Shut down Nationwide closures leave Langford staff in the lurch Page A7
COMMUNITY: Teens give a rugby try A3 ARTS: In the swing of things with Django Fest A17 SPORTS: Royals players find a balance A21
GOLDSTREAM Wednesday, February 6, 2013
NEWS GAZETTE
Offer Expires Feb. 19, 2013
GG2
Breaking news at GOLDSTREAMGAZETTE.COM
Resort plan meets friction Group dismayed over design changes to remove nine golf holes Kyle Wells News staff
Bear Mountain Holdings plan to remove nine holes of golf to make way for lowdensity housing is meeting some resistance from residents, but the company maintains it’s the only viable choice for the Langford community. In November 2012 executives of the resort and residential community unveiled plans to turn 36-holes of golf to 27 to accommodate a new development plan moving away from a 2006 apartment-heavy design. In response, more than 300 residents of Bear Mountain have come together to form the Bear Mountain Community Association, which is opposed to the plan and spearheading a campaign to stop a rezoning application with the City of Langford.
Prepping for the bridge rebuild
PLEASE SEE: Clash over Bear Mountain plan, Page A5
John Finlayson from Bartlett Tree Experts cuts a tree on the corner of Gorge Road on Thursday to make way for replacing Craigflower Bridge and upgrading Admirals Road. The first phase of the bridge replacement involves building a temporary pedestrian bridge across the Gorge Waterway in April.
Sharon Tiffin/News staff
Langford man not guilty in sex assault Kyle Wells News staff
James Derek French has been found not guilty of charges of sexual assault and sexual interference of a minor. Judge Susan Wishart explained her decision in Western Communities Courthouse on Thursday, Jan. 31.
Outside the courthouse, French expressed relief that it was over and that his name has been cleared. He said the trial has affected his ability to get work. “It’s been a tough go for me having to live like that. I didn’t do anything,” French said. “I made some poor decisions, yes, of course,” he said, but maintained he had done nothing crimi-
nal. In what amounted to a case of one word against the other, Wishart found that the complainant’s version of the events could not be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. A 14-year-old girl, who can’t be identified due to a publication ban, accused French of trying to take advantage of her while she
was passed out drunk in his bed in his Langford home. She had spent the evening at French’s house in the company of his son and other friends. French had provided the teenagers with beer. When the girl became ill he offered up his bed for her to sleep in, volunteering to sleep on the couch. French agreed that he had kissed her cheek and at one point
laid beside her, but denied any sexual intentions. He said he treated her no differently than he would his own daughter. He also denied the girl’s accusation that French had tried to remove her shorts, had touched her thigh and at one point undid his own belt. PLEASE SEE: Alcohol a factor, Page A10
On the prowl again.