. “BC. Parks. — we are com- mitted to quality, service and stewardship. ”’ — from a B.C, Parks handout : . - dated March 1, 1990. : British Columbia’s new Minister ‘of Parks, Ivan Mess- mer, visited Terrace March 6. Messmer, appointed minister in November 1989, advocated im- provements in.park facilities, in- creased park areas “within the province, corporate sponsorship of parks to reduce expenses to” the taxpayer, and a balance be- tween the environment and economic development. : Almost 50 Terrace area residents attended the informal informational meeting. The minister explained that he'd started. his provincial tour in northern B.C. because he is a farm. boy from northern Alber- ta, and he knows northerners ‘Stell it like it is’’. Messmer was accompanied by Stu Markides, Parks Branch District Manager from Smithers, and Steven Stackhouse from Victoria. The meeting opened with an overview of ‘‘Canada’s finest provincial park system’? — 385 parks and i23 ecological reserves, covering 5.5 million hectares; a record 20.5 million visitors in 1989 (213,000 of those B.C. parks’ visits were in this area.) B.C. Parks visitors con- tribute more than $400 million to the economy annually. Mess- mer concluded his presentation with, ‘‘All of this is run by 419 employees, 2,000 volunteers and 123 contractors.” The theme of B.C. Parks and of the nine informal meetings to be conducted throughout the province is ‘‘continuity, consul- tation, and community”’. Struan Robinson, Regional Director of Northern B.C. from Prince George, gave a history of B.C. Parks and some proposed plans for B.C. Parks, and narrated a B.C. Parks slide show. After the slide presentation, illustrating the natural beauty of our province and re-iterating the impact of the numbers, time was allotted for. statements, com- ments and questions from the audience. Speakers registered prior to the meeting and were each allot- ted a maximum of five minutes to make their presentations. Ad Terrace Review — Wednesday, March 14, 1990 arkS: minister There were presentations by "‘A Friend. of the Stikine’’ about signage and accessibility of the area: a concern for ‘the long-— term plans. of the upper Copper. River and the’ fact that logging ‘ will adversely affect the Class 1, fishery in that area; a question ’ about why the Kispiox Valley _ reserve wasn’t extended to Quin- agese River and Fred Wright Lake for grizzly viewing and. salmon spawning observation; comments by guide-outfitters on | the benefits of their- operations in the Provincial Parks and ‘‘catch and release’ policy for fishing; another guide-outfitter. suggesting that the Ministry use them as resources when search- ing for information about an area, its potential, hazards or wildlife. A question was raised about how the Goods and Services Tax would affect B.C. Parks visitor rates. The minister explained he ‘didn’t yet know what the effect would be,:- but he had assured private operators that if they are charged a tax on their visitor rates, B.C, Parks would do the same. He concurred that the GST will certainly be a burden upon small business, in the short term, at least. A question was raised about the status of Strathcona Park on northern Vancouver Island, The minister explained that although it has been declared a Class A park (Class A parks are now re- stricted from logging or mining), the area around the Westmin: Mine is still -classed a B park un-- til the mine has completed its term. The minister could not re- spond to individual inquiries about plans for B.C. Parks, but he assured the audience that he would review information from each of the meetings upon his ‘return to Victoria. And he reiterated that they would strive for a balance be- tween the environment and economic development. WHAT'S YOUR HURRY,B.C? ICBC and your local police remind you to watch your speed. YOUR LOCAL POLICE aM Net TE ae te ree em s abatd caer a eed th gree fhe Sa ae a bre ae a aren ed B.C. Minister of Parks Ivan Messmer, being interviewed here by Northern Native Broadcasting, drew a sizeable crowd to a combined presentation and public discussion dn Terrace last week on the future of B.C.’s park system. THANK-YOU to the following for donations: Alcan smelters & Chemicals. Lid. TERRACE cee Dist LO RSSOCIATION Alderman Mo Takhar Dr. L: Almas” Bert’s Delicatessen B.C. ‘Hydro . Canada Safeway Ltd. Cassle Hall Elementary - City of Terrace Co-op Shopping Centre Don Diego’s Restaurant Gill’s Convenient Store Golden Flame Restaurant J&F Distributors: -— Nikko's 2 for-1 Pizza Place _ Northern Native Broadcasting... ‘Overwaltea Fodds Panagopoulos 2 for 1 Pizza Place Pizza Hut oe ‘ Shan Yan Restaurant _ $lkh Association Skeena Cellulose Inc. -Skeena Mail Administration Office . Skeena Sawmills Skeena Valley Guru Nanak Brotherhood Terrace Pipes & Drums Terrace Travel Ltd. Terrace & District Credit Union Thornhill Elementary Totem Furniture & Appliances Dr. P. Van Herk - Woolworth’s Co. Ltd. - AND ENTERTAINERS: _ Copper Mountain Elementary - ‘Freeman, Vesta Douglas Gim’s Restaurant Dr. G. Hodge - Kermode Friendship Society .. Northern Drugs Ltd. shes sae Tim Horton’s Donuts Totem Press Terrace Ltd. Wilkinson Business Machines - Yip Chi Restaurant Jimmy Allen Melody Johnson with Kitsumkalum Band Dancers Gillian Campbell and Judy Chryster (Puppet Show) Larry Vu Vicki Parviainen and Dancers Romy and. Alexis Maikapar Kenna and Alanna Turcotte Merhzad Vahedi Filipino Association Stick Dancers Band “Fantastic” Our thanks also to all the enthusiastic volunteers Northwest Specialty Foods & Gifts Terrace Women’s Resource Centre Terrace & District Teacher’s Association who contributed time and energy. Sy (ams J ee er a ee David A. Warner and J ohn Bandstra are pleased to announce that as of March 1, 1990 “Murdoch R. Robertson "has joined them in the practice of law - as associate counseL we invite Doch's present and former cents to. drop in for a visit at ws . Warner Bandstra ae 200 - 4630 Lazelle Avenue, Terrace, BC. V8G 186 | (above Canada Manpower) | “telephone (604) 635-2622 or 638-8148 | | fax line (604) 635-4998 Athletics Assoc or Jockey (First three de Friendsh ‘a ‘aluebg k. Swim Club ‘adetse “Ladies of the Royal’ Canadian Paraplegic Associ i Nisga’a Tribal Council re ra RDAY: B.C. Paraplegic Foundation: light -— Terrace Peaks Gymnaatic ub ’c) Kinsmen Club . (Alte é Games pea ny er eee teh