Join the celebration; tickets start at $17
NOV. 24 - 28 Pacific Coliseum DEC. 3 - 5 Abbotsford Entertainment and Sports Centre
See Pages 13-16
SPORTS Matt Keith says there’s no place like home Back in the valley and ready to help stoke the Heat
2010
1985
T UESDAY , O CTOBER 12, 2010
28 Pages
Page A24
YOUR SOURCE FOR LOCAL NEWS, SPORTS, WEATHER AND ENTERTAINMENT abbotsfordtimes.com
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APD embraces tough new driving laws RAFE ARNOTT RArnott@abbotsfordtimes.com
A
bbotsford police pulled over roughly 1,000 vehicles over two weekends recently, handing out 40 immediate roadside prohibitions. The traffic stops took place at the end of September and the beginning of October, and were part of a push by the department to enforce tough new provincial legislation targeting drunk drivers,
PUMPKINS
Const. Ian MacDonald said. Police would be manning specific vehicle stops pertaining to specific aspects of the new legislation, MacDonald said, in addition to traditional patrol duties. Reading off a list of statistics, he said officers implemented breathalyzer tests and found close to half of those tested were affected by the new laws. “We had 19 people pass through the screening, 11 people warned and two people fail,” he said.
“As a percentage, 13 of 32 fell into “We’ve seen our patrol shifts use the warn or fail category.” the tool quite effectively as well.” Three people were issued 24-hour Saying the numbers speak for suspensions for drug themselves, Macuse, 34 violation tickDonald added that “As a percentage, 13 of ets were written, four the department tickets were issued for 32 fell into the warn or would continue to vehicle deficiencies and proactively admin10 drivers had their cars fail category.” ister roadside towed to impound for checks and Couneligible driving infrac– Const. Ian MacDonald APD ter Attack shifts for tions. enforcing the new Implementing porlegislation. table alcohol-screening devices dur“One thousand drivers and vehiing general-duty hours is providing cles checked in just over a six-day officers with another tool to keep period, I think [speaks to our comroads safe, MacDonald said. mitment.]”
TRYING TO AVOID BEING SQUASHED
Housing market sees small increase
But inventory keeps dropping
A
fter a slowdown in July and August, the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board (FVREB) saw a mode s t m o n t h - ov e r- m o n t h i n c re a s e i n s a l e s o n i t s Multiple Listing Service in September and a decrease in overall inventory for the fourth month in a row. “This is the beginning of the fall market. Our s a l e s, w h i l e l owe r t h a n a typical September, are up compared to the summer and the average days to sale for single detached homes decreased slightly compared to August,” said FVREB president Deanna Horn.
First reported @
abbotsfordtimes.com
– RAFE ARNOTT/TIMES
Noe Castro piles pumpkins sky-high at Maan Farms recently. The early fall sunshine and warm temperatures have contributed to an excellent crop of ripe pumpkins, Davinder Maan said. The farm is open every day until Halloween, and features a petting zoo with goats, sheep, a donkey, rabbits and pigs, plus a corn maze, along with pumpkin patch tours. Maan Farms is located at 790 McKenzie Rd. in Abbotsford.
A total of 1,044 sales were processed on FVREB’s MLS in September, an increase of five per cent compared to 997 sales in August, however a decrease of 34 per cent compared to 1,590 sales in September of last year. The board received 2,411 new listings last month, a 15 per cent increase from August, yet a nine per cent decrease compared to September 2009. September finished with 9,959 active listings, three per cent fewer than in August and an increase of 13 per cent compared to the 8,799 properties available in September 2009. see HOUSING, page A12
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