Wednesday November 4, 2015 (Vol. 40 No. 88)
V O I C E
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W H I T E
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S O U T H
Mapping the changes: Redrawn provincial electoral boundaries before the legislature will mean a new Surrey South riding – and a ninth MLA – to represent Surrey residents. i see page 9
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
Truck-park proponents assure development would only proceed once all concerns are addressed
Diesel spill sparks more criticism Tracy Holmes Staff Reporter
Tracy Holmes photo
David Anderson and Brian Coote at spill site.
A collision last week on 16 Avenue involving two dump trucks and a minivan highlights concerns around a truck-parking facility proposed for the area, residents say. “That they’re even considering this is an outrage to us,” said Brian Coote, spokesman for the newly formed Friends of Hazelmere and Campbell Valley. “There’s just so many reasons that this is the wrong site.”
The crash occurred around 8 a.m. last Wednesday, when the dump trucks, travelling in opposite directions east of 192, sideswiped each other. The impact caused one to swerve into the oncoming lane and hit a minivan. While police said injuries weren’t serious, residents say the diesel that spilled from one of the truck’s ruptured tanks into the nearby Little Campbell River is. “It was smashed and it was empty,” Phillip Milligan, president of the Little Campbell
Watershed Society, said of the 380-litre tank. Milligan didn’t know how much fuel was actually in the tank at the time of the collision, however, “certainly, a lot of it drained right down the hill and into the river.” However, according to City of Surrey officials, a work crew responded to the scene only for fuel on the road. “They don’t think anything made it into the river,” spokesman Oliver Lum said Thursday. i see page 5
Dealing with tragedy
Cadieux defends ministry Alex Browne Staff Reporter
Surrey-Cloverdale MLA Stephanie Cadieux – who has also been Minister of Children and Family Development for the past three years – is well aware of recent criticism levelled at her ministry. The death of 18-year-old Alex Gervais, who jumped or fell from a hotel room window in Abbotsford; the suicide of 19-year-old Carly Fraser, who died the day after she was out of provincial care; and the death of 15-yearold Nick Lang, six days after he Stephanie Cadieux entered a govfamilies minister ernment-funded drug rehab program, are among cases that have put the ministry under a microscope in recent months, with family members calling for public inquiries and an overhaul of policies. Earlier this year, the mother who won a lawsuit against the provincial government after social worki see page 4
Boaz Joseph photo
Protesters gather on the steps of city hall in North Surrey, rallying to save Riverside Golf Centre, which is forced to close after expropriation.
Golf course owner says Surrey paid $3.25 million to expropriate 16 acres
Riverside protesters teed off at city hall Two dozen protesters gathered on the steps of Surrey City Hall Monday evening to rally against the city’s expropriation of the 16-acre parcel of land that houses Riverside Golf Centre. Ken Poirier, whose family has owned the 3600 King George Blvd. business for 49 years, arranged the rally after he was told last month he couldn’t appear as a delegation to council because the matter is still before the courts. With a 1,200-name petition in hand, he and his supporters – holding signs that read “Save our Riverside” and “Please talk to us” – arrived
in North Surrey by bus ahead of Monday’s council meeting, but were told they couldn’t come inside city hall with their signs. “Apart from the ruin on our family, they’re doing a disservice to the community,” Poirier told Peace Arch News, noting his family has been given until Jan. 31 to vacate. “We’re trying to show them we have the support of the people who would rather have a golf facility than a freshwater marsh.” Poirier was first notified last January of the city’s plans to “acquire open land for park pur-
poses for biodiversity conservation, passive recreation and the viewing of wildlife and scenery.” After an inquiry in April, the expropriation was completed in June and the City of Surrey now holds the title of the land. According to Poirier, the city paid $3.25 million for the parcel, a fraction of what he believes it is worth. A city lawyer has told PAN Poirier can file a claim if he’s unhappy with compensation. Mayor Linda Hepner said council members have been instructed by legal counsel not to comment. – Melissa Smalley
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