dust don't do it

US\NEWS A7

The planned PacRim LNG plant in
Kitimat is good news for

Horrific consequences of drinking
and driving are
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ice warriors

Midget reps win a tournament in
Houston in a convincing _
fashion\SPORTS C4

MONDAY
DECEMBER 23, 1996

| TERRACE _

ANDA

93¢ PLUS 7¢ GST
VOL. 9.NO. 37,

City poised to do airport deal

CITY OFFICIALS have
come up with a novel way
to finance a takeover of the
airport here.

Faced with a federal
government that’s getting
out of the airport business,
city officials for a year now
have been struggling about
how to assume control of
the facility yet ensure it
doesn't became a drag on
local taxpayers.

Their solution — entice
Santa Claus to make the air-
port his new Christmas pres-
ent shipping point.

It won't exactly become
the North Pole — Santa’s to
keep that location as his
symbolic home base,

But city officials say Santa
is intrigued with the idea of
locating his Christmas pres-
ent marshalling point a bit
farther south,

“Just imagine. Enough space for the giant warehouses Santa needs
each year to assemble, collect and package up the Christmas presents for

boys and girls.’’

“We're working on a
proposal to make the airport
a Christmas present-duty
free zone,”’ said one official
who spoke under the condi-
tion of keeping his identity a
secret.

“IE IT reveal myself,
Santa’s going to know wha
haa been naughty and who
has been nice,’’ the official
commented.

The concept of a Christ-
mas present-duty free zone
would fit well with the
city’s desire to also assume
control of Crown lands sur-
rounding the airport,

“Just imagine,” said the

official. ‘‘Enough space for

the giant warehouses Santa

needs each year to assem-
ble, collect and package up

the Christmas presents for

boys and girls.”

The same official expects
significant employment and
business opportunities to be
created should Santa move
his enterprise south,

“St. Nick needs a giant
support network — stretch-
ing from workers in those

warehouses to feed lots
providing food for the
teindeer."”

Employment officials

even now are lining up
potential workers who
wouldn't mind wearing
green tights, felt hats with
bells on them and shoes
wilh toes that curl up.

City officials have even
taken into consideration the
perennial problem of soggy,
cloudy and socked in winter
weather affecting landings
at the airport. .

‘You obviously haven't
taken to heart the words
from the Christmas song,”
said the official.

‘Cn Then one foggy
Christmas Eve,

Santa came fo say,

Rudolph with your nose so
brighi,

Wont you guide
sleigh tonight.”

The official even held owt
ihe bope that Rudolph might
be able to spread his nose-
based technology to other
reindeer,

“Just think, if it works, no
more missed flights, No
more midnight bus rides
from Prince Rupert. No
more Top Gun stuff,’ he
continued.

There’s no word on when
Santa will respond to the
city’s entreaties.

At last word, city council
was in a closed door ses-
sion, cooking up a batch of
chocolate chip cookies lo
leave on the mayor's desk
Christmas Eve for Santa
when he drops down cily
hall’s chimney.

my

ery

oh

@ Northern lights

HOLIDAY GREETINGS go out to all our readers this week from Christmas edition comes from Orion Muldos, in Grade 4/5 at Cas-
everyone at the Terrace Standard, Our tront page artwork for the sie Hall Elementary School, It's entitled "Northern Lights”.

By DAVE TAYLOR
DRUG USERS in Terrace are sa nonchalant
ae about police enforcement here they've actually
i tried to buy dope in the middle of RCMP raids,

: Terrace cops have made five drug busts in the
past two wecks which have resulted in several
trafficking charges. But police say it’s the atti-
tude of buyers that amazes them.

“The truth is this town hasn't been hit in a
long time,’ says Corporal Anders Udsen of the
Terrace plain clothes unit. ‘Concentrated enfor-
cement hasn't occurred in about four years,’’

Udsen says dealers and buyers in Terrace have
gotten used to having it easy.

“We've had people come up to a house dur-
ing a search and ask to buy when there’s a po-
lice car out front with a dog inside barking like
crazy,”’ he says, ‘That goes to show the com-
placency of people who use drugs in this city.
Nolhing has been done for a long, long time.””

On another occasion, a buyer walked up to an
officer during a search and asked to make a pur-
chase. The officer was wearing jeans at the
time, but also an RCMP jacket and ballcap.

“Now that’s complacency to the n’th de-
gree,’’ Udsen says.

According to police the recent busts aren’t re-

lated. Things just worked out so that the RCMP
were able to take out several known dealers
within two weeks’ time. But that doesn’t mean
there aren’t still drugs out there.

“I could put six guys to work non-stop for a
year in this town on drugs alone,” Udsen says.
“Tf 1 could set aside one month with some of-
ficers I could easily get a dozen searches,”'

Udsen points out that so far none of his re-
quests for search warrants have been tumed
down by a judge and ail of the subsequent raids
have tumed up drugs. .

The problem, according to police, is there just
aren’t enough officers devoted to drugs in the
city.

“Its a matter of manpower,”’ Udsen says.
“1’m very surprised that considering the size of
this community we have a plainclothes force
that is half the size of Rupert’s,”’

Udsen points out that the one full-time officer
devoted to drugs in Terrace is overworked and
cannot provide adequate enforcement alone.
Meanwhile, the other two plainclothes officers
are busy with other cases,

“We've just got too much on our plates,’? Ud-
sen says, ‘“We really need at least one more of-
ficer.""

Drug users surprise police

According to Udsen, the recent busts weren’t
part of any big undercover sting operation. He
says it was just basic, solid police work that
could result in many more raids if the detach-
ment had the manpower,

kkk
One of the raids occurred Dec. 16 when police
executed a search warrant at #115-4520 Scott
Avenue, The search resulted in the seizure of a
quantily of marihuana and some stolen property.
Two people were charged with various of-
fences,

Twa days later, the RCMP went to 3852 Mul-
ler Avenue and seized a quantity of marihuana,
some hash and some psilocybin — commonly
known as magic mushrooms.

Three people were charged with various of-
fences as a result of that raid,

All five of the individuals are to appear in
Terrace court on Jan, 31, 1997.

Another raid was held Dec. 19 when police
Searched a local business and a residence.

Police say (he search turned up between
$6,500 and $7,000 in marihuana, as well as
narcotics-related paraphemalia,

One adult male is being sought in connection

with the drug seizure.

Repap’s —
future here
in the air ©

THE FUTURE of Repap’s northwestern B.C. holdings
could rest in two words contained in the press release an-
noUncing iis takeover by Avenor, an eastern-based forest
products company. ,

Those two words are ‘‘strategic divestiture,’ business
code words for selling off assets to pay off debt or to raise
moncy for day to day operations.

This will be particularly important for Avenor because
while there is no cash being put on the table as part of the
deal, it is assuming Repap’s total long and short term debt
load of approximately $2.5 billion,

And Avenor president Paul Gagne made clear in his
company's Dec, 18 takeover announcement that it will
move quickly to pay down that debt, ;

“Ti could be selling some of the assets of Avenor or
Repap,”’ said Avenor public relations official Dominique
Dionne. “I say might be looking at selling as right now we
are looking at every option.’’

She declined to give further details, saying it is slill far
too carly to put fine details on the deal.

The deal, if approved by regulators and by the sharehold-
ers of the two companies, would see Avenor exchange one
new share for every 4.25 Repap shares.

That would create a new company wilh annual sales
(based on £995 figures) of more than $5 billion with assets
of $7.2 billion and 12,300 employees.

It would move Avenor from being a producer of pulp to
a company thal can also tum out coated paper thanks to
Repap’s assets.

Avenor has holdings in Quebec, New Brunswick,
Ontario, Washington State and B,C,

Its B.C. holdings are a kraft pulp mill at Gold River on
Vancouver Island and sawmills, through its controlling in-
terest in Pacific Forest Products, at Tahsis, Ladysmith and
Nanaimo,

“This acquisition creates a solid platform for Avenor’s
future growth through a strategic consolidation within the
North American pulp and paper market, withoul adding
new production capacily,”’ said Avenor’s Gagne last week,

Avenor’s acquisition of Repap will place it among the
top 25 or so forest products companies in the world,
making ita major player in the B.C. industry.

Analysts ate cautious about Avenor' taking over Repap's
debt bul point to the former company as being well
managed with a healthy financial base,

One solid opportunity Avenor has Is to take advantage of
Repap tax credits and Josses to reduce its own tax bite,
says Ross Healy of Sotvency Anatysis Corporation in
Toronto.

“lm sure Avenor saw the potential in that,”’ he said.

And it would make sense for Avenor to evaluate Repap’s
asscts with an cyc to selling off some of them, Healy
added. ‘

“That would certalnly help them get that debt under con-
tral ina short period of time,” he added,

Healy speculates thal Avenor will move quickly so as not
fo gel caughi with a huge debt should there be a recession
in the next few years.

Repap’s northwestern B.C. operations might fit that kind
of plan as it is a fairly independent stand alone operation of
saw mills in Terrace, Camaby and Smithers and a Prince
Rupert pulp mill,

One clue to all of this is contained in the financial ar-
rangements associated with the deal. :

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