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Red Deer Advocate FRIDAY, OCT. 4, 2013
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Teen sentenced for threats TALKED ON FACEBOOK ABOUT OPENING FIRE AT HIGH SCHOOLS BY BRENDA KOSSOWAN ADVOCATE STAFF A short course in anarchy was included in sentencing of a teenager who had threatened to open fire at two Red Deer high schools. The 16-year-old boy, whose name is withheld under provisions of the Youth Criminal Justice Act, was arrested and charged on April 4 by Red Deer RCMP
following up on information from the Calgary Police Service. Officers there had learned that a youth had talked on Facebook social networking site about opening fire at the Lindsay Thurber Comprehensive and Hunting Hills High Schools in Red Deer. Sentencing submissions were heard on Thursday for the teen, who pleaded guilty before Judge David Plosz in Red Deer provincial court on June 13 to uttering threats, possession of a small amount of marijuana and breaching conditions of probation.
Crown prosecutor Jason Snider said the boy had been a student at Lindsay Thurber and was barred from attending the school over disciplinary issues late in 2012. RCMP following up on the Facebook threats found no firearms in his home, so there is some doubt about his ability to carry out his threat, said Snider.
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FREEZE THE HOUSE CHARITY BONSPIEL
FESTIVAL OF TREES
‘Holmes Approved Home’ marketed for fundraiser BY MYLES FISH ADVOCATE STAFF The home being sold in support of the 2013 Red Deer Festival of Trees comes with the stamp of approval of one of Canada’s most famous handymen. Mike Holmes is known for being quite the stickler when it comes to home construction, a trait he has exhibited for more than a decade on television. The newly-built “Trade-itional Holiday Home” at 3 Veronica Close in Vanier Woods East is a “Holmes Approved Home” that the home improvement guru is standing behind and, on Thursday, stood in at the home’s unveiling. “I’ve said it a million times and I’ll say it again: you build your house from the outside-in and not the inside-out, you will have a better home. The look (here) is the inside-out, but we started this house from the outside-in,” said Holmes. The home, built by Avalon Central Alberta, is on the market for $990,000. Avalon will be donating all profits from the sale of the house back to the Festival of Trees campaign. This is the third time that a home is being sold in support of the festival campaign. Before that, the homes were auctioned off.
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Photo By JEFF STOKOE/Advocate staff
Larry Mathieson, left, executive director of Ronald McDonald House Central Alberta, and Peter Kilty, vice-president of Fas Gas Plus gas stations, light the ATCO Gas cauldron at the Red Deer Curling Centre. The two were at the Curling Centre to launch the 3rd Annual Freeze the House Charity Bonspiel presented by Fas Gas Plus. Registration for the fundraising event on Jan. 3-5, 2014, for Ronald McDonald House Central Alberta is open. The goal for this year is $180,000. Over the past two years, the bonspiel has raised a combined $300,000.
Bike lanes take centre stage at mayoral forum BY CRYSTAL RHYNO ADVOCATE STAFF
CIVIC ELECTION
Candidates for Red Deer’s top elected position tackled a number of questions at the first of two planned mayoral forums on Thursday night. But it was the controversial bike lane pilot project that drew most reaction from the more than 100 residents packed into the downtown branch of the Red Deer Public Library. Third-term Coun. Cindy Jefferies explained the over-arching reasons and intentions for trying bike lanes were good. She told the crowd that communication and engagement with the public could have been better. Jefferies said if she had known how much the pilot had aggravated and concerned residents she would have done things differently. “Did we get it right? Absolutely not,” said Jefferies. “Our timing was poor. Why did we end up putting them on the road three days before school went in? I don’t know. Lesson learned.”
While Coun. Tara Veer made it clear she voted against it when the bike lane pilot map came to the city. She gave the reasons of too much change overnight, loss of parking and driving lanes in one vote of council without any general public consultation. “It ultimately polarized our community to be probike or anti-bike,” said Veer. “When I think if we had actually taken some time to look at the broader cycle infrastructure in the community and actually come up with a long-term plan and some phased implementation, we could have accomplished the right outcomes.” Dennis Trepanier said the money spent on the bike lane pilot could have paid for at least seven more police officers in the city. He said there should have been a cost benefit analysis for the bike lanes. On the issue of a living wage policy in Red Deer, Chad Mason questioned the need for another wage
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when there is already a minimum wage in place. Mason said this is part of the provincial not the municipal government’s mandate. He said the city should not spend any time on this issue. “We elect people to make these decisions,” said Mason. “It’s their responsibility. Municipal government has enough to do. We have to look after roads. We have RCMP. The communities who have this obviously do not have enough to do. They are twiddling their thumbs and come up with a (living) wage.” Jefferies argued the communities that have a living wage use it as a lens as one way to look at their community and the affordability of living within their community. “I think that is a useful tool for us to understand and for us to share with businesses and employers in our community,” said Jefferies. “Minimum wage is one thing but what it really costs to live in a city might well be another. It’s important for us to understand and recognize there is a difference.”
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Match Game strikes gold Darrin Rose hosts ‘Match Game’ weeknights on Comedy Network.
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