THE FRIDAY
CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER AWARD 2012
TRI-CITY NEWS
MARCH 22, 2013 www.tricitynews.com
CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER AWARD 2012
Do Libs have a chance?
Spring to the market
SEE FACE TO FACE, PAGE 11
SEE THINGS-TO-DO GUIDE, PAGE 21
INSIDE
Letters/12 Tri-City Spotlight/22 Elaine Golds/24 Sports/46
SARAH PAYNE/THE TRI-CITY NEWS
From left, Ray Cerantola of the Port Moody Police department’s Green Team, Tabitha McLoughlin, executive director of the Coquitlam Farmers Market Society, and community garden co-ordinator Lori Greyell stand in the vacant lot next to the Port Moody Police Department headquarters, where there will be a community garden built this spring. For more on this, see article on page 6.
Video game set in school raises some red flags By Diane Strandberg THE TRI-CITY NEWS
A Port Moody secondary school grad is distancing himself from a video he posted of a firstperson shooter game, still in development, that is set in his former high school. The game has been taken down fromYouTube since it first drew attention Wednesday and Aarman Rahim said in an email he didn’t make the game. He also asked that his name not be published because of the potential controversy. see STATEMENT ON SITE, page 3
Coq. bottom of cop stats By Sarah Payne THE TRI-CITY NEWS
The number of police officers in Coquitlam continues to rank at the bottom of the pack compared to other similarsized cities, even though its “cop-to-pop.” ratio increased by seven officers over 2011. O n We d n e s d a y, Statistics Canada released its annual report for police resources across the country. It shows that Coquitlam and Richmond, both
with a ratio of 114 officers per 100,000 residents, had the lowest police-to-population ration of 11 cities with more than 100,000 people. Ratios for other cities in the same category, per 100,000 residents, are (2011 rates in brackets): • Victoria: 229 (232) • Vancouver: 202 (208) • Abbotsford: 156 (168) • Delta: 149 (156) • Surrey: 137 (134) • Saanich: 130 (132) • Burnaby: 128 (131) Port Coquitlam’s ratio remained the second-
lowest in B.C. for populations between 50,000 and 99,999, with a ratio of 102:100,000. Only North Vancouver District’s ratio of 85:100,000 was lower. Ratios for other cities are: • Prince George: 171 (182) • Nanaimo: 168 (171) • New Westminster: 164 (163) • Kamloops: 148 (142) • Maple Ridge: 111 (115) see TRI-CITIES, page 8
IN QUOTES
“The annual release of the [police-to-population] ratios suggests that inputs are more important than results, and we know that’s not STEWART true. We have a very low crime rate, and our residents feel safe and secure.” Coquitlam Mayor Richard Stewart