PAGE | INtON S Mary Ann Fullerton Circulation Manager OurWiEWS Adrian RAESIDE Reasonable doubts ll aboard, folks... we’re about As take a ride on the ureaucratic Express. Our conductor? B.C. Hydro. Destination? That bureaucratic abyss known as a fourth-floor Victoria filing cabinet. Forgive us for being overly cynical, but news that B.C. Hydro is willing to conduct an extensive review of the management and operation of the Columbia River water basin is hardly means for region-wide celebration. Instead, West Kootenay residents have every reason to take this long- overdue ‘initiative’ with a Buick-sized grain of salt. Residents have been fighting for years to have B.C. Hydro justify its handling of our prime water source, not to mention its ‘no tax’ status in our neck of the woods. When you think about it, the only redeeming quality the Crown corporation has going for it in the West Kootenay is the public-access bridge across the Hugh Keenleyside Dam. Harsh? Tell that to local marina operators and the Castlegar and District Heritage Society. These folks found out just how little they were this past summer when B.C. Hydro hung the Columbia River Treaty in their faces and rattled off excuse after excuse about how they can’t be held responsible for sagging or raging water levels. Change is needed and if B.C. Hydro is truly interested in this review it will stop playing games with the public and stop hiding behind the Columbia River Treaty. Street TALK New bridge should be B.C. built “What a joke,” I cried out commitment to invest in loudly Thursday afternoon. “I can’t believe the government has done this.” “Done what,” my concerned publisher Dave McCullough quipped. “They’ve awarded the Castlegar-Robson bridge to an Alberta-based company. That sucks,” I continued, with a shake of my head. “It should have gone to a B.C. company. The government should be investing in its S.D.HARRISON Harrison Comparison the B.C. economy. “The government made a wise economic decision,” Dave said. “It’s responsible government.” eee Is it now, Dave? The B.C. government has failed to represent the eople that put it in office y awarding this contract to SCI Engineers and Contractors. Despite promises of investing at own province for crying out loud.” “Why,” Dave retorted. “Why not,” I replied. “We should be investing in our own economy, investing in our own people by providing work for our own people.” “That’s stupid,” Dave said, giving me a look as if I had just fallen off the turnip truck. “Was it the lowest bid?” “Well, yeah... but that doesn’t matter,” I argued, adding that the government made a a, home, B.C. has gone out of the province to have this bridge built and I believe that is inexcusable. OK, I'll give you that SCI submitted the lowest bid at $14 million, but does that necessarily mean that it should be awarded this job ahead of a B.C. firm? No. Without knowing the intricate details of the tendering process, I believe Pete Kiewik and Sons should have received the contract. please see HARRISON page 7 Burt Campbell Publisher Emeritus LV. Campbell Aug. 7, 1947- Feb. 15, 1973 Gwen Koftinoff Robson “Yes — to keep the funds local.” Sherry Voykin unemployment rate is Question: Should the Castlegar-Robson bridge contract have been given to a B.C. contractor? Pass Creek “Yes — the high here.” John Ferrerra Castlegar Yes. We pay taxes in B.C., we should hire B.C. workers.” Walter Popoff Castlegar “The point is the (Alberta winner) was the lowest bidder.” OtherVIEWS | @ Wednesday, January 13, 1993 Please address all letters to: Letters to the Editor Castlegar News P.O. Box 3007 Castlegar, B.C. VIN 3H4 or deliver them to 197 Columbia Ave. Letters should be typewritten, double-spaced and not longer than 300 words. Letters MUST be signed and include the writer's first and last names, address anda telephone number at which the writer can be reached between 9a.m. and 5 p.m. The writer's name and city or town of residence only will be published. Only in exceptional cases will letters be published anonymously. Even in those cases, the name, address and phone number of the writer MUST be disclosed to the editor. The News reserves the right to edit letters for brevity, clarity, legality, grammar and taste. Letters toWHE EDITOR Blame slum conditions on high city taxes Have you ever wondered why the area across from the CPR station in Castlegar is decaying to slum conditions? Why the building across from Mitchell’s Supply is sinking to the same level? The answer is city taxes. In 1992, city taxes on commercial property were a whopping 350 per cent higher than those for residential property of equal value. There is still the 40 per cent to be added for downtown revitalization. No wonder there are no tenants who are prepared to pay rent that is sufficient to break even, let alone pay for any property improvements that would also be taxed. That is why these buildings remain empty. Meantime, there is a severe shortage of low-cost residential rental accommodation in our city. However, since these buildings are zoned commercial, it is not practical to convert them to dwellings. So what is the result? our tax base. it very difficult, excessive taxation our city is destroying a significant component of The same excessive taxation is discouraging any new commercial development downtown. At this rate, th if not impossible, to find buyers for their vacant land created by the relocation of the City Works Yard. It must be noted in both Trail and Nelson, the difference e city will find between commercial and residential taxes is far less than in Castlegar. Even our —— school taxes, that are not set by city hall, are only 20 per cent hi gher for commercial as compared to residential rates, not 350 per cent like our city taxes. I am sure that not all members of our city council have such a burning hatred of our business community to allow such injustice and discrimination to continue into next year and the future. Don’t you think it is time to take a good look at this year’s budget and mill rate and bring back some sanity to this distortion? More and more, commercial buildings will deteriorate to slum conditions, thereby reducing their assessed value. Through N.T. Oglow, Castlegar Bylaw 923 tiny compared to real-world problems In view of the fact that 1,575 scientists have presented an alarming report titled “Warning to Humanity”, it seems ludicrous to object to the now famous Unsightly Premises Bylaw No. 923. I mean, here is a group of very credible scientists giving evidence that there is no time left to reverse a global destruction due to overpopulation and ecological abuse and a few people resent cleaning up their If we cannot show respect for the land where we live, how can we hope to save this beautiful planet? Is it really so hard and troublesome to remove those old cars and other junk? If people would be more responsible, we could do without restrictive laws. However, the same people who claim that their rights are being violated don’t mind imposing their private junk yards on the I wish that the Concerned Citizens Forum would put their ‘concern’ into issues such as water protection or responsible forest practices. Please, wake up and use your energy on some real problems. We are heading for an ecological disaster; cleaning up the environment should be encouraged, not resisted. Remember: think global but act local. backyard. B.C. shows economic discipline with low-bid selection Take heart, Scotty: you were in good company when you fell off that turnip truck Local MLA Ed Conroy was right there with you, nattering about the fact that our new bridge will be built by an out-of-province contractor. Make no mistake: it is a shame that the low bidder on the project happened to be from Alberta. No one would take issue with your desire to deal with a B.C.- based company. But your suggestion that we simply overlook the fact that it would cost us $272,000 more for the privilege of dealing with someone from the Lower Main- land is the kind of fuzzy thinking that got us into our current finan- cial boondoggle in the first place. It all adds up, Scotty: a quarter of a million extra here for a new bridge ... halfa million more there for a highway ... a few hundred thousand for party hacks at the rest of us. The Publisher’s Perspective Dave MCCULLOUGH public trough ... before you know it we’ve frittered away millions. And you don’t have to be a rock- et scientist — or a turnip farmer, for that matter — to figure out that all that extra cash has to come from taxes. Unfortunately, government has gone to the well far too often in recent years. Our tax burden is pushing the cost of doing business in this country sky high. When that happens, compa- nies have no choice but to try to pass their extra costs on to con- sumers. The B.C. companies who bid unsuccessfully on our new bridge were doing one of two things: they were attempting to pass on their extra costs, or they were padding their profit margins. If we let them get away with it, we'll be raising the cost of doing business in B.C. next year and laying the groundwork for an even bigger discrepancy in the tender process. In choosing the lowest bidder, the Ministry of Highways is fol- lowing the accepted practice of purchasers everywhere. More importantly, it’s showing the discipline we need if we’re ever going to emerge from the deficit-driven mess we find our- selves in. If the Castlegar-Robson bridge Peter Weingard Winl were an economic development initiative, we might be able to jus- tify digging a little deeper in the name of employing B.C. resi- dents. But the goal in this case has nothing to do with giving the economy a shot in arm. The bridge is merely a trans- portation link, nothing more and nothing less. Let’s not confuse the issue. Let’s get the bridge built as effi- ciently as possible. And if the government really must tinker with economic devel- opment, let it do that task as effi- ciently as possible also. Paying extra to deal with a B.C.-based company would be like treating a symptom rather than the problem itself... There might be a short term gain, but the result would be long term pain.We must resist that , temptation. Oh, and by the way, no more in- sults to turnips. Harrison continued from page 7 The Richmond-based company submitted a bid that came in some $272,000 higher than SCI, but it still should have been given the contract. I believe that for one rea- son — a reason that my business- wise publisher will dismiss as eco- nomically naive. See, I believe the government has a responsibility to be prudent with our tax dollars... not cheap. In the interest of British Colum- bia’s sagging economy and our troubling unemployment figures, I’m one taxpayer that isn’t op- sed to spending an extra 272,000 to ensure that our work- ers reap the benefits of this mas- sive $14 million project. Surely the government must recognize the need to get British Columbians working... or was that just another campaign romise? B.C. had a chance to invest in itself when awarding this con- tract. It didn’t and SCI will be more than willing to take the money and put it to good use in Alberta. When you think of it, $272,000 Xx isn’t a heck of a lot of cash. As- suming the province’s population is three million, $272,000 works out to some nine certs per person. Mere pennies. I guess it comes down to the age-old debate of whether a province should favor its own — I say yes. And I would say this- whether I lived in B.C., Alberta or Newfoundland. See, in the day and age when B.C.’s deficit is moving swifter than the Columbia River, I think it is incumbent on a government to kick-start the economic en- gines. The $14 million contract — together with others — could have done this. The fink hneon has com- plained that our growing deficit is partly due to declining consumer confidence and an uncertain busi- ness climate. Bureaucratic excuses aside, how can ordinary British Columbians and the province’s business community foster any measure of confidence in their eco- nomic well-being when their own government won’t show them a measure of support.