midweek edition WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 22, 2010 Vol. 101 No. 76 • Established 1908 • East
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Wild and Kwasi guy
Cruel pool
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City issues cattle call for modular home builders Councillor notes possible public concern Mike Howell Staff writer
Surrey’s Timber Grove housing project is an example of modular housing.
photo illustration courtesy Coast Mental Health
The city is stepping up its effort to allow the construction of modular homes that would be temporarily erected on city and private lots for the homeless, families seeking affordable housing and artists. Vision Vancouver Coun. Kerry Jang said the city will soon issue a call to companies interested in designing and building pre-fabricated homes. Cost, location, size and number of units has to be decided, Jang said. “That’s the whole point of doing this,” he told the Courier. “Everybody says it’s cheaper to build modular, but is it? So by having proposals come forward, we can actually do the math and look at it.” The public will get a
chance to review the designs before city council decides whether to proceed with a more detailed request for proposals. Jang said he wasn’t sure how residents will react. “Will neighbourhoods accept them? I don’t know,” he said, adding that more information on what he calls a research project will be available in the fall. “We want to make sure there is full public consultation. You just can’t throw this stuff anywhere. We don’t want a huge city going up.” Typical modular homes range from small construction-style trailers to larger townhouse-style housing, complete with kitchens, washroom facilities and laundry. They are built in sections at a factory or onsite and can be easily moved. See COUNCILLOR on page 4
Delays plague probe into police beating of East Side man Yao-Wei Wu suffered serious injuries after VPD constables beat him outside his home Mike Howell Staff writer
The Delta Police Department has been granted a second extension into its probe of two Vancouver police officers who beat an East Side man in a case of so-called mistaken identity in January.
The Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner has given the Delta department until Oct. 23 to complete its investigation of Vancouver police constables, Nicholas Florkow and Bryan London. The case involves Yao-Wei Wu, a floor installer, who suffered serious injuries after the constables
beat him outside his house Jan. 21. Wu and his wife, Chi Nan Man, have since filed a lawsuit against the officers. The original deadline for the investigation to conclude was early July. Then it was extended to Sept. 18. The Delta department requested a second extension Sept. 2 and it was granted by the
police complaint office. Sgt. Sharlene Brooks of the Delta department said the officer conducting the probe is still waiting for “outstanding information” to complete the investigation. Brooks wouldn’t discuss the nature of the information. “Obviously, our objective is to conduct a full, thorough, impartial
investigation and we don’t talk in definitive timelines,” Brooks told the Courier. “It takes as long as it takes and we want to make sure that all things have been explored and all avenues have been pursued and that we have a comprehensive report at the end of the day.” See VPD on page 4
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