TERRACE — Alcan officials
deny. the Kemano Completion
Project is in trouble even though
they are sceking a special deal
from. Victoria to ‘‘tevitalize the
economics” of the project.

Company vice-president Bill
Rich called a news conference
Friday to announce thet Alcan
‘wilt participate fully in the B.C.
Utilities Commission review of
the dillion-dollar. hydroelectric
project.

“Clearly the commission could
do only an incomplete job
without us,” Rich said.

But Rich went on to reveal the
company faces serious economic

problems because of the two-year
delay in construction at Kemano
following:2 lower court ruling or-
dering a federal environmental
review. .

“Alcan had no choice," Rich —

said of the shutdown. :'‘We were
forced into our current difficult
situation. ”

Although the ruling was . over-
turned, the: company says it will
not resume. construction until the
provincial review and any further
challenges are over. |

‘*No company with so mueh in-
vestment at stake could afford to
proceed with construction and

FATAL CRASH. A second fatal crash in less than two weeks
daimed the life of a 60-year-old man July 5 when the truck he
was driving left Hwy 37 South near the Krumm road junction.
- Above, fire department personnel use the Jaws of Life to cut
‘, open the truck's cab while ambulance personnel attend to ihe
“ passenger who was later taken to Mills Memorial hospital with

spend another half a billion dol-
lars or more when faced with
such uncertaintics.’’

That has led the company to en-
ter negotiations with the province
to find some form of compensa-
tion for the costs of the shutdown.

Those. talks. haye. been un-
derway for several months: now,
Rich said. -

“When a project is halted for
more than two: years, the econom-
ics change,’” Rich said. ‘*We sin-
cerely hope that the B.C. govern-

ment will continue to work with’

us toward preserving the econom-
ic attractiveness of Kemano Com-

pletion for both Alcan and British
Columbia.

‘We want the project to pro-
cced,’” he said. ‘In order for that
to happen, however, Alcan: must
find ways to revitalize: the cco-
nomics of the project given that

times have changed and. events.

out of our control forced us to
halt construction.”

That doesn’t mean they. want a
handout, however, ce

Rich said the company prides
itself’ on the fact there ‘isn’t a
nickel of public money in the pro-
ject.”

He said some of the options in-

undetermined injuries. The first fatality ‘occured June. 25,
when, in another single vehicle accident, Thomas Dimitrov’s
jeep left Queensway Drive near the Old Rema Road and
tolled, Police sald Dimitrov, 20, was wearing a seatbelt at the
time of the accident..He was taken to Mills Memorial, then
flown to Varicouver where he later died of his injuries,

Library expansion

TERRACE — ‘We're totally
frustrated.”?.

‘That's how building committee
chairman George Clark describes
the library board as; with the con-

struction séason slipping away, it .

finds itself still waiting for plans
for the proposed expansion pro-
ject. ;
‘Although architect Alan Soutar
had originally indicated the plans
would be ready by the end of Jan-
vary, Clark said, ‘He just doesn’t
seem to be able to get them
done.””

The latest word was the plans
would be completed “‘any day
now’, but Clark pointed out the

board had been told that for. the

past three months.

With about half the constriction
season already gone, he said time
was now becoming a probleni.

yen. when the plans are com-

pleted, he noted the tendering.

process would cat up several
more weeks of what was left.
Another concern was the delay
{s driving up the cost of the, pro-
ject which could in turn limit

what can be done with the avail-
able money.

The original cost estimate, and
the one on which the expansion
project went to referendum in
June of last year, was $1.75 mil-
lion.

The voters approved borrowing -

$1.235 million towards the cost,
the assumption being a- govern-

ment GO B.C, grant would cover

the rest.

Subsequently, however, the
provincial government scrapped
that grant program ‘and has not
yet introduced a replacement.

The board was therefore already
looking at the possibility of trim-
ming the project even based on
what it now fears is an out-of
date estimate,

And regardless of whether the
expansion goes ahead this year,
Clark said something had to be
done about the library roof. _

Staff were kept busy emptying
buckets during last month’s wet
weather when rain water came
through the roof in several spots.

*T don’t think we-can po

through the winter with the roof
as It-is,’’ he emphasized.
Therefore, even if the expan-

, Sion was shelved for another year,

the roof would at Jeast have to be
patched. ~

Although unable to estimate the
cost of that repair work, Clark
said it would be regrettable to
‘“waste .. taxpayers’ . money”
patching up something that was
going to be replaced anyway.

clude selling more surplus power
to the province, or even
renegotiating the prices of the
power sold,

The economic problems devel-
oped thiough no fault of cither
the company or the government,
Rich said,

“We're trying to find a work-
able ‘win-win solution. ‘to this
problem.”

Rich insists there is “no ques-

tion of abandoning the project.”’

Premicr Mike Harcourt said Fri-
day the province. has rejected Al-
can’s demand that the company’s
contract 0 supply power to B.C.
Hydro be renegotiated,

Bill Rich

Opponents
brand Barrett —
as parachutist

TERRACE — NDP candidate
Joe Barrett barely finished
célebrating his fourth ballot
nomination win before his chal-
lengers fired their first shots, :

Reform party candidate Mike
Scott condemned Barrett. as: an
“outside parachute candidate”’

who knows nothing about the is-
sues in Skeena,

“How can somebody possibly
understand those issues and how
thoy affect the riding if they don’t
live here??? he demanded:

Progressive Conservative candi-
date Danny Sheridan said - it
would be ‘‘difficult for someone
hew to the riding to have a sense
of the pulse of the riding,”’

The 36-year-old son of former

B.C, premier: Dave Barrett. moved «..

to Prince Rupert-last month.
Barrett, who has a degree in

political science, last. lived “in

Vancouver, and before that Al-

berta, where he was an organizer”

for the federal party...

Sheridan predicted that the
proven records of the. candidates
will count for more on election
day than name recognition.

Barrett brushes off the
parachute candidate tag.

“My answer to that is: Canada
is my country. B.C, is my home

province. And Prince Rupert is
my.new home.’?

Scott expressed. .'‘amazement’’
that Skeena New Democrats
could ‘‘shoot themselves in the
foot like this.’’

“(MP) Jim Fulion no doubt

helped engineer -this. nomine-

tion,”’ he said. ‘I find it- hard to’

believe that Fulton could not have
supported a local candidate.”?

-The nomination, he — said,
smacks of manipulation. and
backroom ‘dealing, ‘‘the kind of
politics ‘that people really don't
like.”’

“When people work ‘long. and
hard ‘ta build and maintain a
Strong party presence in the
riding it has to be demoralizing
: when. :..local:. contenders: are

bypassed in favour of the head, of; oo

fice choice.” --

Fulton described Scotts allege
tions as “unfounded and dis-
honest.’’

- If Scott was going to make such
allegations, the Skeena MP ssid,
‘*he’d better put some proof for-
ward,”

Fulton said he didn’t get in-
volved in the campaigns of any
candidate at any time.

‘Joe is a terrific candidate,’ he
added.

ROOF REPAIRS are badly needed at the public library, as last n month’ s rains ‘proved. Above right,

staff had to scramble to find towels and containers as well as move books and furniture as water in-

vaded the facility. Atlefl, the holein the office area ceiling underlines the extent of the problem,

Parking
decision
held over

TERRACE -- A council com-
mittee has postponed making a
recommendation on parking
spot requirements _—for
downtown buildings. .

A city staff planning group
has called for ihe repeal of a
1986 by-law which affects the
caslern part of the downtown
core, ;

Regulalions require : any
parking spots, the number
depending on ilssize, ~~~

However, the 1986: by-law
waived those requirements, the
rationale being. to assist
businesses in that area.

Over the past yearin parlicu-
lar, increased parking prob-
lems downtown have prompted
complaints from. merchants.
and groups such ‘as: the local
Old Age Pensioners organiza-
tion.

The public works commitice
has decided it wants more in-
formation before making a de-
cision.

building to provide off-street