs
in this country.”’

Johnson said that the Cana-—

dian film industry was a good
example of what this type of

. policy can do and how American

pressure on the Canadian

Forest policy — continu

there was no response and the
meeting was cancelled.

“The way the system is set up,
it really reflects the value of the
stand, the size of the timber and
its condition,’ says Parker.
However, he added that he isn’t
yet certain of the ‘sensitivity’
of the system to the market —
and this is one of the ‘‘bugs’” his
staff is working on.

The present system is geared
to Stats Canada figures, and
Parker says, “On a down-swing
in the market it would take too
long for it (the system) to reflect
where the market has moved
to,’” says Parker. ‘So my staff

government can make it happen.
He described the government’s
actions as ‘a direct attack on
our ability to develop a Cana-
dian film industry because of
American pressure”’. |

And he said that anyone who
reads the fine:print in the free
trade deal will probably con-
clude that the ‘problem is a
serious issue. ““We're opening
up the doors in terms of our
energy supply, in terms of our
water and in terms of our in-
dustry, to a flood from across
the border.”

On the privatization issue,
Johnston argues there is little or
no support for things like the
privatization of highways
maintenance in the Northwest.
“What we're talking about,” he
says, “is the loss of jobs, the
lowering of living standards of
people because there will be in
fact decreases in wages, we're
talking about people losing cer-
tain aspects of their health and
welfare plans — it’s going to be
devastating on many in-
dividuals.’’

Johnston says other issues
that need to be addressed in-

Canada’s transport and telecom--

munications systems repair the
economy or destroy it? And, is
our health care system taking the
same route as the Americans,
where hospitalization can. cost
the patient hundreds of dollars
every day?

Scheduled speakers at the

clude the Canadian postal ser- 9) weg

vice, with their move towards -

Superboxes and corner ‘store
outlets that are operated as a
sideline. Will the deregulation of

ed from page 23

have been directed to address

that issue, among others, and

that’s being done. ;
‘*T think there has to be a sen-

sitivity co-efficient that kind. of

kicks in and indicates the rate of

decline, or how it's accelerating,

so there’s a little bit of a forecast
in that short term basis.

“The alternative is that we
just step in and determine what
the changes will be — and we
always have that option. So if
things start to crash around our
ears we can fix that in a hurry —
we always have that discre-
tionary power.”

But: Mor

tative, |

on meeting —

‘Ryan of the

Saturday. is the official opening of the 1988 tourist season’

_ there for tourists — ‘it’s got a lot. to offer-local residents as
"éwell, For information on how to spend a day in the local aréa,
/or.plan a four-week holiday across Canada or.to the Stat
: contact the Infocentre: “‘We've got a lot: to offer,’’ she says.” -
A A visit to the center can’ also help you be-a better host. By .
- knowing. what there is to see and.do, and where to-go to find
it, every resident in the area can be a knowledgeable represen-

"'The'Howdoyoudo Day ribbon cutting ceremony will take -
- place ‘at 10 a.m., and related activities, will continue until'6

p.m. In atieridarice will be: City Freeman Vesta Douglas, ».
- represeritatives of city council,-Infocentre staff, Miss Terrace
- 1987-and some of the 1988 Miss Terrace cotitendérs, =...
~~ Refreshments will be served and carnations will be given to
-'the firet 50 women to. visit. the center’ For more information, ”:
- call the Howdoyoudoit Hotline at 635-2063 — but to.learn ”
how to be a better host, drop in on Saturday and sée what In-_
“focentré and their staff have to offer:

meeting include. Ken Georgetti,.
president of the B.C. Federation
of Labor, Mayor Ray Brady of
Kitimat, Dan Miller, NDP MLA

for Prince Rupert, a-provincial -

representative of the machinists
union, and (tentatively) Don
Gitksan
Wet’suwet’an Tribal Council.

_ Tourism is getting. to be a very big industry and if the : a
locals are more aware of it they can be great hosts,” says

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