THE FRIDAY
CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER AWARD 2012
APRIL 6, 2012 www.tricitynews.com
TRI-CITY NEWS Penny for their thoughts
Easter eggs-travaganza
SEE FACE TO FACE, PAGE A11
SEE THINGS-TO-DO GUIDE, PAGE A17
INSIDE Letters/A12 Elaine Golds/A19 Your History/A23 Sports/A42
For the Easter long weekend, fuzzy bunnies and fancy eggs
LEFT: CITY OF COQUITLAM PHOTO; RIGHT: SARAH PAYNE/THE TRI-CITY NEWS
Left: Coquitlam city worker Gerry Townsend holds a rabbit at the Mariner Way shelter. As of Wednesday, the city had nine rabbits available for adoption and it is promoting the message that adoptions are for the animal’s lifetime, not just for a season. See article on page A7. Right: Mike Vinter of Coquitlam holds his pysanky creations — elaborately decorated Ukrainian eggs. More photos and story on page A16.
Grow op nos. down in Coq. City says inspection team is the reason for drop By Janis Warren THE TRI-CITY NEWS
Coquitlam’s efforts to weed out homes found to have high power consumption associated with cultivating marijuana are being credited with a drop in the number of grow ops in the city. Responding to a freedom of information request from The Tri-City News, the city recently
released statistics for its Public Safety Inspection Team (PSIT) showing a dramatic drop in home searches over the past five years. In 2007, the team — made up of fire and bylaw inspectors — searched 124 residences, revoking occupancy permits for 88 homes with grow ops. The number of inspections rose to 166 in 2008 but, last year, inspectors knocked on doors of only 18 homes with high power usage. see TEAM,, page A8
Cops looking for man who tried to lure boy 13-year-old did everything right, says Coquitlam RCMP By Sarah Payne THE TRI-CITY NEWS
Police are advising kids to be careful after a Citadel m i d d l e s ch o o l s t u d e n t reported that he was approached by a strange man in a car while walking home from school last week in Port Coquitlam. The 13-year-old said the man approached him on
March 29 at about 3:30 p.m. and asked him to get in his car. The boy said “no” and walked away as the man drove off. His mother later called police to report the incident. Coquitlam RCMP Cpl. Jamie Chung says the boy and his mother took the right steps. “He stayed calm, kept himself safe, told his mom what happened and was able to give our investigator a good description of the man and his vehicle,” Chung said in a release. see ‘109 109’ ON ON,, page A9
SAFETY TIPS FROM POLICE Coquitlam RCMP are encouraging parents to talk to their children about their safety using the following questions as a guide: • Are your children comfortable saying “no” to an adult? • Do they know what to do if they are approached by a stranger, and how to find safe places if they aren’t close to home? • Does your family have code words in place so younger children know which adults they can trust? • Do your children know not to wear headphones that can distract them from their surroundings? • Do your children practise the buddy system when they’re out without adult supervision? • Do your children know how and when to call 911?