Tuesday February 11, 2014 (Vol. 39 No. 12)
V O I C E
O F
W H I T E
R O C K
A N D
S O U T H
S U R R E Y
w w w. p e a c e a r c h n e w s . c o m
She’s back: Relentless determination of wheelchair tennis star Sarah Hunter has not gone unnoticed – for the second time. i see page 19
Cabbie released after being shot at, kicked and handcuffed during police ‘crack shack’ investigation
Taxi driver ‘feared it was his last day’ Tracy Holmes Staff Reporter
CTV News photo
Rashid Ahmad tells his side of what happened the day a plainclothes police officer shot at his taxi cab.
The lawyer for a cab driver who was targeted by police in White Rock last month says his client was released from custody no more than six to eight minutes after being shot at, pulled from his cab, kicked in the ribs and handcuffed. And police have still yet to provide either Rashid Ahmad or his counsel with any explanation of why officers took the steps to begin with, Deepak Gautam said Friday. “They’re keeping a tight lip on it,” Gautam said. “I don’t know why they reacted like that, but what I can say is this demonstrates the high-handed and callous attitude – they have complete disregard for human life, it shows.” Police Friday would not comment on Ahmad’s version of events. “There’s really nothing for us to add,” Sgt. Peter Thiessen told Peace Arch News. “We’re still investigating that incident and what role everybody played in it.” Ahmad, 50, was among three people – including another man and an
Sarah Massah file photo
One of two shattered windows. elderly woman – taken into custody Jan. 29, during a takedown that police say was part of an investigation into a “known crack shack.” It occurred around noon in the 1500-block of Finlay Street – immediately east of Peace Arch Hospital. Ahmad said he was en route to the Semiahmoo Shopping Centre CIBC with the woman – whom he estimated to be in her 90s – and a man he believed to be her son, when the incident unfolded. An unmarked car passed his cab after he turned off Russell Avenue onto Finlay. It stopped sharply in front of the taxi. i see page 2
Self-storage project not suitable for neighbourhood, say townhouse residents
Criticisms over South Surrey ‘live/work’ plan Alex Browne Staff Reporter
A proposed self-storage development planned for Rosemary Heights’ Live/Work Neighbourhood Concept Plan has raised concerns among nearby residents, who fear the project could attract crime to the area. The Southpointe Mini Storage project for 31 Avenue at Croydon Drive has received third reading from Surrey council, with fourth reading yet to be scheduled. Wayne Mercer, who lives in the Nuvo 2 townhouse development east of the site, submitted a residents’ petition against the development at a public hearing in November. Among points raised are the potential impact on traffic along 31 Avenue (principal access for both the Headwaters condominiums and Nuvo townhouses), the location of the main entrance and the ramp to underground parking, the impact on a riparian area bordering the proposed storage build-
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The Southpointe Mini Storage facility is planned for Rosemary Heights Business Park. ing and whether the market for storage facilities is already saturated. Mercer also raised concerns around the hours of operation, light pollution and the potential for criminal activities or “unauthorized businesses” in and near the storage units. But developer Norm Porter said such con-
cerns are unfounded because of stringent requirements already imposed by the city. Porter noted the project is contingent on a number of conditions, including a servicing agreement, as well as economic factors. Even after fourth reading, he said, plans would need to be assembled before construc-
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tion could start, and that “the building-plan process would take six more months, at least.” Porter said he believes many of the concerns voiced are rooted in outmoded perceptions of storage units and security lighting. “There’s no recorded correlation between criminal activity and modern-day storage facilities,” he said, noting Surrey’s design concepts ensure storage buildings resemble offices, more than the old stereotype of a one-storey, metal-doored storage-unit park. “Modern-day security offers less light pollution than a large parking lot.” The Southpointe plan includes three buildings – a 24,831-sq.-ft. four-storey ministorage building, with two smaller twostorey office buildings on either side of 31 Avenue. A BC Hydro right-of-way between the buildings would be used for parking. Porter noted commercial and light-industrial uses are permitted under current zoni see page 4