FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 28, 2012
www.pqbnews.com
Official newspaper of the Save-On-Foods Oceanside Generals
SCORING EARLY, OFTEN
GONE TO POT
Municipal politicians pass motion to decriminalize marijuana
Oceanside United blows out Nanaimo 9-0
A5, A10
A39
PARKSVILLE’S FUTURE
City plan ‘flawed’ Residents’ group builds its own OCP AUREN RUVINSKY
writer@pqbnews.com
“When the city decided to revise the OCP we took a look at it and thought — why revise a flawed document?” – Parksville Resident’s Association’s Al Pastars. The association decided to develop an alternative OCP, and Mayor Chris Burger says he takes “serious issue” with at least part of the document. Pastars says his group is calling its document the Unofficial Official Community Plan, and he handed a copy to city council last week. PRA vice president and chair of their OCP committee, Pastars later explained to The NEWS that when the city’s OCP work started, “we thought we could do a bit of work and give it to the city to run with it, but we kept coming back to it being a bad, flawed document.” See MAYOR, page A6
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AUREN RUVINSKY PHOTO
TOUR STOP: The Tour De Rock, a group of police officers riding throughout the Island to raise money for cancer research, stopped in our district Thursday. Above, the riders take a break at Thrifty’s Foods in Parksville, where store manager Doug Riederer, right, presented the group with a cheque for $4,584. For more on the Tour’s stop in Qualicum Beach, please see page A13. DISTRICT 69 SCHOOL BOARD
Potentially illegal motion on hold LISSA ALEXANDER
reporter@pqbnews.com
Tabling a motion to allow local parents to excuse their children from taking government-mandated tests was a good idea, says District 69’s superintendent of schools. The motion, if passed, could be deemed illegal, said Jim Ansell.
“I’m pleased this is being tabled and reconsidered,” he said. “Advice I have from the ministry and reviewing the school act, this motion would put us in violation of the school act and would therefore be illegal.” The motion was in relationship to the Foundation Skills Assessments (FSA) tests. A successful motion like
the one tabled at the school board meeting this week would also put District 69 principals in a tough spot where they would have to choose between following legal guidelines or following directions of the school board, said Ansell. See ONLY PRINCIPALS, page A8
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