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TERRACE, — Skeena MLA
and crown lands minister Dave

Parker is running again for the

Social Credit Party’s nomina-
tion for the Skeena riding,

" Speaking last week, Parker,

first elected in 1986; said he has
two projects he wants to finish
— development of. a: Kitimat
port and construction of a road
- into the. gold-rich - Askut- area
north of Stewart,

His first government position
after being elected --was

parliamentary se secietary to then-.
forests: minister ‘Jack “Kempf, |
assumption of that portfolio in-
1987 and becoming minister’ of..:'
state for..the~ northcoast
development ° ‘region ¢ in. 1987.

(that: job was ‘given to Terry
Huberts later: in 1988. ‘Parker-.
was moved. from ‘forests’. t

crown lands in- 1989 and ‘give

" responsibility . for. ‘northet

development.:” 5
“We need-some: diversifica-
tion in the ‘northwest,: It’s ‘a

of eisiploytivent,” said Parker of
“the Iskut read and Kitimat port’

“proposals. oe
< Although. Parker has been

‘criticized for past comments on .

forest issues and on AIDS, he
says: - things are “qui¢ter now

‘because he’s not being asked as . |
many questions. and 80, isn’ t

saying as much:
Skeena Social. Credit consti-

tuency - association - president

“John LeSage said a nominating

mecting.v will : nee held sometime

good opportunity for continuity om

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accor

tial, taxpayer revolt,

TERRACE Serious
budgeting and negotiating pro-
blems could occur if local
residents are asked to raise their
own taxes to cover increased
education costs, say school
board and teachers’ spokesmen.

In a worst case scenario,
school board chairman Edna
Cooper said the board might
end up having to tell voters to
approve a referendum that
would increase their taxes or
face a teachers’ strike.

“Tt will take a lot of public
relations to sell a referendum to
the taxpayers,’’ she said. “‘That
will be expensive and so would a
referendum.’

Education minister Tony
Brummet told trustees last wek
their budgets are out of control,
and a referendum system is
needed to limit residential tax
increases and ward off a poten:

—

The new system.
school: boards -disnits’. their
budget. increases 410. about: six
per cent this year: If a school
board wants to increase spen-

ding.by more than that, they -

must hold a referendum,

“This particular district has
the highest rate of residential
tax increases in the province
since restraint,’’ . Terrace
District Teachers Association
president Greig Houlden said.
“Yet the spending in the district
has risen one per cent below in-
flation over the same time
period,”

He. said the problem i is the
proportion of spending the pro-
vince . pays not district
overspending,

“It’s not runaway spending
at the local school board level

—

“Municipal tax:

rate increases

heavy industry and utilities. Tt vite

TERRACE -—~ Municipal
taxes will be going up an
average five per cent, says.
mayor Jack Talstra.-
_ He added the increase
could vary depending upon
residential, business or in-
dustrial. property classifica-
tions,

In 1989 light industry. face
ed the biggest hike ut 5.1 per
cent, business taxes went up..
4,13 per cent: and
homedwners had to fi ind. an’.

'irianting fe

_ extra 3 per cent. The rate for’

.  eonfirm’

remained. unchanged. .

Although - he - would | not
: this "year! 8
equivalent figures in ad-"]
vance of council ratification |.
Feb. 12, Talstra said the full:
provisions of ‘the budget |.
would be made public once -
that. had taken place, |.

Taxpayers won't know
what: their final bill will be
until the school district and:
other bodies’ set their spen:
ding levels.

pecs

Greig Houlden

“What he’s (education
minister Tony Brummet)
attempted to do here is
bit the local taxpayers
against the local school
boards and the local
teachers, ae

.— it’s-a lack of funding:at-the
provincial level,” Houlden said.
“And Braummet: knows that.
What he's attempted to do here
is pit the local taxpayers against
the local school boards and the

Jocal teachers, He's abdicating
any responsibility.”

Houlden said a referendum
will be much more difficult to

“sell to taxpayers in districts with

aging populations because
fewer of those taxpayers will
have school-age children and
they will be less willing to vote
themselves a school tax in-
crease,

“The demographics of local
districts are going to have a
great impact on the quality of
education if this system goes

First Nass Road

contract

TERRACE — The highways
ministry should spend approx-
imately 54.4 million over the
next several years improving the
Nass Valley. Road, says its
regional manager.

The estimate of $500,000 a
kilometre over the 88km to be
improved is an average figure

that takes into account sections .

Ski construction head arriving

TERRACE — A. manager to
oversee construction. of the
Shames Mountain ski area west
of the city arrives next week to
begin work,’ says the president

of the. Shames Mountain Ski.

Corporation." +.

‘Gerry Martin : ‘said - Mark:
Graboski, ‘an employes: ‘of the
ski consulting firm of Dan Mat-
thews and Associates, will stay
until the mountain's: scheduled
opening of this December:

At the same time, Martin said
the ‘corporation. !s waiting for
the arrival of a $502,000 federal
low. cost loan. -Promised 10 vit .

3: rear

“That morley amounts to‘one-
third. of the estimated - $1.5
million it will take to purchase .

and install equipment and do: >

other work leading to the Open-

The paperwork is pie tir

timetable and they're trying to ~

accommodate us as best as they |

can. The process is stow.’!
Martin added that the ap-—
plication had to be rewritten as
road construction costs -were -
once included. That changed °
‘last year when the province an-

nounced it: would pay-for the
$2.6 million construction: and .

improvement costs for a ‘road

leading from Hwyi6 ta the aki.

area. : .
The temialniter of the’ $i. 5
miilion will conie from a:ven-
ture capital corporation (a max-.
imum of $250,000 can be. raised)’
~Set_up to: help finance the pro-
"ject:and from ditect investment
in: the sid - corporation, sald
“Martin: ~ ;:
tq tink: thers s ‘are ios. of.
businesses who ©. will ‘banefit
directly (from the ski» area).:
There are. hotels, ‘reathurants,
Ee “aki equip-';

‘eeded to complete the corpora-
tion's financing reeds ance ‘the
venture capital corporation in-
-vestment and the federal loan
sare taken into account.
"Martin said ‘the’ corporation
wil secure a bank operating line

this year as it begins construc:
tion, -

The ski corporation does owe .

the regional district $300,000
from the purchase of the ski lift
on the now-closed Kitsumkalum
Mountain.

readied

which may need more .work
_than others, said Jon Buckle,

The first project, now in the
final design stage before it goes
to tender, is nearly 13km
leading from the Cedar River
Bridge.

“It’s a two-year project, star-
ting this year,’’ said Buckle,

Buckle added that a final
‘decision on whether the road
will be paved some day had not
been made although the stan-

’ dard to which it will be improy-

ed, with some extra work,
would be suitable for asphalt.
Other work planned this year
is raising the grade above flood
level in. sections between New
Aiyansh and Greenville,

ahead.” :

He said California tried the
referendum system of school
budget control, and abandoned
it because the quality of educa-
tion was declining.

Cooper said referendums are
expensive and could destroy any
long-term plans the board might
make. If the board wanted to
expand a school and pay for it
over five years, it would have to
hold a referendum for the tax
increase not just once, but every
year — with a high likelihood it
would eventually be defeated.

Houlden doubted the board
could use the referendum as a

-weapon against the teachers’
union during contract negotia-
tions.. .

“I don’t think the trustees

have a vested interest in putting

. the boots to teachers,”

‘He predicted the board will
want money for higher teacher
salaries, to atiract new teachers
to the district during. the present
nation-wide teacher, shortage.

School: board chairman Edna
Cooper said there is ‘no ques-
tion’’ that the board will opt for
the maximum six per cent
budget increase, it's just a mat-
ter of whether or not they need
to go over that amount and hold
areferendum. If held, a referen-
dum would be run in the first
week of April.

Brummet said more informa-
tion will be released in the com-
ing weeks, including the propor-
tion of the budget the province
will pay.

Provision is also expected to
adjust both the base amount of
money and the annual increase
for districts depending on
‘geographic and other factors.

The ministry has also promis-
éd exira money will be provided
to start the primary program of
the new Year 2000 system.

Northwest Roundup _