Crime jumps others\NEWS A8& - Christmas may be a happy time for some but it’s not for | Cold turkey How freezing temperatures convinced one smoker to kick the habit\COMMUNITY B11 - Off to the worlds Local athlete making international mark in the demanding sport of karate\SPORTS BS WEDNESDAY ~ January 21, 1998 STA NDARD 93¢ PLUS 7¢.GST VOL. 10 NO. 44 Multiplex vote looms over city CITY COUNCIL has agreed that build- ing a multiplex is a high priority and will strike a six-person committee to oversee the project. But councillors are split on whether they should set a target date to go to referendum on the project, which would combine a second sheet of ice, a com- munity/youth centre and convention facilities. “I'd like fo see us head for a referendum in late fall — October or No- vember,’’ councillor Val George said Friday. ‘‘It will move this thing a lot faster if we set a proposed referendum time right at the beginning.” Councillor David Hull also favoured selting a target date. : But mayor Jack Talsira wants a more cautious approach, arguing council has Don’t expect amiracle, . Torney says THE MAN appointed to look into the difficulties fac- ing Skeena Cellulose credi- tors is telling people not to expect miracles. “Don’t be expecting me ta wave a magic. wand.up . there,” said Ralph Tormey, past president of the B.C. Truck Loggers Association. Torney said he has delivered his report and recommenda- tions to the government and they are to be reviewed once Premier Glen Clark returns from a trade mission to Latin America. ; He said he is recommending the company continue for ons year its present policy of pay- ing contractors and suppliers up front. He said he also wants to see some type of bridge financing program — similar to what was offered to creditors in the spring, Torney said that may be a continuation of the same Forest Renewal B.C.-backed program, or a new program, but added it will likely be capped at a maximum value. He wouldn't reveal what other recommendalions might be in his report to gov- emment. But he repeated that northwesterners shouldn't expect too much. “These recommendations will not tun that part of the province into a booming eco- nomic zone, but maybe it will allow the majority of these businesses to hang on by their fingernails until things get better.” ' “There would have been business casualties even if Skeena Cellulose had not got- ten in trouble and there prab- ably will be some,” he added. “We're not naive enough to think we can save every busi- ness up there.” “But hopefully we can save the ones that wouldn’t have ‘said, to be careful not to duplicate the errors of the last failed arena referendum. ““We want to see this come off soon, but we don’t want to botch a good con- cept because of time frames,’’ Talstra George said he didn’t think a nine to 10-month target for a referendum date is unreasonable, ‘We have gone through the process of surveying the communtity. [ think we can have some pretty good confidence in the direction this is proceeding.”’ . Councillor Rich McDaniel backed up city parks and recreation commission chair Art Erasmus’ contention that referendum timing should be left up to the steering committee. “7 don’t want to see a date set,” Residents who filled out a recreation survey responded with a wide variety of opinions. For details, please see Page Al0. McDaniel said. ; ‘‘We have to avoid setting up expecta- tions that are unreachable,’’ added city parks and recreation superintendent Steve Scott. Talstra said a number of factors could complicate the effort to build a multi- plex. For example, he said, when costs are discussed he expects to see a price tag that will be ‘‘double or even triple the previous figure’? of $2.8 million that voters turned down in 1995, “That’s got to get absorbed by public,’’ he said. Auother complication is that cost- the ’ sharing with the federal and provincial ‘ govermments will likely be more difficult this time, he predicted, Talstra said there needs to be regional district involvement from the beginning as well, because the final project will re- quire approval in Thombhill as well to proceed. ; ‘We want to avoid the mistakes that were mnade last time that caused that proposal to go down at referendum,’ he tion that only one group —- namely ice users — were driving the process and that the cost was unaffordable. “Let’s uot charge ahead in the same manner we did before.”’ Talstra also said he sees a need for recreation superintendent Steve Scott to ‘prepare a master plan for recreation in the community at the same time as work proceeds on the multiplex. He said that will help assure potential critics of the multiplex that other projects are on the list to be built in future years. The parks and recreation commission recommended last year the city build the multiplex after it conducted surveys of local residents. said, __ Foremost among those was the percep- TELEGRAPH CREEK resident Earl Jackson took advantage of a price of 39.9 cents per litre to fill up in town last week. The gas war intensifed that week with prices that have now fallen more than 20 cents. For more details on the gas war and how much it’s cut into profit margins, see story on page AG. been victims otherwise.” City will move to b Scott estimates the design stage of the project will cost about $30,000. West Fraser extends mill shutdown By JEFF NAGEL ; WEST FRASER has told nearly 200 Skeena Sawmills workers here they, won't be going back to work on Feb, 2 after all. And there's tic firm date of when the company’s sawmill will open. The sawmill’s shutdown is being extended further, north- west opcrations manager Trevor Formeaux confirmed last | week, Sawmill operations halted Dec. 19 and were scheduled ta resume Jan. 5. That was subsequenily extended to Feb. 2. “With current lumber prices the way they are — and they continue to trend downwards — we just can’t see starting it up by Feb. 2,”’ said Formeaux. ““We have not given them a definitive startup date at this point.” If West Fraser follows the pattern of its sawmill shut- down a year ago, the closure won't last longer than 90 days — which would be March 19. That’s because the forest ministry can suspend or revoke forest licences of companies that shut down a mill for more than 90 days. The extended shutdown of West Fraser is beginning to rival the closure of the various Skeena Cellulose opera-, tions during that company’s troubled history of the past’ year, But even if West Fraser’s operations do resume in March, it could be a lot longer before the loggers that supply the mill go back to the bush. Formeaux said the company is continuing to move logs that are in the water at Prince Rupert to the log yard in Ter- race. That will go on through January and late February, by which time the Tertace log yard will be full, he said. When the sawmill does resume operations, it will be able to operate for some time before the company needs the loggers to return to the bush, Plans could change rapidly, however, if markets im- _prove. “Tf we start to see some positive signs we would re- evaluate things quite quickly,’’ Formeaux said. “‘But right now we don’t see lumber prices rebounding too quickly,”’ He said there appears to be an oversupply in the Amer- ican market forcing prices down. The company’s operation costs have eased somewhat but not enough to provide the relief it had hoped for. Negotiations are ongoing between the government, coas- tal and interior producers over the prospect of wide- ranging reform of the stumpage system. , “We're way off the mark of the ability, to make a prof- it,’ Formeaux added. : “If we had a much lower fibre cost you could probably continue to run at these depressed lumber prices. But we don’t. Our basic costs have remained relatively stable.” an slot machines | SLOT MACHINES and video lottery terminals will be banned in Terrace if city council gets its way. Council is asking its staff to draw up a bylaw outlaw- ing the gambling machines. The action is being taken tc ward off the possibility that the province will impose @ casino in this area against the wishes of local governments. The move comes in response to events in Vancouver, where a city bylaw testricting slot machines there has survived a provincial government court challenge. ‘The result is that municipalities with bylaws are able - to restrict the machines and prevent the province from ing out its plan fo allow already licensed casinos to - a increase i on: She said a city bylaw would have to be in place before increase the number of slot machines on site to300. - Terrace joins Richmond and Burnaby on the growing list of municipalities that are now drawing up similar bylaws. “My intention would be to prohibit slot machines and VLTs (video lottery terminals) anywhere in the city boundaries,” said Terrace councillor Linda Hawes, who proposed the bylaw last week. She said slot machines are the most addictive element . of the gambling equation. - But Hawes says the city must move quickly because she thinks the province could take another run at allow- _ ing expanded gambling here. That could come in the form of allowing bars or other public establishments to introduce slot machines, she suggested. “the neat move by Victoria in order to successfully shield the community. “Crown land does still exist and they may think of dif- ferent ways of putting gambling in here,” Hawes said, adding the province is relying on gambling revenues to bolster sagging revenues. “Their budget is shot ~ it’s common knowledge,” she said. “If the possibility exists, let’s at least keep the slot machines out.” The municipal bylaws may be the least of the pro- blems facing expanded provincial gambling. A Supreme Court Judge last week ruled Victoria’s plan to take a much bigger slice of expanded charity gaming proceeds for itself was illegal. The ruling throws the future of charity gaming into question and could leave the government short $50 million it had counted on. Meanwhile, mote details have come out on Inside Passage Cruises Inc.’s plans to sail a pocket cruise ship — with on board casino — between Vancouver and, Prince Rupert. The Pacific Aurora, which has passed the first stage of. the government's casino-approval process, would be based in Prince Rupert and is to set sailin May. Company president George Bartel says his plans call for a small scale gaming room during the peak sum- mer season, with just four table games and 25 slot machines. But in the off-season — October to April - he would expand the casino to 10 table games and 100 slat machines. The off season is also when he’d market the casino more to northwest residents, who could come down to the vessel’s Cow Bay moorage and walk on board to do some gambling.