N E W
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 18, 2013
W E S T M I N S T E R
INSIDE TODAY: The 2013 Guide to Giving P11
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WHAT WAS THE STORY OF THE YEAR IN NEW WEST?
You pick the top story
I
t’s an annual tradition as common as turkey and presents, but this time we are adding a twist. While The Record staff select their choice, we want readers to vote on their top pick for News Story of the Year. And this year there’s quite the selection. Among them are the devastating downtown fire that destroyed half a block, including the iconic Copp’s shoes building. It left the city reeling but also showed how much locals come together during difficult times. Then there is the internal feud at Hyack, which had more twists and turns than a May Queen’s ringlets. Another year, another bout of budget woes at the New Westminster school district, but this time getting through it would require more than just another slash to supply budgets. The district had to cut approximately 62 jobs – about eight per cent of its workforce – to balance this year’s budget, and the district still owes the provincial government almost $5 million for previous shortfalls. A proposed coal facility directly across the river at Fraser Surrey Docks got locals burning mad. City council and residents oppose the project and are demanding an environmental impact assessment that takes a thorough look at the environmental and health
impacts of the proposals. The railway was here long before most families arrived in the Royal City, but it continues to make headlines. Rail noise has long been an issue among residents, but safety concerns and the transportation of dangerous goods by rail became a cause for concern after the tragedy in Lac-Megantic, Que., in July and other derailments. Transportation is often one of the most-cited concerns for residents, and 2013 was no different. The opening of the new Port Mann Bridge saw traffic volumes surge on the Pattullo Bridge, which translated into gridlock around the city during most rush hours, as many motorists opt to cross the Fraser River for free rather than pay tolls on the region’s newest bridge. Now we want to hear from you: What story strikes you as being the most newsworthy, the most important story to the residents of the Royal City? Take our poll online at www.royalcity record.com (see poll on page 3) and send us your thoughts via our website or our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/ RoyalCityRecord. Weigh in on what you think was critical news this year. We’ll post your picks and our picks in the Dec. 27 newspaper.
Contenders:
Alix Cote, with a bird’s-eye view from her condominium, snapped this photo, above, as the fire tore through a historical block. At left, Hyack saw board members embroiled in a dust-up that started when the executive director was fired.
Children’s advocate needs govt. to ask for review
Turpel-Lafond is open to a closer look at use of ‘safe rooms’ in city schools BY NIKI HOPE REPORTER
nhope@royalcityrecord.com
B.C.’s children’s watchdog says she would be willing to review the use of isolation rooms for special needs students in public schools. Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond, Representative for Children and Youth British Columbia, would give “serious con-
sideration” to heading an inquiry if asked by the government. “It isn’t in my mandate, just because I don’t really have oversight of the school system. However, I do have the ability to do special reports and investigations when directed or asked by, say, government,” Turpel-Lafond told The Record. “I’ve seen the call from the Opposition critic, and I believe the community organization that did the survey (Inclusion B.C.), but I haven’t been asked by government. I’d give serious consideration to it, if I was asked, but I haven’t been.” Inclusion B.C.’s executive director, Faith Bodnar, and the NDP’s education critic,
Rob Fleming, put out the call last week that Turpel-Lafond be asked to review the use of safe rooms, which are used in schools throughout British Columbia, including in New Westminster, for students with special needs. For Bodnar, one of the issues is the fact that there isn’t a provincewide policy on the use of the rooms, and there is no tracking system in place. (The issue isn’t related to students who may want a space they can go to be alone.) Bodnar’s agency conducted a survey, which more than 300 parents and guardians responded to.After the results were revealed last month, Premier Christy Clark promised
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a probe into the use of the rooms. The survey responses paint a grim picture of how special needs students, ranging from age five to 19, are sometimes treated in public schools, including reports of being dragged to rooms, physically restrained and pushed. “I guess it’s really up to government in terms of how it wants to respond to these issues,” said Turpel-Lafond, who read the Inclusion B.C. survey responses. “It’s a significant concern,” she said, and cited a report she did earlier this year on a boy in foster case who had been restrained
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