Richmond News May 14 2014

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WEDNESDAY, MAY 14, 2014

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DEVELOPMENT

Autism centre expects to be provincial hub Facility awaits city approval Graeme Wood

Staff Reporter gwood@richmond-news.com

The Pacific Autism Family Centre Foundation hopes to get one step closer to breaking ground on a 60,000 square foot facility on Sea Island after seeking approval from the City of Richmond. The application will go to a development permit panel today and is recommended by staff that it be approved by city councillors. The $28 million building, replete with soft lighting, would be built next to the BCIT Aerospace campus by the non-profit organization, which has raised the money for the facility through private and public funds. The foundation’s CEO, Sergio Cocchia, said $20 million has come from a provincial government grant while the remaining funds will come from donations. A $5 million endowment fund will help kick-start the operations. The facility would be a destination for families affected by Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). It will house clinics, labs, classrooms, observation rooms, research spaces and a library. According to Cocchia, the facility plans to be an important research and service hub in the province. Similar facilities exist across North America but this will be the first of its kind in B.C. “One concern for autism is building capacity for service providers outside of the Lower Mainland,” said Cocchia. The Richmond location will serve eight satellite locations across B.C. through a remote IT health service network. “We’ve engaged a community of about 85 professionals. The centralization will greatly enhance the ability of service providers to reach families,” said Cocchia. According to the foundation’s website, the disorder has a variety of effects on people, including difficulties with communication and social interactions, repetitive interests and activities and stereotypic motor behaviours. see Centre › page 7

Café owner Davood Khatami and chocolatier Dominique Jarry hold up a replica of the World Cup as they kick off the 28-day countdown to the international soccer tournament that will see Steveston transform into a global village. See page 3 and richmond-news.com for the story. Photo by Alan Campbell/Richmond News

POLICE

RCMP brass seek to sack local officer Graeme Wood

Staff Reporter gwood@richmond-news.com

A Richmond RCMP officer with a history of assault is once again in trouble with the law. But this time his superiors are seeking his dismissal. On Thursday the city’s Mounties announced Const. Kenrick Whitney is facing charges of theft under $5,000 and breach of trust for alleged crimes that took place while he was on duty. In June, Whitney was suspended from duty and stripped of his police identification and was suspended without pay in February 2014, according to Chief Superintendent Brian Cantera. “This alleged behaviour is

unacceptable and not in keeping with the core values of the RCMP and public expectations,” stated Cantera. According to an RCMP news release, Whitney’s alleged thefts took place within the detachment. In addition to the theft, Whitney is officially charged with breach of trust by a public officer. The case as it is set to go to Richmond Provincial Court on May 27. “He will also be facing a disciplinary hearing where the RCMP commanding officer will be seeking his dismissal,” stated Cantera. In 2003, Whitney, who once played for the BC Lions, pleaded guilty to assault after “slapping” a man for taking a parking spot he wanted in Vancouver

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while he was off duty. For that, he was ordered to perform 25 hours of community service and was fined two days worth of pay by the RCMP. In 2007, Whitney was in trouble with the law again when an RCMP adjudication board found Whitney guilty of disgraceful conduct for confronting a driver in an unprofessional manner. It was determined that Whitney swore at a driver and spat in his face during that incident, while Whitney was working for the RCMP’s drug section. DNA tests proved Whitney’s saliva ended up on the driver’s jacket, but at a hearing he blamed gum falling out of his mouth and into the vehicle as the cause. — files from the Vancouver Sun

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