Shames ski debt resurfaces

TERRACE -— The Kitimat
Stikine Regional District could’

soon be back in the ski hill busi-

ness.
The provincial government has

shot down a. proposed debt-for- _.
shares swap between the regional —
district and Shames Mountain Ski

Corporation.

But Victoria indicated it might
approve such a swap if the
regional district received

preferred shares in Shames in-
stead of common sheres,

Shames failed to: pay the first
$35,000 interest payment due Jan.
1 on the $345,000 it owes the
regional district for the Kitsum-
kalum. ski equipment it bought in
1986.

Taking shares in ‘Shames and
erasing the debt is one of three
options now being considered by

Fireballer

_ WIND UPS. are winding down as the local minor baseball season fast comes to a close. It's
doubtless all too soon for enthusiastic. young players like Nick Kinney, above. He pitches for

- Don Hull and Soris in the Bambino division. You can catch his team in action this evening
when they take ‘on Wilkinson's at Elks Park, 6:15 p.m. They'll also be onthe diamond for the
final innings of the ‘93. campaign. That sign-off game, Friday, June 11, will find Overwaitea
batters trying to hammer one of Kinney’s speedy deliveries into the beyond. . .

regional district directors.
Other options are: ,

* Keep the slatus quo. The

~yegional district would continue

trying to collect payments from
Shames,: including the $35,000.
The company has indicated it
cannot make any payment at
present.

* Renegotiate the debt. Such a

' deal could mean anything from a

TERRACE -— Eurocan wants to
spend $12.5 million to rebuild the
closed Wedeene mill in Prince
Rupert.

By doing so, it hopes lo free up
wood from the coast, and use it at
Skeena Sawmills here. :

Eurocan bought | ihe Wedeene
mill : and: accompanying ‘forest
licence two years ago with: the:
understanding it’ would. open. the
mill by last fall... Woe Sats

Thal didn’! happen ‘and Buirocan
then asked forests minister Dan
Miller for permission ‘to’ truck the
wood from the ‘licence ‘to its
Skeena Sawmills plant here,

Eurocan said the amount of
wood it can cut has been reduced
since the Wedeene purchase and
that it could not run that mill and -

keep Skeena Sawmills running at

aa!

La“ an le RE Pg

its current level.

Miller tamed down the reiquest,
saying he expected Eurocan to .
first provide the same number of

v Jobs i in Prince Rupert that existed

when the Wedeene mill ran. a under
cits previous owners, te

- That then caused: Eurdcan to ex-:
-amine what it.could do with ‘the.

~ Wedeene mill.

"Tn general, we'r te looking at a
head rig. type. mill. to ‘produce a
value added end” ‘product for ex-

ce on

. port fo the’ Asian’ market,” com-

pany spokesman Bruce MacNicol

. said last week,

“This wouldn't be a dimension
type mill to produce lumber. for
the American domestic market.
We just couldn’t afford to do that
with the high quality of wood that

ill makes wood pitch

is available on the north coast and
suitable for the Asian market,””
' headded. oO

The estimated $12.5 million

‘ conversion expenditure «would

basically gut the- Wedeene mill of
its: ‘existing- equlpment: “and start

: ‘aver, MacNicol sald.’:

Conipany officials. are. present-

: ~ ing the plan to regional forest ser-

vice offictals this week.
‘MacNicol called: the plan a
good: way of matching the right

equipment with the right kind of
ete wood profile ‘to feed. this

(Wedcene) mill is narrow, We'll
be requesting to move logs ‘be-
tween all of our operations in the
northi,’’ he said,

“We need to make the best

Tetum we can. In general this (the

On your marks
SPORTS @ Cl

rescheduling of the payments to
give the company more time, fo
wiping out the debt altogether, as
requested by the company carlier
this year.
Regional

district board

chairman Ray Brady said the -

ministry of municipal affairs has
indicated the regional district
should gel a preferred position if
it negotiates a debt-for-shares
swap.

That’s because the regional dis-
(ricl surrendered first place in the
line of Shames creditors to the
provincial and federal govern-
ments in order for Shames lo get.
4 low-interest $502,000 federal-
provincial loan.

If the payment schedule is
Tedrawnt it will be the fifth time
the deal has been renegotiated.

In 1990, ihe regional district

cancelled nearly. $100, 000, in. AC:
cumulated interest,

The present arrangement calls
for interest payments each year
until 1996 when Shames’ is: sup-
posed to begin making payments
on the principal. Those payments
would last until the year 2005,

Shames has made payments on
its federal-provincial loan and its
Crown lands lease.

Back to school for.

TERRACE — Picket lines came
down and schools reopened agar
Monday following successful
mediation by Labour Relations
Board mediator Irene Houlden.

The deal hammered aut Sunday
afiernoon by school board nego
ators and teprésenutives of
CUPE local 2831 ig to be ratifiert
by both sides this week.

The agresment ending thr
week-long schools strike came a
the NDP government in Victoria
wes preparing to invoke back-to-

‘work Icgislation

Worker get pay hikes of 2.0
per cent effective July 1, 1992
and 0.5 per cent offectlve Jan. 1

1993. Starting eet 1, 1993 ana
continuing until the contract exe

Gov't approves spending
| for an emergency shelter >

TERRACE — A_ permanent
1 emergency hostel for the home-
less. .could.be, ineplace ‘before. the.

snow Files.

. More than $100,000 has been .

approved for the creation of a
hostel for men and women in Ter-
race, says social services ministry
area manager Bill Anderson.

He won't disclose the exact

budget for the proj ect because the

ministry is issuing a call for bids
this week.

The shelter would accom-

modate seven to 10 people, and

the project could also include
construction: of a building,
depending on whether the suc-
cessful bidder finds a suitable ex-
isling building.

“We clearly can’t go into an-.
other winter with nothing ‘in
place,’’ Anderson said. “‘There
will be something in place before
next winler.”’

The tragic death last winter of

Wedeene) mill will use the high
value log while the Terrace mill
will continue to use the middle of
the road to lower end log. It will
Temain as a mili for the North

American domestic market,’’

MacNicol continued.
Foresis minister Dan Miller,
during a recent visit to Terrace,

said he was happy with whet —

Evrocan officials had laid out and
was looking forward to mor
details.

. The key, he said, was to ensure
that ‘a wood licence on the north
coast produce jobs for people
living on the north coast.

Miller has already conceded
that there is an excess of milling
capacity in the north when com-
pared to the amount of wood

available.

pires in Jun, 1994, they also
recelve a series of across-the-
board pay Increases totalling 55
cents en hour.

The main goal of the union —~
which represents the schools’ sec-
retaries ~~ {9 to gain pay equity
with CUP local 2861, the union
tbat represoate the higher paid
school maintensnce workers.

“We've cut the difference baai-
cally In half with this agree-
mont," Anderson sald. ‘So it’s &
good step In the right direction,”

The agreement also ahortens ths
pay grid by one increment and
provides job description changes.

Anderson said blamed the sfub-
boroness of the board for driving
the valon to strike,

homeless woman Daisy Wesley
—and the community’s response

a fO>chete deatlhece. spurred, the 5
likely be around June 18; ne sald"

“government to aC, Anderson

sald.

Wesley, 52, died Nov. 28, 1992

beneath a tarp on a vacant lot she
and husband Alex called home, *
“When the whole issue arose in
December around Daisy Wes-
ley’s death, one of the things that

became véry clear for us was that .
there was a gap in the existing |

services for a married couple to

. stay together in this sort of situa-

tion,” Anderson said,

Daisy Wesley had stayed a
short time at the Ksan:House for
women, but left to rejoin Alex on
the streets.

Anderson said the requirements

_ for the hostel set out in the call

for proposals are not very
specific.
‘We want to see what kinds of

ideas organizations or individuals —

students, strikers

‘"We could have had this agree-
ment three months ago," she said.
“They made substantial move-
ment in the final hours of media-
tlon,”’ school district secretary-
treasurer = Barry = Pieradorff

tts

estimates the new two-year
contract will Increase achool dis-
Irict coam by $100,000, -

School District 88 saved an
estimated $330,000 over the
course of the one-week strike.

“If there Is 8 saving it-should

go right back in the classroom,
Dossibly in the form of computers
or other tecluology,”’ says school
board trustoo Wayne Braid.

in the community, might come up
with’?
sThe deadline: for responses:

That need seems to be. greatest,
he added, when a large number of
transients are in tne a often
during: ‘periods. seasonal
employment.

Anderson says the search for a.
suitable site For the hostel could
be tough because any’ building
that would be used must meet
stringent government regulations

_ for community care facilities. -.

He. said there could be addi-
tional capital money available.— .
over and above the budget for the
hostel’s operating costs — to
construct a building if the suc-
cessful proposal comes from a .
non-profit group.

The Daisy Wesley Housing
Committee, a group of local
volunteers who formed: after her
death, are submitting a proposal,

TERRACE — It'll be a
crowded field when elections
for the Kitselas band council
are held this Friday.
There are six people running
for the position of chief coun-
cillor, including current chicf
councillor Ralph Wright.
Among those opposing him
are former chief - councillor
Mel Bevan and Ron Nyce.
Nyce last year lead a protest
against the Kliselas band coun-
cil, saying it misspent $3 mil-
lion in federal housing grants
at the band’s new Gitaus sub-
division near the Kitselas Can-
yon.

‘Crowded Kitselas.
election on Friday

Protesters briefly occupied .

the band council’s offices on
Queensway.

They also organized a peti-
tion calling for the removal of
chief councillor Wright and
Brian Seymour, a councillor
and band managez.

Also running for chief coun-
cillor are Andrew Bevan, Deb-
bie Moore -and ‘Ray Seymour
Sr

There are 15 people running .
for the three council seats,

Current councillors Wilfred
Bennett, Ray Seymour Sr. and
Brian Seymour are running
agaln.

All four positions carry a two
year term,

Growing |

¢ More classrooms are

being built: at Centennial

Christian School. .
‘COMMUNITY > BA