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MARL BULL

WEDNESDAY

December 6, 1995

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The Castlegar Sun

MIXED

Weather

Vol. 6, No. 3

“The weekly newspaper Wilh # dally commitment’

|

-Just A Trim

an ary -y Up - Vickie Pettitt turns on a Christmas tree light | in memory of hus- band Gordon who died Oct. 18. The tree is located at the Castlegar Hospice Soci- ety. For a donation to the society, donors will be able to light up a tree bulb in

memory of a late loved one.

Students make pitch

Condoms may be available at SHSS

KAREN KERKHOFF Sun Staff Senior high students in Castlegar may be able to buy condoms in school restrooms. At a meeting held Monday evening, six Stanley

comments such as:

+ We don't need to provide them with con- doms and give them our blessings for their sexu- al conquests.

* The sale of condoms, I’m afraid, will pressure the younger students to have sex at an earlier age.

Humphries Secondary School peer pre- sented results of a stud survey,

This p put on the stud through the sale of by School District #9, in my eyes is equiv-

conducted last year, to the Castlegar school board.

According to the survey of 184 parents and 386 SHSS students, almost 73 per cent of parents and 67 per cent of students wanted condom machines installed in the school.

Prior to the students’ presentation, public health nurse Cindy Talarico told the board there are five New teenage moms and 20 diagnosed cases of sexu- ally transmitted diseases in the Castlegar school dis- trict already this year.

Talarico also told trustees exposure to the HIV virus has increased in the Castlegar area and pointed out that while neyer 100 per cent safe, will

alent to rape.

Parents who agreed with installing the machines said:

+ Sex is natural, but AIDS kills.

+ Condoms in today’s society can make a differ- ence between life and death.

Peer counsellors told the board the mac! cost $365 each and will cost $100 to stock with con- doms. The counsellors assured trustees the cost of the machines would be recouped through sales with profits being returned to the board for reimburse- ment of the machines. They also told trustees oné

shine would be i lied in each the boys’ and

help decrease the spread of sexually transmitted dis- eases (STD) and HIV.

“A number of young people in our area have been exposed to HIV through sexual activity with injec- tion drug users,” she said.

Although those exposed to the virus haven't yet developed full-blown AIDS, Talarico said it’s only a matter of time before Castlegar’s AIDS statistics echo those of Creston, in which the HIV virus and full blown AIDS among teens is on the rise.

Included in the survey results were comments from students and pega

Parents

machines i

PP

girls’ restrooms.

Evelyn Voykin, the new board chairman, com- mended the students on their presentation and said a decision will be forthcoming at the next board meet-. ing on Dec. 18.

Voykin pointed out that condoms by themselves aren't the answer and asked students how they intended to get that message across.

Counsellors suggested a warning, advising pur- chasers that condoms aren't 100 per cent safe, could be affixed to each machine

As of survey results will be included in SHSS student report cards.

RDCK unveils land plan

TRENT BANCARZ

Sun Editor

The Regional District of Central Kootenay hopes it has a framework for future development on Castlegar's periphery.

The regional district unveiled its draft Kootenay- Columbia Rivers Official Community Plan at a pub- lic

‘SUN STAFF PHOTO /Karen Kerkhott

Resident rescues motorists

unlikely coer mae rson, 36, an employee

of the Castlegar Red Cross, was returning from a seminar in Cre- ston and was near the Salmo-Cre- ston summit at around 3 p.m. when she saw a sight that made her blink her eyes in disbelief.

“There in the middle of a lane a car had stopped,” said MacPherson.

Slowing her _ vehicle, MacPherson said she noticed “two little gray heads” in the front seat of the car. Proceeding to the car by foot, she noticed one woman resting her head against the window, while the other appeared to be looking around. When she reached the car and asked the women if she could help, she heard a confused tale that’s paradoxically humor- ous and frightening.

As the ladies told their tale, MacPherson noticed they weren't dressed appropriately for the winter.

“They had no winter jackets on

fluid. She waved down a high- the vehi-

MacPherson asked the two ladies where they were going.

“Kelowna,” they replied.

She then asked them where

know where they lived, nor their phone numbers.

‘The passenger Mina is partially blind, said MacPherson, but wasn't as confused as Jean, the

“I told her to look at the street signs, but she didn’t listen to me! I have never been in such a fix,” complained Mina to MacPherson.

MacPherson brought the two up to the highways camp at the summit where workers supplied the two with warm tea, sandwich- es and much-needed restroom facilities.

She continued to try, unsuc- cessfully, to find out precisely

and one was wearing bed: Slippers,” she said. “They were very, very, confused.” MacPherson decided to move the women's car to safety and got behind the wheel. The car was out of gas and the windshield covered in mud with no washer

where in Kel the two lived. Then, a stroke of unbelievable luck occurred. While one of the ladies was pting to write i down, her pen ran out of ink. MacPherson traded pens with her. That's when she noticed the

name and address of a Kelowna retirement home on the side of the pen she had just been handed.

“I phoned the home and they said the two had been missing since the afternoon the day before.”

The home contacted the fami- ly of one of the women who agreed to travel from her home in Revelstoke to Kelowna to meet her mother if someone would put her on a Greyhound bus. However, the women would have to wait till the next morm- ing to catch a bus.

“So I called: my mom, who has two extra bedrooms, and asked her if she could keep them for the night,” explained MacPherson. The next morning MacPherson put the two women on the bus after carefully explaining the situ- ation to the driver.

“TI told the bus driver to watch them, and if they got off before Kelowna to get them back on the bus.”

The driver's reaction was understandable.

“He gutted himself laughing,” she said.

She deflects the praise for her deeds and minimizes her efforts that day, saying her actions aren't heroic, nor out of the norm

“I think most people would have done it,” she said.

Mina and Jean are now back at home safe and sound and are none the worse for wear.

proposed plan repl: Fringe Official Settlement Plan Bylaw. — Fhe proposed plan affects the communities of Raspberry, BI ty Creek, Fairview, Ootischenia and Brilliant.

Dave Wahn, a land use planner with the regional district, explained the proposed bylaw serves several purposes, one of which is giving residents more say in future development that affects them.

“Having a rezoning process gives people a say in he of their ies,” said Wahn-~ “People who want a certain lifestyle can be grouped together with minimal effects to others. Planning used to be a t approach. Now we need and want the public to tell us what they want.”

‘Wahn also said the new plan attempts to put both order and efficiency into future planning.

“If you allow helter skelter development, you may get more roads or power lines than you need,” he said. “If done efficiently, official community plans can minimize the costs to taxpayers.”

Another feature of the proposed bylaw is develop- ment costs will be borne by developers rather than municipal taxpayers. The draft calls for utility instal- lations and roads be the ibility of developers before subdivision or other developments are approved.

In addition, the proposed plan secks to retain “the rural and agricultural character of the affected

“We're trying for limited commercial and indus- trial development in rural areas,” said Wahn. “Basi- cally, we don't want to see a lot of development

Time short for

KAREN KERKHOFF _ Sun Staff

Time is running out for the pilot and five passen- gers of an American Rockwell 700 plane which went missing northeast of Castlegar Nov. 28

Capt. David Krayden of CFB Comox, said moun- tainous terrain, unstable weather and snowy condi- tions. have combined to increase the urgency of the 225 square-mile search, extending from the Cran- brook area across to the Canada-U.S. border.

“It’s a tedious and difficult search,” said Krayden

Decreasing hours of daylight coupled with the rapid approach of winter are also a factor.

“You better be assured this is an urgent search

unless it's done right.”

Specifically, development around the airport and Ootisch i the q and answer period. Much of the land around both places is des- ignated agricultural reserve and is under the jurisdic- tion of the provincial land commission. Also,

water around O. were discussed.

“We are adamant the regional district retain con- trol over the use of lands adjacent to the airport,” said Ken Wyllie, the regional district's Area J Direc- tor. “It's a big_issue considering the aquifer under Ooteschenia.”

A couple residents expressed concern about heavy trucks being parked atop the well in Ootische- nia on what is currently Crown land. The trucks used to be washed in the same spot, but that practice ceased a couple years ago

Wyllie further said any commercial/industrial development in the area should be directly accessi- ble by existing major highways and roadways.

“What we don’t want is what's across the river now (in the City of Castlegar),” said Wyllie. “I don't think we want that on our side of the river.”

Another resident disagreed with the plan’s pro- posal to consolidate large lots into smaller ones in the area. But Wahn explained the suggestion was made to ease Provision of utilities to the area.

Other d the draft’s p

q to set up buffers of 15 metres from creeks. A Blueberry Creek resident suggested the buffers be further back yet.

Another resident asked if flexibility existed in the bylaw to adapt to changing conditions.

“A plan is only as good as how it’s developed,” replied Wahn. “It needs to change and be re-evaluat- ed. Some people think you draft a plan and never change it, but I'm not one of them.”

The regional district will take the public's input and revise the draft bylaw. Both Wyllie and Wahn said the final version of the bylaw would likely be

passed by spring.

missing plane

Time is not on our side.”

The Rockwell and its passengers went down on a flight from Calgary to Portland at about 6:45 p.m.

Krayden said a written and verbal transcript of the last communication from the pilot revealed no leads.

Although the search team has nothing “tangible” to work with, Krayden and the searchers continue to hope there are survivors and is encouraging family members to hold on to that hope

“We never give up hope. The families are feeling a sense of uncertainty of the unknown. They are uncertain, but have a large degree of calm.”

The search will continue until either the passen-

See PLANE A2

Support the firefighters' toy drive Saturday, Dec. 9