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TERRACE —- How will! politi-

' cians decide the issues of tomor- row? Some indications came out of a mock council meeting at ci- ty hall held by a grade 11 Social Studies class from Caledonia Senior Secondary School during ‘Local Government Awareness Week’’.

by Tod Strachan

Of the concerns shown by future homeowners in the gal- lery, safety, bus routes and the appearance of the downtown core were at the forefront.

Selena Tank, the first to ap--

proach council, expressed con- cern over the safety of pedestrian crosswalks in the 4600 and 4700 blocks of Lakelse Ave. “The cars don’t always stop,’’ she said. ‘“‘There seems to be a risk in crossing the street.” She suggested one solution may be the installation of a push- button pedestrian traffic light. Alderman Rhiannon George ful- ly supported the idea, and it was sent to the Planning and Public Works Committee for further consideration and a recommen- dation, :

Concern over the safety of pedestrians using. Highway 16 between the Sande Overpass and the Dudley G. Little Bridge was voiced by Debbie Penner. She pointed out that there are no crosswalks in the entire stretch, making it unsafe to cross, and she suggested that some should be installed in well-lit areas.

Alderman Jamie Brousema agreed with Penner and also

pointed out that pedestrians |

walking from Thornhill to Ter- race, according to the law, had to walk on the left facing traffic and this made it necessary to cross the highway to use the bridge walkway, which is on the right.

The matter was sent to Plan- ning and Public Works, as was a petition with 17 signatures sub- mitted by Tammy Hubbard re- questing two or more street lights on Lakelse Ave. between

Marsh Crescent and the old.

Skeena River bridge. ‘‘It is a safety hazard to motorists, cyclists and pedestrians using this area at night,’’ she said.

Council was also approached by Naomi Schaeffer on behalf of Bernadine Watson with a fresh new idea — bus service to Lakelse Lake during summer months — that could solve the problem of the dwindling number of riders on the bus system. —

She suggested that the route would be well used and said, ‘‘It enables individuals with no transportation to enjoy the city’s main recreation center.’’

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This was also sent to Planning and Public Works with the sup- port of Alderman George, who

said it was an excellent idea and |

trial runs to prove its worth could even be extended to the Mount Layton Hotsprings.

The last. two of six presenta- tions expressed concern over the appearance of the downtown core,

Audra Reitz expressed con- cern about the section of Greig Ave. from the Terrace Hotel to the bus depot. ‘‘It is the first sight tourists see coming in on the bus,”’ she said. ‘The roads. are bad, and this area is not very attractive.”’ Liz Sluys suggested planting flowers along the east and west entrances to the city and ‘‘Welcome to Terrace’ signs which could also be form- ed out of flowers. --

Council agreed with Alder- man Kathi Pringle that the Greig area should be cleaned up, but there was some discussion on the flowers. Alderman Jody Cox felt it was a good idea but in- dicated that colored rocks would require less maintenance, and Alderman Neelam Parmar said the present signs were good enough. Both matters were sent

to the Terrace Beautification

Society for their input.

Other matters currently being considered or already dealt with by the real city council were looked at, and most were sent to committee.

Logging truck traffic .on Halliwell Ave. was considered no problem by Parmar, but cail- ed unsafe by George and Cox. A request by the provincial Waste Management Branch to allow Bell Pole time to correct burner emission problems was felt

reasonable, and a request for

assistance: from the House of Praise to lease the old Book Nook was regarded as too cost-

ly.

A request from the Terrace |

and District Chamber of Com-

merce for assistance in its pro- «

ject to display flags and banners

in the city was also sent to com- ©

mittee, but a decision was made in council to give Terrace Minor Hockey half of their request for $2,271.25 to cover ice rental costs during a midget hockey tournament.

. The real debate of the day began with the first and second readings of the anti-smoking

. bylaw. It was finally defeated ‘when opposed by Aldermen

Nick Baines, Pringle and Brousema, who were. supported by Mayor Kevin Kennedy. Brousema agreed with Baines, who said he couldn’t understand

Banner project supported

Terrace City Council has elected to help the Chamber of - Commerce with their project to display flags and banners in the city as part of a tourism dress-up campaign.

Chamber of Commerce presi- dent Bruce Graydon described the project to council last month and said the Chamber has already been successful in soliciting help from service clubs and merchants, but he requested the city’s help in installing and maintaining brackets to hold the banners.

The project will result in the installation of about 200 brack-

ets permanently attached to

poles and lamp standards along the airport access road, over both bridges and on the Sande Overpass.

The silk-screened banners will be easy to install and remove and will be interchangeable for local events and functions such as Riverboat Days and conven- tions.

Local community organiza- tions and the city will be able to install banners at their own cost to advertise their event. The cost of replacing worn or faded ban- ners will be the responsibility of the sponsor.

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why smokers should have to go out and stand in the rain when non-smokers could just as easily go outside for a breath of fresh air. Pringle said that most businesses already had.a smok- ing policy and there was no need for a bylaw.

Kennedy cast the tie-breaking vote by saying that although he didn’t smoke himself, he didn’t believe in restrictions. “It’s an invasion of one’s right to choice, and where or when to smoke is another matter,’’ he said.

Ideas put forward in new

business came from Neelam Par-

mar who thinks city streets should be cleaned more often, Nick Bains who believes the speed limit on McConnell Ave. between N. Thomas St. and Kalum Lake Dr. should be in- creased by 10 kilometers per hour (this was rejected by his peers), Kathi Pringle who says the city needs more bus shelters and Rhiannon George, who wants the age for entry to ar- cades raised to 18.

Following the meeting, Mayor [|

Jack Talstra said, ‘“The mayor and each of the aldermen presented themselves very well. They spoke very eloquently and debated the issues in a very fine manner — each bringing out good points. I think we may have picked up a point or two, and who knows, we might even

implement some of their thoughts at a future council meeting.”

Caledonia Social Studies teacher Henry Dreger, who helped the students put the pro- ject together, said the city was a great help by providing actual

Terrace Review — Wednesday, Mav 4, 198825

letters written to council for debate.

He said that a study of all levels of government is a part of

the grade 11 curriculum, and the:

students learned to appreciate the mechanics of a council meeting and learned something of their community by research- ing the topics.

And how did the students feel? Kevin Kennedy said, ‘‘It was definitely worthwhile ... At first it was a little nerve racking.”

He added, “‘It’s not as easy as

~ Cal students take over local government

I thought at first. When I came to the council meeting last week, it seemed fairly easy for him (Talstra) — but I guess it wasn’t. “It makes me think twice about going into politics,”” he said. But that could only be a first impression. When asked if they couldn’t have made a few more decisions rather than send- ing everything to committee, he showed some true political tact. ‘If we had really made some decisions it would have reflected on the decisions council - has already made,”’ he said.

‘Two onlookers during a recent mock meeting of city coun-

cll held by Caledonia Senior Secondary students were Mayor Jack Talstra and Caledonia Social Studies Instructor Henry Dreger. Dreger's students posed as council members during the meeting and attempted to address

some of the same issues the real council is presently con- ©

sidering.

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