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THURSDAY, APRIL 04, 2013
Easter eggs hunted at the village
Proudly serving Williams Lake and the Cariboo-Chilcotin since 1930
VOL. 83. No. 27
$1.30 inc. TAX
EASTER BUNNY VISITS SENIORS’ VILLAGE
There was Easter fun for all ages at the Williams Lake Seniors Village on Monday this week, when staff and residents organized an Easter egg hunt for approximately 15 kids — the children and grandchildren of people who live there, and people who work there. The youngsters ranged in age from toddlers to pre-teens, and were joined by an exuberant ‘Easter Bunny’ to search for treats and treasures in the sunny courtyard outside the bistro. Village staff member Neysa Hale wore a unique, colourful Easter bunny suit, designed and customsewn by her brother, Troy for their brother’s stag party in Williams Lake. Residents gathered in the courtyard to watch the hunt, cheering on and encouraging the kids with their brightly coloured bags and pails.
Inside the Tribune NEWS A2 Chickens in the city discussed. SPORTS A9 Mt. Timothy hosts year-end bash. COMMUNITY A15 Ryan Oliver concert next week. Weather outlook: More rain and clouds are expected through Saturday this week.
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LeRae Haynes photo
There was a bright pink bunny hopping about at the Williams Lake Seniors’ Village on Monday among family and friends who staged an Easter egg hunt for children and grand-children of staff and residents. See story at left.
HST removal met with mixed reaction LeRae Haynes Special to The Tribune Reaction in the lakecity to the official cancellation of the HST tax in B.C. this week has been mixed. Changing from HST back to PST and GST was a challenging process for some small businesses in Williams Lake, including Wise Owl Toys. Owner Sandy Fehr spent 16 hours over Easter weekend changing their point-of-sale program to accommodate the tax shift — something she said they have had to do twice in three years. She added that they’re a small business with a less complex point-of-sale program that
couldn’t be changed by pushing a single button. “I expect that the HST will come back,” Fehr said. “I don’t think that people were upset with the tax itself — it was the way it was implemented. “People felt that the government was running over them. If they don’t bring it back after the election, I’m sure our taxes will go up. I hope I’m wrong.” Downtown Business Improvement Association Executive Director Judy O’Neil noted she has spent hours touching base with downtown businesses and said that everyone’s talking about the tax change. “Some are happy and others say it’s no different — just more paperwork,” O’Neil said. “Re-
sponses are all over the place. I heard one shopper say that everywhere he’s been, stuff is cheaper, like coffee and stamps. “Another customer said: ‘In three more years they can apply to get it back — maybe next time they’ll get it right.’” Laketown Furnishings owner Bob Sunner said that getting rid of the HST is a step back: a regressive, counter-productive measure. He said that although his store system is so basic that it wasn’t a big programming effort, it was just one more unnecessary task. “The HST, in my opinion, was a simpler form of taxation,” Sunner said. “For people who are forced, without any compensation to collect taxes simplicity means less
work and less expense. “I don’t think the strategy of the HST was a bad one; I think it benefitted British Columbians, especially when I heard that by switching over we’d actually received a lot of money from the federal government to entice us to do so. But I think the implementation went awry,” Sunner continued. “I am very opposed to the switch back to the HST.” Cariboo-Chilcotin MLA candidate Charlie Wyse is happy the HST is gone. “Today we’re celebrating the fact that B.C. said: ‘You don’t have the right to make this tax See HST Page A3