THE WEDNESDAY
CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER AWARD 2012
TRI-CITY NEWS CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER AWARD 2012
Students Share skills
Into the Woods
SEE LIFE, PAGE 17
SEE ARTS, PAGE 22
FEB. 6, 2013 www.tricitynews.com
INSIDE
Tom Fletcher/10 Letters/11 A Good Read/18 Sports/26
PoCo taxes to rise 3.63% Draft budget also includes cuts to some expenses By Gary McKenna THE TRI-CITY NEWS
JOHN MORROW/BLACK PRESS
Members of the cheer squad from Dr. Charles Best secondary school in Coquitlam performed on Saturday at Cheer Fest in Abbotsford. More than 1,500 athletes on 106 teams were on hand for this championship event.
The average Port Coquitlam homeowner will see their property tax rise almost $70 this year, according to a draft financial plan presented Monday. The $69.94 (3.63%) increase is for the owner of a single-family home with the statistically average assessed value of $526,175. It includes a $19.29 (1%) levy that the city will use to address its estimated $330-million infrastructure gap. The money will be used to replace and upgrade existing roads, sewers, equipment and facilities that are nearing the end of their lifespans. Under the current draft budget, two new RCMP officers and six new firefighters would also be hired to enhance community safety, according to a city staff report. see $650,000, page 13
Ups and downs in vehicle crime By Gary McKenna THE TRI-CITY NEWS
ICBC has some good news and bad news for Tri-City drivers. The province’s insurance corporation said the number of vehicles that were stolen in this region is down in 2012 com-
New highway signs confuse you? You are not alone: see page 6 pared to the previous year but there has been a dramatic rise in vehicle break-ins, particularly in Port Coquitlam.
In 2011, 290 automobiles were stolen in Coquitlam (190), Port Coquitlam (80) and Port Moody (20), a total that
dropped to 260 in 2012. The biggest decrease was in Coquitlam, which was down 18%, followed by Port Moody, which was down 13% — while Port Coquitlam increased 12%. Coquitlam RCMP Cpl. Jamie Chung told The Tri-City News the overall
decrease in the number of stolen vehicles is attributed to several factors. He credits the bait car program and investigators’ efforts to focus on a small handful of prolific offenders who are generally responsible for a large percentage of the
thefts as reasons for the decline in auto crime. New technology, including immobilizers and keyless ignition buttons, has also played an important role in reducing the number of auto thefts, he added. see TAKE AWAY, page 5
NDP leader Adrian Dix speaks to biz group: page 4