INSIDE: War hero’s plaque found . . . but damaged beyond repair Pg. 3 May 14, 2010
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capability coming to theatre 30 3-D 1985-
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LOCAL NEWS, SPORTS, WEATHER & ENTERTAINMENT chilliwacktimes.com
Trustees throw wrench in the works
Maahs, Weins just couldn’t vote for budget BY CORNELIA NAYLOR cnaylor@chilliwacktimes.com
T
wo Chilliwack trustees have thrown a wrench into the approval of next year’s proposed $105 million
school district budget. At Tuesday’s board of education meeting, trustees Heather Maahs and Martha Wiens voted down a third reading of the budget bylaw, forcing the final vote to be postponed until the next board meeting. Maahs said she opposes the budget because it downloads costs onto parents through busing fees and the increased childcare costs that will come out of the extended spring break next year. She also voiced concerns about
“It’s just absolute political grandstanding. All they can have us do is come back for another meeting. It serves no purpose. I’m embarrassed for them both.”
Doug McKay the reduction and shuffling of administrators in the district, a move that has raised concerns among parents in schools that are losing both their principals and vice-principals next year.
“I hope that [the board] will consider the fact that we have stakeholders that are being asked to pay for our deficit and are also being ignored,” said Maahs. “They have to pay for busing. They have
to pay for the extra week of spring break, and yet when they come to a school board meeting and voice their concerns about their administrators, it falls on deaf ears.” Together, the busing fees, extra week at spring break and cuts to principal and vice-principal positions represent an estimated $1.5 million in revenue and savings scraped together by the district to address a $4.7 million budget See SCHOOL, Page 4
Gravel mine gets bad press
WILDLIFE DUCK BLIND?
Well-paying jobs to be created BY PAUL J. HENDERSON phenderson@chilliwacktimes.com
O
Paul J. Henderson/TIMES
This painted turtle sunbathing in Salish Pond earlier in the week was surrounded by an entire duck family but it didn’t seem to bother the reptile one bit.
rganized opposition to a proposed gravel mine in the Chilliwack River Valley continues to swell. More than a thousand people have signed petitions against the gravel mine and discussion about the plan dominated Monday night’s Fraser Valley Regional District area E official community plan (OCP) meeting. “We could definitely tell there is a leaking, oiling, bubbling of resistance,” said valley resident Susan Federspiel, who attended Monday’s meeting. “What was said was more about the positive values that people want to keep up here, See GRAVEL, Page 11
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