THURSDAY, march 7, 2019 Vol. A-75, No. 10
Serving Fort St. John, B.C. and Surrounding Communities
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“The Only Newspaper in the World That Gives a Tinker’s Dam About the North Peace.”
cemetery upgrades designed
huskies on a hungry win streak
naomi shore on starting life over
news A3
sports B1
arts A13
the land records
Police calls down, but crime files up in Fort St. John
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matt preprost editor@ahnfsj.ca
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Jim Little shared his experiences working as a land surveyor in the formative days of the North Peace during the North Peace Historical Society’s sold-out annual general meeting on Feb. 27, 2019. Little ended his presentation by donating an old land use study he helped develop for the region, once ordered to be thrown out by the former Bennett government.
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“I managed to keep some of them. In time, the rest I have will reside at this museum,” Little said, adding other land registers for Fort St. John, Dawson Creek, Chetwynd, and Fort Nelson were given to those communities instead of being sent to Victoria. “I don’t always do what I’m told ... Now, those communities actually have the opportunity to see the land register of history in their own areas without having to make a fancy trip to Victoria, which would cost you a fortune to do, and unlikely most people would ever get the opportunity to see.”
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SD 60 updates new school wish list matt preprost editor@ahnfsj.ca
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A new middle school, a new high school, and replacement schools for Charlie Lake and Ecole Central are the top priorities in School District 60’s latest long range facilities plan. The plan is the district’s wish list for new schools through to 2029, and is required by the ministry of education when districts across the province file their yearly requests for capital money. The plan takes into account enrolment projections, grade configurations, and the current condition of existing schools. “It’s a fairly comprehensive document … to support our capital asks from the ministry,” said Brenda Hooker, secretary-treasurer, at the Feb. 25 school board meeting. The plan identifies a new, 500-seat Northwest Middle School, a new elementary or
Kindergarten to Grade 9 community school for Charlie Lake, a new 800-seat secondary school, and a new 400-seat elementary school to replace Ecole Central. The Northwest Middle School and Charlie Lake replacement school are the district’s top two shortlisted priorities for ministry funding. “We strongly feel that the Northwest Middle School needs to be approved,” Hooker said. “We’d like to get started on planning for that project once the ministry gives us the go-ahead.” That school is planned next to the Margaret ‘Ma’ Murray Community School, and is currently estimated to cost $38 million. Replacing Charlie Lake as a K-9 community school would address the need for more elementary and middle school seats, though it would require changes to student
catchment boundaries. A new school there is estimated to cost between $24 million to $38 million. The school district estimates it would cost $8 million to acquire land for a new secondary school, and another $60 million to build one. It estimates a new school for Ecole Central will cost $24 million. The condition of district schools was last evaluated in 2016, with most listed in either poor or very poor condition. Though schools won’t be reassessed for a couple more years, several have received funding for various upgrades to improve their conditions, Hooker said. The district will continue to seek funding for school upgrades along with building new schools, she said. The school district has around 37 portable classrooms to meet capacity demands.
Province, FNs talk to avoid Site C court action The British Columbia government, BC Hydro, and two Treaty 8 First Nations have entered talks to avoid court action over the massive Site C hydroelectric dam, the Canadian Press reports. The parties were in B.C. Supreme Court on Tuesday, Feb. 26, to set a 120-day trial that was expected to start in 2022. However, a government
news release says the West Moberly First Nations and Prophet River First Nation have agreed to enter into confidential discussions to find alternatives to legal action. The two nations lost a bid last year to secure a court injunction that would have stopped work on the dam project because the judge said if the First Nations lost the chal-
lenge, the project would be needlessly put in disarray. The latest figure on the cost of the dam is $10.7 billion and when complete on the Peace River in northeast B.C. it would power the equivalent of 450,000 homes a year. The release says the parties will continue trial preparations while talks proceed. — Canadian Press
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Police calls were down but criminal files were up in the Fort St. John region in 2018, according to year-end statistics. Fort St. John RCMP responded to just under 13,000 calls for service last year, down 2% from 2017, and continuing a downward trend since 2016. “There’s a few reasons for that, part of it is the changes in the economy, also as well we’ve made some changes in operations at the detachment where we continue to do a lot of proactive work as part of our crime reduction strategy,” Staff Sgt. Steve Perret said at the Feb. 25 council meeting. Year-over-year, however, Criminal Code calls jumped 10% to 4,642 in 2018, which Perret said is the detachment’s crime reduction strategy at work. With call volumes down, officers are spending more time on the road, catching probation scofflaws, and finding prohibited weapons, drugs, and impaired drivers on the road during traffic stops, Perret said. “Our total Criminal Code files have gone up, but in my view, it probably would have been much higher had we not been able to do this proactive work,” he said. Over the last month, there have been three home invasions, two involving firearms, Perret said. Arrests were made and charges are pending, Perret said. One officer recently found two prohibited weapons, including a sawed-off shotgun, during a traffic stop, he added. “By taking those prohibited firearms off the road, we believe we may have prevented some other offences,” Perret said. “So even though our criminal calls are up, I think we’re still on the right track.” The region saw an increase in robbery, common assaults, arson, theft, mischief and fatal accidents in 2018. It saw fewer sex offences, aggravated assaults, break-ins, public disturbances, and drug trafficking and possession offences. See POLICE on A11
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