Lots of juice Worth saving A mining company wants to build a 400km power line worth $100 milllon\NEWS A6 | And the winner is ... Job future GOVERNMENT WORKERS here face months of un-— certainly as they wonder just how secure their jobs are. Premier Glen Clark last week announced job cuts totall- ing 2,222 workers and managers, but has yet ta provide any delails on where the axe will fall. The forests and transportation and highways ministries appear to be two that’ll be hit the hardest. Two hundred and eighty-two jobs in the forests ministry are slated to go, while highways is to be pared down by 300 positions. Two hundred and seventeen of those will be the direct result of a major restructuring in that ministry. Bul those numbers do not reflect the actual number of people who will lose their jobs. Many of the positions are already vacant and have not been filled, some will be accounted for through early retirement, and others through attrition. And it’s still to unknown carly ta say how the cuts will manifest themselves in this area. “Tt could be two to three months before we have a plan,’” says Don Ramsey, Highways communication ‘man- ager in Victoria. ‘All options are on the lable, but we will not be touching any core services to do with safety." Clark’s press secretary, Trish Webb, says regional man- agers must now slart coming up with priority lists. She says highways minister Corky Evans will consult with local people and adjustments will be made on that basis. —_ ' Under the terms of the B.C. Government Employees’ Union contract, junior workers are the first to go, but cuts lo management have been announced as well. Cont'd Page A2 Two heritage consultants were in town last week evaluating a CN building\COMMUNITY B1 The judges have made their decision on the 1996 Coach of the Year\SPORTS BS 7 ~ STANDARD ' 93¢ PLUS 7¢ GST VOL. 8 NO. 48 Youth admits hoax A CALEDONIA high school student has admitied that he damaged his family’s car in What at first appeared to be an act of racist vandalism. Native student Zac Nyce made the admission after police investigated the Feb. 29 incident. The incident took on race-related overtones when the Nyce family found their car damaged and inked with racist slogans. The youth at- first suggested a group of Caledonia students who had been harassing him was responsible for the damage and vandalism, A slogan on the car - Whites Against Native Rights — was also found on a wall ina washroom at Caledonia. . ‘ But police now suspect the boy put the racist messages on the car to link the damage to the authors of racist graffitti at the high school and to Steer suspicion away from himself. Zav had taken the car without permission. “The slogans we believe are not genuine,” RCMP Stalf Sgt. John Veldman said. “As a parent, [’'m embarrassed and angry,” said Clarence Nyce, the boy’s father. “As a father J am very saddened by this discouraging act.” Veldman would not say whether charges will be laid. “We're still investigating the matter.” Nyce’ suid the episode has created a politically lense situation, “Tt makes it difficult for me." he said, “And it’s not a particularly. good time to be nibbing brown against white.” “Itis my-hope as a parent that this incident is viewed as it really is — which is that of an imma- ture and short-sighted act of foolishness,” Veldman said the episode highlights why such situitions should be handled cautiously, “T think.it's a-good lesson for the community that you don’t just jump to conclusions,” he said, a Seniors go surfing THATS ELLY Kardamylakis surfing the Internet during a demonstration at the Happy Gang Centre. She figures the Inter- net would be a good tool for getting in touch with other people, The scheol district set up six compulers in the centre for an afterncon as part of Education Week. School district technical with what they saw, co-ordinator Bob Mack says It's important the school district Stages community events like these so people can see first hand What their children and grandchildren are doing in school. About 15 seniors spent time on the Internet, and all were enthusiastic Private developer could pay New rink idea surfaces By JEFF NAGEL A NEW PROPOSAL for a second sheet of ice here could involve a private developer paying the shot. Second sheet proponents are now exploring a possibility thal would involve a’ private firm putting up all the moncy to build and operate the new facility. , The proposal has not yet come to council, but city recreation committee chairman David Hull said he thinks the idea is worth exploring. It would involve the city agreeing to buy a large block of ice time at a guaranteed price for a certain number of ycars from the operator. The cily might then sell the ice time back to users — at say half of whal it paid the devel- oper. ; “That the way cily continues lo follow its policy of ensuring affordable ice recreation, but sombody else pulls up the capilal and the great ghastly costs of building an arena,”’ Hull said. The second sheet could have built into it space for a restaurant, Hull added, “It could be the location for a new Burger King or new Keg and Cleaver or something,” Hull said. ; Hull said the idea is in the ‘‘very preliminary’’ stages, but said it might be an op- tion to satisfy local demand for more ice time. Last November’s referendum resulted in a 55 per cent vale — 2,050 to 1,614 — against the second sheet of ice as proposed, “There’s no doubt in anybody’s mind that we need another shect of ice,’ Hull said. ‘It’s just how we gel it, and quite apparently the taxpayer isn’t keen on the traditional tax, borrow, and spend method.’ Second sheet of ice organizer Brian Downie said it’s up to the city to think through the is- - sues and decide under what circumstances they might consider a private development. “We would like to see the city look at the op- ‘tion because it scems to be one that would allow us lo get a second sheet completed in the shortest time frame,’? Downie said, Some of the’ complications, he said, would: likely include what kinds of other- money- making ventures the city would permit within the building, Another issue woutd likely be privatization of the existing arena. A private firm would likely want to operate both sheets, Downie said the soclety has had expressions of interest since the referendum from at Icast four different developers — from as far as Ed- monton, Calgary and Vancouver — who want to explore the idea, In recent weeks, he said, they have had dis- cussions with one of those firms, “I's entirely up to council’s timeline,” Downie said of the possibility of organizing a meeting with prospective developers. ‘'They’ve got to make the invitation if they want someone lo Come up here.”? "Hull said if the city decided to go such a route, it would likely want to carry out a call for Proposals, so it would not be seen negotiating with or favouring just a single developer. _ Downie says the society hasn’t ruled out otber options for getting a second shee. A-second possibility is revamping the design and working through the cily towards another referendum. ‘And a third option, he said, would be to try to talse enough money to build it themselves. “The ice users are Boing to have to make some big decisions next year When they siart registering,”’ Downie added. ‘The problems.of limited ice time are just becoming more and more complex,”? | . Store name a mystery A LARGE COMMERCIAL development is being em- braced by city councillors — even though they don’t know what the store will be. Rumours swirled around town last week that the devel- opment could be anything from an Alberta-based Extra Foods grocery store to a Canadian Tire outlet. The property is on the south side of Keith Ave., behind Kermodci Trading, and is owned by Glen Saunders, Saunders won't say whal the store will be because he’s worried about jeopardizing the deal, which is dependent on the rezoning going through. His rezoning application outlines a 37,000 square foot building and up to 230 parking spaces. As of last week, city planner David Trawin was keeping a tight lid on whal the proposal actually is. Both he and economic development officer Ken Veld- man endorsed the application 10 rezone part of the fand from multifamily residential to commercial. “This is the type of thing over the last year we have challenged the private sector to do,’’ said city economic development officer Ken Veldman, ‘‘It’s what we want to further solidify us as a commercial centre.”? Councillor Ruth Hallock was concerned that traffic trying to get to the development would create bad tie-ups without immediate Hwy 16 improvements to add left turn lanes along Keith Ave. ‘7 would like to be fairly secure in our belief that it won'l create a stupendous amount of traffic congestion in what is already a congested area,” she said, Councillors said they’re as curious as everyone else to learn what the proposal is. But they agreed with Trawin that it’s not necessary to b- ow to make a decision about the rezoning, ‘*¥ou shouldn’t be rezoning it based on the business — you should be rezoning it for the use,’? Trawin said. Once it’s rezoned, any commercial use could come in, he noted, so it’s pointless to get hung up on the specific retailer who wants the property, Council introduced a bylaw to rezone the property Mon- day night. It will go to a public hearing —- probably at 7 p.m., Apr. 9 in counci] chambers. Water well bill hits $1.6 million THE PRICE of the city’s water well project has bal- looned to $1.6 million —- more than 30 per cent over budget. Council on Monday awarded the $656,386 contract for construction of the Frank St, pumphouse to Wayne Watson Construction Ltd.: That's about double what had been estimated for that portion of the work, and the city will have to draw $450,000 out of it’s water utility fund surplus to pay for it, The overall cost of the project - originally estimated at $1.2 million - is to be two-thirds subsidized by a federal- provincial infrastructure grant. © City director of engineering Stew Christensen said the extta costs stem from m number of reasons — among them a decision to incrense the size of the pump to penerate 3,500 - gallons per minute instead of 2,500, "Other items included higher than anticipated costs of obtaining land from CN Rail. ~ “The engineering firm that did the.estimate for us esti- mated too low,” Christensen added, He said the new wel! system should be on line by July. A new source has been needed since the Deep Creek reservoir dam failed a few years ago. - Since then the city has-pumped increasing amounts of water out of the Skeena = resulting in sédiment-laden water in Jocal taps in the summer as Deep Creek tails off.