~ SERVING THE CROSSROADS OF THE KOOTENAYS SINCE 1947

CASTLEGAR

Mixture of sun and clouds to-
morrow and Friday. High near 7.

@ OUR PEOPLE

The Brilliant Bridge has not
been used for more than 20
years, but the structure built by
the Doukhobor community
stands as a lasting reminder of
their historical roots in the

Kootenays.
page 9

@ LOCAL SPORTS

The Castlegar Tom Kats
reign as Trail Flag Football

* League champs ended at one
year when they dropped a 26-
13 decision to the Trail Bull-
dogs in the 1992 final Sunday.

page 10
@ ARTS & LEISURE

Walk a mile in your shoes, it
will do you good. With a care-
fully thought out exercise pro-
gram, walking can provide
some excellent results. And
the fall weather is perfect for it.

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Farside
Norman
Letters

Our People
Local Sports
Action Ads
Calendar
Arts & Leisure
Homes

2

6

7

9

10
12

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=

“IC

Wednesday

November 4, 1992

T5¢

News photo by Corinne Jackson

Drying walnuts in a wood furnace located in a garage only resulted in getting them even wetter when a fire broke out last
Thursday. Castlegar volunteer firefighters who attended the fire on the 2800-block of 9th Avenue ended up soaking the nuts.

Mayor says council had time for input

Corinne Jackson
NEWS REPORTER

Castlegar’s city councillors had their chance, according to
Mayor Audrey Moore.

Thursday, she said members of council had the opportuni-
ty to voice any concerns they might have had on the city’s brief
to the provincial government’s Education Funding Review
Panel.

“Members of council all had a copy given to them,” Moore
said.

She said the reports were handed out the same day Coun.
Doreen Smecher left for Cranbrook, but they “were not
lengthy”.

Commenting on the amount of time given to members to re-
spond, she said “it depends on how much interest they had
in it and whether it was a priority item for them.

“If they found items contentious they could have said so,”
Moore said.

School District No. 9 trustees are concerned about the first
part of a brief presented to the provincial government’s edu-
cation funding review panel Oct. 8., and now they want some
answers.

Following.a motion by the board, chairperson Gordon Turn-
er has asked council if, in fact, it officially endorses the items
outlined in the brief.

The report made by Smecher called for the centralization
of school board authority in Victoria.

In‘a letter sent to city council Oct. 22, Turner states, “...
we question why a group such as the city would make sug-
gestions without checking with the school board — or at least
advise us of the position the city is taking.”

As an example of the board’s concern, Turner stated “... we
wonder what difference does it make to the city whether a su-
perintendent is appointed by the province, as you postulate,
or is hired by a local board?”

Trustee Evelyn Voykin said the board has no problem with
the second report on education finances, because council is re-
sponsible for allocating education funds.

When asked if she supported Smecher’s report, Moore an-
swered “I wrote the one on financial issues,” and would not
comment on the first part. .

Voykin wants to know how the brief managed to get to the
review panel. She said Smecher’s report “is in total opposition
to parent interest groups,” recognizing that some city coun-
cillors have also shown concern.

“If we want to work well in the community and build a
strong community, then certainly there should be some in-
tercommunication between governing bodies,” Voykifi said.

The city was scheduled to discuss the issue at Tuesday’s
regular council session but deadline for The News precluded
coverage of the event.

CANADIAN INTEREST IN CELGAR PULP CO. SOLD, PAGE 3