FRIDAY OCT 12 2012 VOL. 39, NO. 23
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Fall clean up this Saturday
Lending a hand
Items too large for regular garbage collection can be dropped off
A different kind of break and enter incident
Tire tracks across the creek
ATV and dirt bike enthusiasts come alarmingly close to nature reserve
Exempt or not? Council goes back on decision to grant only 60 per cent exemption to Camp Bow-Isle SUSANNE MARTIN EDITOR
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AppleFest was a huge success and Beck and Finn were eager to help celebrate this year’s harvest. More photos on page 12. Debra Stringfellow photo
Ferry refit plus dock repairs SUSANNE MARTIN EDITOR
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rom October 14, the ferry run between Horseshoe Bay and Snug Cove will be covered by the Bowen Queen as the Queen of Capilano will go for its annual refit until November 20. Councillor and member of the Bowen Island Municipal Ferry
Advisory Committee Alison Morse gave a short verbal presentation to council on Monday, October 9 and said, “BC Ferries confirmed that the Queen of Capilano’s DOT certification will be done at the same time.” At this point, there is no date set for the Queen of Capilano’s conversion to LNG as had been under discussion last December but Darin Guenette, BC Ferries’ manager of
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public affairs, said that the corporation will continue considering the benefits of using LNG on its vessels. “For now, our primary focus is on ‘new builds’, as we could realize the benefits (cost savings) for the entire expected life of the vessel. As for conversion of current vessels from diesel to LNG, we will continue to consider
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ll of the public comment made at the October 9 council meeting related to the issue of permissive tax exemption, specifically to the decision to grant Camp Bow-Isle a 60 per cent exemption rather than the historical 100 per cent the camp has enjoyed for many years. The discussion about permissive tax exemption policy and the step to reduce the exemptions for Camp Bow-Isle as well as Rivendell was made by council at its September 17 meeting. The first speaker on Tuesday morning was Jon Heath, the director of the BC Camping and Recreation Guild for Christian Scientists, also known as Camp Bow-Isle. “We are seeking a solution that will benefit everyone,” he said. “We would like to have you understand that we are part of a network of non-profit organizations that serve this community. These groups provide services that cannot be replaced, and if you would try to replace them, it would be cost prohibitive. They flourish though donations and the hard work of countless members of the community.” Heath pointed out that Camp Bow-Isle is looking back at 52 years of being exempt from paying property tax and acknowledged council’s challenge of reviewing applications for tax exceptions. “You have to look at the merit of the organization and try to decide who is exempt,” he said, adding that he believes that council has always granted tax exemptions to all organizations that applied. “This is first time that council decided that two organizations should not be exempt,” he added. “In the past years, we were always contacted about the decision, this year, we didn’t hear back and it caught us off guard. When we called, we found out that the first reading [of the bylaw] had already taken place.” Heath stated that the cost for Camp Bow-Isle, were the tax exemption kept at 60 per cent, would be in the neighbourhood of $15,000 to $17,000 - a substantial budget item, ranking right behind staff and food costs. “For us, that will be huge,” he said, adding that he sees this as a dangerous precedent. “If you tax the charities, you get the ball rolling and where will it end? Will the elderly get preference over children and will recreation will get preference over art?” Heath added that Camp Bow-Isle has recently worked together with the Bowen Island Community School, in addition to existing partnerships with the Island Pacific School and the Island Discovery Learning Centre. “Especially in recent years, we have brought in as many people
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