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MERRITT HERALD FREE
THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2012 • MERRITT NEWSPAPERS
Seib seeks out-of-court resolution By Phillip Woolgar THE HERALD
reporter@merrittherald.com
MUD BATH The North West Mud Racing Association’s Merritt event on Saturday and Sunday was such a hit organizers want to bring it back next year. Over 300 spectators attended the event held at the former Mountainfest grounds to see vehicles racing through the mud. For more information and photos see Page 10. Jade Swartzberg/Herald
City agrees to fund summer talent contest By Jade Swartzberg THE HERALD
newsroom@merrittherald.com
The City of Merritt has agreed to fund Burst-into-Site’s proposed “Clash of the Talents” contest, which will span a six-week period this summer. The entertainment event plan, submitted by Anthony and Christine Abraria who own the home-based company Burst-intoSite, outlines a four-round talent contest geared towards generating opportunities for locals to showcase their talents. Though the Abraria’s proposal was the only response to the City’s Entertainment in Merritt call for proposals, at the June 26 council meeting most councillors were optimistic the project would generate
community interest and approved the project and the $10,000 from the City Initiative Funds budgeted for the program. Coun. Alastair Murdoch, however, voted against the proposal and said he didn’t feel that the contest was worth $10,000. “I appreciate [the Abraria’s] enthusiasm, but this concerns me in a number of ways that have nothing to do with the people proposing it,” he said. “I don’t like the direction this is headed — last year we got 16 events for less than $10,000.” In 2011 two separate groups organized the summer concert series known as Music in the Park (at Rotary Park) and Music in the City (at Spirit Square). For 2012, council decided to combine the two events and expand the focus
to include other forms of entertainment and a variety of venues. Council offered up to $10,000 for the program — $2,000 more than the summer music series budgets combined last year. Clash of the Talents will include six shows from July 28 to Sept. 1, which will be hosted at several local venues. During last Tuesday’s discussion, Coun. Norgaard said council was prepared to pay for entertainment and added that the event could help to rebuild Merritt’s community spirit. “If we’re calling for a proposal, we have to expect there will be dollars spent,” she said. “We have Spirit Square and Rotary Park and it would be a shame to leave them sitting there.”
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But Murdoch said paying for an event formerly organized by volunteers would set a precedent for future events. “Are we now going to pay people to do the Christmas parade because no one wants to volunteer?” he said. Economic Development Manager James Umpherson said the request for proposal had been advertised since March and the Abrarias were the first to submit anything though he had approached several groups about organizing a summer entertainment program. “We approached three different groups and they all said they didn’t have the volunteer base,” said
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The former head of the Merritt RCMP is undergoing drug treatment, court heard Tuesday as the man’s arraignment hearing was pushed to Sept. 4. Former Staff Sgt. Stuart Seib was charged in January with stealing and using cocaine from a police evidence locker. He is also charged with breach of trust, dating back to June 2010. “My understanding is that Seib is currently attending a treatment centre,” said Crown Council William Burrows. Defense lawyer Shawn Buckley, acting as agent for Port Coquitlambased attorney Neville McDougal, said negotiations are underway to resolve the case without a trial. “Mr. McDougall is waiting for Crown to make a decision on that,” Buckley said. Progress isn’t expected until the next court appearance, which is scheduled for Sept. 4, after Judge Hermann Rohrmoser granted the third extension in the case. Seib has officially resigned from the RCMP and won’t face internal discipline. He took over the Merritt detachment in November 2011 after serving seven years in Clearwater and 18 years with the RCMP. In a letter to the Clearwater Times, Seib said: “I feel it is important that it be known that on Jan. 6 I found myself in a medical crisis. I phoned the sergeant at the Merritt detachment and reported to him what had happened.”
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