THURSDAY APRIL 4, 2013
Black Press C O M M U N I T Y
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A31
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NEW FOR QUALICUM BEACH
Fire hall moving forward Council sees some sketches; public gets its chance soon JOHN HARDING editor@pqbnews.com
Town councillors and members of the fire department have seem them — soon it will be the public’s turn. The architectural firm hired by the Town of Qualicum Beach to design the new facility recently presented three possible layouts — building footprints essentially — to council, which then provided some input and asked members of the fire department to have a look and do the same, according to Coun. Dave Willie. Dates for public meetings have not been set, said town spokesperson Patricia Huntsman. While money for the new fire hall has been set aside in the town’s budget, “council wants to look at new grant opportunities that may become available,” said Huntsman. That talk is getting tiresome, said Willie. “I don’t know where that crap comes from and it’s really starting to annoy me,” said Willie. “We are going ahead with the fire hall. It’s not contingent on grants. This is in the budget. It’s the same person (Mayor Teunis Westbroek) who keeps singing the same song (about grants).” The need for a new, safe fire hall was a frontand-centre issue for Willie during the 2011 election campaign. He said this week he’s pleased with how things have progressed. “It can’t go any quicker than this,” said Willie. “Nothing’s ever quick when it comes to government. There is a process to follow.” See WE ARE, page A6
AUREN RUVINSKY PHOTO
PDQ Flyer Bruce Berry with his model airplane encourages people to check out their show in Nanaimo this weekend or stop at their field to see them in action.
MODEL AIRCRAFT
Liquid-fuel-powered fun AUREN RUVINSKY writer@pqbnews.com
They do everything stunt planes can do and more — members of the PDQ Flyers are inviting interested people to see how much fun it can be to fly model aircraft. The current average age of the 60 Parksville District and Qualicum Flyers Association members is about 65, explained PR director Bruce Berry, who said the club is always looking for younger people. The Flyers are presenting some of their latest creations at the Nanaimo North Mall (formerly Rutherford) this Saturday to reach out to potential members. They won’t be flying planes in the mall but they will showcase their building skills.
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Berry got into the hobby about 10 years ago when he went to a fly-in event at Springwood Park in Parksville and he’s been hooked ever since. “The technology has really advanced, especially with electric engines, even just in the last ten years,” he said, pointing out that while at least two-thirds of their models are liquid fuel powered, the electric ones are a lot quieter and simpler to start flying. He suggests the cost is probably the biggest hinderance for younger people, with fancier models getting into the thousands of dollars, but there is a wide range and people can start from scratch, with kits or buy ARFs (almost ready to fly) packages that are simple to assemble. See FROM HAND-SIZED, page A7
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