> Saturday, January 4, 1992 m Reflections F 1991 BS Saturday, January 4, 1992 Reflections of 1991 AS) yp. -Castlégar News | SEPTEMBER ’ The Castlegar News makes \ waves at the beginning of September, dumping its old broadshéet format for the fresh- er look of a tabloid. The format change allowed The News to expand its local content, putting the affairs of the commu- nity first. The Slocan Valley Watershed Alliance gets into trou- ble with the law after trying to prevent Slocan Forest Prod- ucts from building.a spur road at Hasty Creek. After.a 19- day standoff between the Alliance and SFP, RCMP moved in and arrested some 150 protesters. In the end, 84 protesters faced civil contempt charges i in Nelson court. All but five young offenders received $500 fines from Justice P. Dohm: Those fines were suspended for two years, after which payment would be forgiven if the protesters stayed away from the logging site.Each protester was also fined. $50 for court expenses. The Ministry of Transport gets in a little hot water with residents of Castlegar and Robson over the placement of a new bridge. The bridge site angers residents because it crosses through several properties, leaving homeowners in the dark about the fate of their properties. At a public hear- ing, several residents express rage with the prospect of be- ing uprooted to make way for the proposed bridge. Leaky gas lines at Celgar Pulp Co.’s expansion site sends another worker to the hospital. The gassing was the first of its kind since a labor dispute in August, but it wouldn't be the last. Selkirk College continues to grow leaps and bounds in 1991-92. The college lists its enrollment figure at 1,661 for the year — 1,141 at the Castlegar campus alone. The race is on. The campaign for the Rossland-Trail seat in the B.C. legislature begins as New Democrat Ed oy and Socred Walt Siemens begin one month of camp: ~ Conroy replaced Chris D'Arcy as the NDP hopeful during a - nomination convention in May 1990. Not willing to give up without a fight, D’Arcy enters the race as an independent . The run for Victoria becomes a little more interesting when Green-Party candidate Angela Price announces she wants to represent Rossland-Trail. The first all-candidates debate takes place and issues of the environment, education and government integrity dominate.. OCTOBER The provincial election hogs the news for the first three weeks of October as the four candidates continue their fight for Rossland-Trail. The month starts with a bang at an all-candidates forum at Selkirk College concerning the environment. The forum, sponsored by the college’s contin- uing education department, gives NDP Conroy and inde- pendent D’Arcy an opportunity to take shots at the Social Credit’s record on the forest industry. Conroy leads the charge, saying private companies are reaping the benefits of logging Crown land with next to no costs. Conroy said an NDP. government would ensure that re- strictions placed on: logging rights in Crown land would be applied to private lahd in order to protect trees and water- shed in the future. Walt Siemens steers clear'of an environmental fort’ sponsored by the Selkirk College continuing education de- partment in Trail and Green candidate Angela Price claim- ing it was bias. Siemens opted for a human rights seminar‘ instead, sending media relations director Paul Johnston in his place. . The quiet community of Thrums is startled when a 10-year- old girl is attacked bya dog. The dog, a breed known as.a blue heeler, attacked Jill Semenoff as the young girl re- turned from soccer practice. The girl sustained bruises, puncture wounds and cuts to at least eight different parts of her body. She also needed 20 stitches to repair wounds to her stomach, arms, legs and but- tocks. The owner of the dog has the pet destroyed following the vicious attack. Abortion makes its way into the Rossland- Trail race at an all-candidates forum at Selkirk College when Ed Conroy is asked to justify his party’s pro-choice stand. “It’s a woman’s right to choose,” Conroy said, “and it’s be- tween a woman and her doctor. It’s that simple.” The election takes on a negative tone when a Social Credit flyer distributed through the Rossland-Trail riding criticizes Chris D’Arcy’s work as New Democrat MLA. The flyer is defénded by Socred hopeful Walt Siemens, saying “you don’t want to emphasis the negatives but some- times it comes out that way.” D’Arcy makes no comment on the flyer, saying “I try to stay clear of petty bickering.” Westar confirms that it is negotiating with the Midway- based Pope and Talbot Ltd. for the sale of the timber com- pany’s-assets. Westar later shutdown its Castlegar opera- tion, citing the bad economy for the loss of 240 jobs at the Castlegar-based South Wood Products sawmill. Castlegar city council agrees to hold discussions with —local service clubs to try to address the need for more low-cost housing. Local Canada Post workers hit the bricks as part of a nation-wide protest for better wages and benefits packages. Premier Rita Johnston flies into Castlegar Airport as the campaign for her re-election heats up. Thrums resident Michael Gilfillan is released from prison after spending 16 days behind bars for protesting log- ging activity in Lasca Creek, northeast of Nelson. Gilfillan was jailed after refusing to sign papers that stated he would not return to the Lasca Creek site, where Atco Lumber Ltd. was building a logging road. - Ed Conroy is off to Victoria after taking the Rossland- Trail riding with 4,440 votes more than Chris D’Arcy. Socred Walt Siemens comes in a distant third with 3,190 votes, while the Green’s Angela Price receives just 685 bal- lots. Castlegar superintendent of schools Terry Wayling announces plans for his retirement as the head of School Dis- trict No. 9 effective Sept. 30, 1992. Wayling has been the head of the Castlegar board for nine years. Earthquakes begin rumbling through the Kootenays _ ve the largest quake registers at a mere 2.5 on the Ritcher scale. Another gas leak at Celgar Pulp Co.’s éxpansion site prompts a one-day walkout by workers upset over work conditions and the release of eight contractors. DECEMBER NOVEMBER Radon becomes a hot topic in November when it is discovered the B.C. Ministry of Health has installed detec- tion meters in all Castlegar schools in an effort to detect the odorless, cancer-causing gas. The Robson-Raspberry Ferry Users Ad Hoc Com- mittee is in for a difficult month and a half. The commit- tee, which had been campaigning for the ferry’s return for three years, calls upon newly-elected Premier Mike Har- court to live up to his promise and restore the vessel. The Regional District of Central Kootenay comes ~ out in opposition to pesticide spraying along highways in the West Kootenay. The RDCK said it couldn’t approve any spraying Without receiving more information on the proce- dure: A decision on pesticide spraying is put on hold until the spring. Asecond information picket in as many weeks inter- rupts work a Celgar Pulp Co.’s expansion site. The picket, set up at the entrance to the expansion site, is erected by _ local Teamster members who are dismayed over the lack of jobs. The Castlegar and District Heritage Society comes dangerously close to disbanding in November as it strug- gles to find a new executive. The search for new active members continues. Castlegar seniors take a bold step forward with discussions for a new centre proposed to be located adja- cent to the Community Complex. ° Castlegar-city council announces that it plans to hold a paving referendum in a month. The referendum will ask citizens to approve a plan that would see the city borrow- ing $1,286 million from the province to pay for the first two years of a five-year road rehabilitation program. Selkirk College enters a new era announcing it had awarded a $2.76 million contract to a Winnipeg company for the construction of a new education wing. The News ushers in a new look, introducing front- _ page color photos, as well as two new sections — Our Peo- ple and Work Place. The new look is all part of The News’ continuing commitment to our community. Castlegar adopts a new theme for the 90s, as the city and local merchants agree on a plan that would see a downtown revitalization project completed by 1995. The ‘clean and green-plan’ has a price tag of $3.7 million. After co-founding CKQR Radio in 1969, Gordon Brady announces that the CRTC has approved the sale of the Castlegar station, effective Dec. 27. The countdown to Christmas comes early for Selkirk College. The annual Festival of Trees gala fundraiser helps the Selkirk College Foundation raise over $10,000 to go towards bursaries for needy students. Castlegar city council announces plans to hold areferendum for anew RCMP building in 1992. The new building is being proposed for a vacant lot set between the Bank of Montreal and city hall. Gerry Rempel is officially named Castlegar’s new fire chief on Dec. 4, replacing Bob Mann. Rem- pel is hardly a new face to Castlegar. He began his firefighting career in the city 14 years ago. West Kootenay Power make the news in De- cember, announcing that it is seeking a hefty rate in- crease effective Jan 1. The proposed rate increases would see the utility up its fees by as much as 14.9 per cent over two years.. The much-discussed Castlegar mall is in the works again. Developer Sandy Reid announces that he plans to have the 20-store mall open by the fall of 1992. Known as the Southcentre Mall Shopping Centre, the structure is to be built on Columbia Avenue, across from the Blue Top Burger. The price tag for the 65,000 square-foot malt is ex- pected to be between $10 and $12 million. The Tarrys Volunteer Fire Department gets an early Christmas gift when it learns it will receive a $27,000 grant which will help purchase the Jaws of Life. The Kootenay Broadcasting System captures the spirit of giving in December, announcing that it would hold the first annual Campaign for Life start- ing Jan. 6. The campaign is designed to help raise new equipment funding for the area’s six regional hospitals. Referendum ’91 is a. dissater for the city of Castlegar. The road rehabilitation program was de- feated by a majority of voters who bothered to make their way to the polls Of the city’s 4 500 Oakebic voters, only 856 turned out to cast ballots in the referendum which would al- low the City to repair aging roads. Of the 856 voters, the referendum was defeated by 82 votes, 461 to 379. That negative result, which came as a complete surprise to city council, puts the future of a RCMP building referendum in doubt. Is one fire hall better than two? According to the city it is. Castlegar announces that it is study- ing the possibility of merging the city’s two halls in- to one central station. The fate of Kinnaird Hall is debated again with discussions centering around the merits of preserv- ing the hall at a cost of $79,000. Preserving the hall is just one of three plans city council will decide on in January. The others are having it declared a her- itage site by the province or to have it destroyed. The fight for the Robson ferry is over. Much to their dismay, members of the Robson-Raspberry Ferry Users Ad Hoc Committee learn on Dec. 20 that . the vessel would not be returned to the area. That announcement sparks an angry debate as members of the committee accuse Premier Mike Harcourt of betraying them. The committee says it will take steps to reopen a lawsuit against the province to have the ferry re- turned. Peas DONATION 1 p FOREST, Mi