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Y O U R C O M M U N I T Y N E W S PA P E R • F O U N D E D I N 1 8 9 1 • W W W. T H E P R O G R E S S . C O M • T U E S D AY, F E B R U A R Y 8 , 2 0 1 1
District eyes boundary changes
C ELEBRATING J ULIE ’ S
LIFE
Parents voice concerns Katie Bartel The Progress Students living in Yarrow may soon be switching middle schools. Chilliwack school district is holding a public meeting today (Tuesday, Feb. 8) to discuss a proposed boundary change that would have Yarrow students attending Mt. Slesse middle school instead of Vedder middle, where they currently are. The proposed change is meant to alleviate the pressures of increased enrollment and overcrowding at Vedder middle, as well as to keep Mt. Slesse middle viable. Currently Vedder middle has 652 students with a capacity for 600, while Mt. Slesse has 501 students and a capacity for 650. Mt. Slesse’s population is expected to decline over the next five years as the school didn’t get the boost in enrollment that was projected with the Garrison Crossing and Webster’s Landing developments. “The growth pattern was that it would grow and in fact it hasn’t,” said district superintendent Corinne McCabe. “We’re looking at how we can maintain the Mt. Slesse population and Vedder population at a more equal balance, and also at how we can create a better natural connection for the kids at Yarrow.” Approximately 35 to 40 students would be affected by the change. “It’s not a huge number but it’s enough to keep Mt. Slesse at that critical number of 500 students ... until the growth comes in,” said McCabe. Projections show that even with the students from Yarrow, Mt. Slesse would still stay under its total capacity for at least 10 to 15 more years. If passed, the boundary change would be effective starting September 2011. Inge Friedenstab, president of the Yarrow elementary Parent Advisory Council, said that while she’s not concerned with the proposed change as her oldest child will just be entering middle school next year, she has heard some parental concerns. Continued: PARENTS/ p18
More than 20 members of the Spirit Abreast dragon boat team, all breast cancer survivors, line up to place flowers in a vase and light candles during the Celebration of Life for fellow paddler Julie Houlker at the Best Western on Saturday. Houlker passed away on Jan. 21 after fighting three different forms of breast cancer in the past 15 years. She was one also of three local authors who wrote the book Choosing to Smile. JENNA HAUCK/ PROGRESS
No role in gravel monitoring: mayor Robert Freeman The Progress Did Chilliwack city officials turn a blind eye to permit violations at a Vedder Mountain gravel pit where “over-mining” led to increased fees the city received under its gravel removal bylaw? That’s the question raised by the Vedder Mountain Preservation Group, whose earlier research unearthed permit violations at the site that led to a brief stop-work order issued
in January by the B.C. mines ministry. “Someone in the city knew, or should have known, they were receiving money far beyond the permit, and to just let it happen creates a moral dilemma,” charged Victor Froese, a spokesman for the group. But Mayor Sharon Gaetz replied to the charge Wednesday saying the city “has neither the authority, nor the resources to enforce regulations enacted” by the ministry. “I can understand the frustration that local residents are
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feeling on this matter, but once again, I must re-iterate that this falls under provincial jurisdiction,” she said. “As per practice, we would only monitor activities related to our own bylaws.” Gaetz said in an earlier interview that until recently the city was unaware of the gravel pit’s permit limits. But Froese contends that a covenant between the city and the gravel pit owner compels the city to ensure the quarry is operating “in compliance with any permits issued” by the ministry.
“The city does have a responsibility to monitor the extraction, and the payments (removal fees) that go with it should be questioned,” he said. According to city records obtained by the Vedder Mountain group, gravel removals at the site in 2008 exceeded the permit level by 233 per cent, netting the city an estimated $118,232 in fees, twice the $50,830 expected. “Are we to believe (the city’s) accounting department would not notice this?” Froese asked.
Impress Your Sweetheart!
Continued: GRAVEL/ p17
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