July

TWO KINCOLITH natives went ahead with a court

challenge to the Nisga’a treaty, ‘

A KITIMAT man’s wife died at the Kitimat air- park after ambulance dispatchers based in Kam-

loops scut the ambulance to the Kitimat-Terrace . _ airport by inistake,

THE PROVINCE backed off plans to close more than half of the forest service’s 1,400 forest recrea- tion sites, .

ANGRY SPORTS fishermen said federal officials were cutting off fishing here earlier ihan what's really necessary to protect endangered coho. They said restrictions on sport fishing were more about appeasing the commercial fleet.

LOMAK truck drivers were on strike in support of laid-off drivers in Prince George. Represented by the Teamslers, the drivers said Lomak was steering all its business to a subsidiary organized by the lower-paid Christian Labour Association of Cana- da.

REFORM MP Mike Scott once again tumed down a chance at a $1 million pension after the Liberals adjusted the rules on MP's pensions.

GIANT forest fires burning near Telegraph Creek led about 40 residents to flee the haze-shrouded

~ town. _

NATIVE COMMERCIAL fishermen staged a rally

“in the park, vowing to resist drastic fishing restric- _ tions imposed by the DFO,

AN EFFICIENCY team identified $2.3 million worth of potential savings for the school board to consider, The team’s report also criticized infight- ing, within the district, using terms like ‘<dysfune- tional conditions’? and ‘‘slege-like mentality” to describe conditions,

MUSHROOM PICKERS and buyers stich as Tony Charlton were out about for the annual late summer/early fall harvesting season.

TSIMSHIAN NATIVES said they want a chunk of the Skeena recreational sport fishery as part of their treaty setilement.

. SALMON FISHING talks with Alaska collapsed

orice again and lodge owners here expressed frus- tration that fishing would be restricted here while the Alaskans continue to intercept Skeena- and

. Nass-bound stocks,

THE PROVINCE abandoned efforts to force social

_ service agencies to merge together to cut costs.

TERRACE’s needle exchange needs to be in a more addict-friendly location, said staff members

‘who run the program at the Skeena Health Unit.

WAY MORE people are moving out of town than coming in, said local moving companies. While construction stats in town were way down, some analysts said the economy wasn’t really as bad as local people thought.

SCHOOL TRUSTEES ended months of haggling and slashed $1.45 million worth of music programs, ‘supplies and administration in an attempt to balance the school district’s budget.

WEST FRASER Timber lost money in the second quarter for the first time cver, and said money losses in this area were the biggest factor in the poor performance, ot

STATS showed Terrace is now far less dependent on the forest industry than it was back in the early 1980s, when it last suffered a recession.

| JOHN BACKHOUSE, the former mayor of Prince

George, was named northern ‘development comn-

missioner.

THE NISGA’A TREATY was completed after 22 years of. negotiations. Provisions included the’ widely-cxpected $190 million, 1,930 square kilo- metres of land, self government, tesource control, and guaranteed shares of Nass valley fish and. wild- tte. A final deal closer was the province’s pledge to pave the Nisga’a Highway-all the way to Green-

ville at an estimated cost of $40 million.

A $2.3 million public relations campaign geared up to start selling the treaty. By year’s cnd, the campaign hid also covered the ceremonial travel to’ “Vancouver of 100 Nisga’s, and the total cost reached $6.8 million. Tas ns

PAC RIM LNG halted plans to build a $1.1 billion liquid natural gas plant in Kitimat, citing the Asian downturn.

SKEENA MP MIKE SCOTT, B.C. Liberal leader Gordon Campbell and Reform president Bill Vander Zalm callled for a‘ referendum on the Nisga’a treaty. Campbell also threatened to go to court to force a referendum. -

A CHOKING five-weck-old baby girl and her parents waited eight minutes while a misdirected ambulance sat lost July 3,

A RUSH of new drivers lined up to get driver’s licences and beat new more complex regulations.

August

NISGA’A leaders, provincial and federal officials initialled the just-completed Nisga’a treaty that promised the Nisga’a 2,000 square kilometres of. land, $190 million, self-government, resource con- trol and fishing and hunting rights.

BUSINESSES reported fewer tourists here this year and attributed the change to restrictions in the sportfishing industry.

AN AMBULANCE called to aid a choking baby was sent in the wrong direction because of a map- reading error and because local firefighters weren't notified, said B.C. ambulance service officials.

B.C. TEL faced charges in connection with a 4,000- litre spill of diese] fuel near Meziadin Lake in 1997.

THE RETIREMENT package for retiring schools superintendent Frank Hamilton cost $220,000,

CANADIAN AIRLINES pulled Boeing 737 jets off the Terrace run, replacing the bigger jets with the smaller Fokker F-28 jet.

CENTRAL MOUNTAIN Air pulled out of Terrace and other northern airports in a second major change ta regional air service.

SKEENA CELLULOSE said its planned $170 mil- lion modernization of the Prince Rupert pulp mill was on hold until pulp prices rise.

A SERIES of natural gas leaks resulted after ex- cavating machinery dug up gas lines. Au investiga- tion was launched. .

CITY OFFICIALS remained at odds with Farmer’s

Market organizers, saying the present site would -

not be wise use of the land-as a Jong-term location. The city wanted the -market‘io° lock at potential other sites.

BIOLOGISTS suspected warm ocean water might be the cause of the lower numbers and poorer quali- ly of retuirning pink, coho and sockeye salmon.

TERRACE MAYOR Jack Talstra came out in sup- port of the Nisga’a treaty and against a referendum on it. He criticized southern politicians for playing politics with the treaty, which he said was too im- portant to be used in such a way.

MOST city councillors joined the mayor in suppori- ing the Nisga’a treaty. Two-thirds of councillors also said they oppose a referendum on the deal.

PINE MUSHROOMS and depots were popping up, but prices were expected to be low because of the recession in Japan and Asian economic crisis.

september

SKEENA SAWMILL workers say yes to a federal work-sharing program for 26 weeks that would give the company’s 150 unionized workers smaller pay cheques but would avert layoffs.

_ SKEENA CELLULOSE stops logging for three

weeks blaming poor market conditions and high op- erational costs.

BUSY PHONE LINES meant people trying to call ambulances couldn’t get through. The phone sys- tem overtoad was the result of cheap flat-rate long- distance caliing plans introduced by B.C. Tel and other phone companies. Network improvements in later weeks eased the problem,

FORMER CO-OP bakers John Wiebenga and Markus Klein open Cookie Jar Bakery Sept. 3.

LOCAL STACEY Kennedy, 28, saves neighbor Peter Ruygrok, 76, from a Holstein bull that was at- tacking him.

FARMERS’ MARKET vendors haggle with the

city over a new location for the market. City offi- clals say the current market site is prime real estate and is being underutilized, Vendors don’t want to move. :

THE PROVINCE and federal government begins formal. talks with the Gitxsan, aimed at sclf- government and resource and land comanagement rather than a treaty.

CONSERVATION OFFICERS shool more bears (46 were killed in Terrace by conservation officers, RCMP and residents) instead of relocating them due to budget cuts.

LOCAL BIOLOGIST, Dionys De Leeuw writes a controversial report that says civironmentalists should be allowed to join the lottery system of hunting rights. He says the government should sell two types of tags, kill tags for hunters and protector

lags for. those who oppose hunting. That way, there

would be competition for far fewer licenses.

MLA Helmut Giesbrecht rejected accusations that his supporters did anything wrong in defending him in the recall campaign of a year ago. Elections B.C. named forensic investigator Ron Parks to look into- the allegations,

October

DAVID BLACK, owner of numerous weekly and daily newspapers in the province, including The Terrace Standard, announces that editorials in his newspapers will appose the Nisga’a Ireaty, Black found himself refuting confusion that his order

‘prohibited all pro-trealy commentary, and pub-

lished colunins on the treaty by all major B.C. polti- cal leaders.

THE CITY unveiled a conceptual design for a mul- tiplex that would include a second arena, double gymnasium, drama theatre and a rangé of other components for an estimated $11.5 million.

WEST FRASER lays off 15 management workers to save about $1 million to offset poor market con- ditions, high logging costs and low tree prices.

LOCAL JULIANNA White wins her court case against Coustable Tom Kalis, after the RCMP of- ficer gave her a $100-ticket for honking her car horn at him. She won because the officer netded at least two complaints of the noise to be able to issue a ticket.

HUNTERS ARE asked to register their guns by Dec. 31, 2002, Possession of an unregistered gun will be a criminal] offence by Jan 1, 2003.

FISHERIES RENEWAL B.C, gives $500,000 to restore salmon-growing streams in the Skeena and Kitsumkalum watersheds.

SCHOOL BOARD chairman Roger Leclerc resigned and both he and Gary Turner took them- selves out of ongoing budget deliberations after ac- cusations of conflict of interest because their wives work for the school district.

NISGA'A PEOPLE voice io send agreement to a referendum. The. vote in Greenville (Lakalzap) ended with 481 of those present in favour of a referendum and 60 opposed.

LOCAL NURSES SAY they’re being overworked and underpaid and prepare for job action.

'’ November ~ NISGA’A PEOPLE vote 61 per cent in favour of

accepting the land claims treaty initialled in August with the federal and provincial governments.

BCTV tours Northwest and does a live show at Heritage Park.

COAST MOUNTAIN school district 82 gets $178,000 from Ministry of Education for a drop in enrollment, The district bas to cut almost $1 million to balance its deficit budget.

UNITE THE RIGHT rally at R.E.M. Lee Theatre altracts 600 people who attack the Clark govern- ment and urge Liberals and Reformers to join to- gether.

* PHASE ONE of the salmon license retirement pro-

gram ended Nov. 30. Fishermen wait to hear about how next year’s closures will affect them.

B.C. PARKS will increasingly have to pay for themselves, said consullants who ‘predicted user fees, the selling of firewood, a lottery and latid de- velopment could make parks more sustainable,

CITY OFFICIALS said everything from liquor sales to food would be considered to help finance the planned $11.4 million multiplex.

SCI TRIES to find ways to hush the noisy chipper in its log yard. Residents complain that the chipper keeps them awake al night, Hay bales and logs are stacked between the chipper and the highway to muffle the noise. The company pledges lo try other measures to further reduce the noise.

f FEARS THAT the city wanted the farmers e market to vacate its traditional spot across - Park from Lower Little Park caused market: organizer Lynne Christiansen and others to cir- culate a petition opposing any such attempt.

December

LINDA GERALDINE LeFranc is found stabbed todeath in her Braun St. townhouse. RCMP have yet to arrest anyone.

COUNCIL OF FOREST INDUSTRIES recom- mends that NDP government cuts taxes, red tape and costs lo save ailing forest industry. ;

MILLS MEMORIAL hospital is far from balancing

its budget by March 99. It’s sliding deeper into debt

with a $90,000 deficit. The health ministry refuses

to give the hospital more money, saying it still isn’t , doing all it can to cut costs and maintain services,

A NEW SKEENA school, serving Grades 8-10. could be in constriction works by summer. Con- struction of a new clementary school on the bench could begin by summer, too. ‘

TERRACE’S first official skatepark will be built beside the arena next summer costing $225,000, The money for the park has been mostly donated or - is being raised by the Terrace Youth Action Society. ,

TERRACE RCMP are short-staffed six officers due : to federal budget constraints despite the fact the

... feds are giving the RCMP B division in B.C, (major

crimes division) a one-time $10 million grant to cover a budget deficit.

NISGA’A LEADERS are trying to create ‘the framework so that non-Nisga’a residents of the Nass can become Nisga’a citizens, giving them the right lo participate in government and electioris.

THE SALVATION Army gave out a record num- ber of Christmas food hampers (more than 550) this season, Which is about 100 more than last year.

CITY COUNCIL is allowing the farmers’ market to Stay where it is on Davis Ave. for at least a couple of years — as Jong as market vendors fori a tegis-- tered society. That way the city can deal with a legal.entity and ensure proper insurance is in place to protect the cily from Liability.

FEDERAL WORKSHARING for 136 mill workers

‘at West Fraser could be extended until mid-June,

General manager Lou Poulin wants to wait fot lum-

ber market prices to strengthen. The program was scheduled to run out March 20.

THE HEALTH MINISTRY says Terrace is the logical site for the region's two orthopedic surgeons, instead of Kitimat and Prince Rupert. Both orthopedic surgeon positions are now vacant,

COUNCILLOR David Hull says the City of Ter race must take an official position on the Nisga’a treaty. '

DESPITE extremely tight regulations to protect endangered coho stocks, salmon returns to the Skcena River in 1998 were only slightly improved and generally far below long-term averages,

nie

NOVEMBER 19 saw a healthy crowd file Into the R.E.M. Lee Theatre for a ‘Unite the Right’

rally under the theme of ‘Have You Had Enough?’ That's rally organizer Steve Cook with a sign publicizing the avent. The rally was responsible, in part, for local provincial Reformers to contemplate a coalition with Liberals“to put forward a joint candidate for the next provincial

élection. Tos