TriCity News April 30 2020

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

HEARTS FOR

Healthcare,First Responders, and Front Line Workers

Show your support for our health care, ďŹ rst responders and front line workers during the Covid-19 crisis by cutting out this page and taping it, heart facing out for all to see, in a window facing the street in front of your home.

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TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

HEARTS

To display your Heart for Healthcare in your window this side should face inwards so the large Heart on the reverse side faces the street.

FOR

HEALTHCARE WORKERS

THANK YOU

to our Health Care Workers, First Responders and Front Line Workers.

Mike Farnworth, MLA

Port Coquitlam (604) 927-2088 Mike.Farnworth.MLA@leg.bc.ca

Selina Robinson, MLA

Coquitlam-Maillardville (604) 933-2001 Selina.Robinson.MLA@leg.bc.ca

Rick Glumac, MLA

Port Moody-Coquitlam (604) 936-8709 Rick.Glumac.MLA@leg.bc.ca

A heartfelt thank you to the Tri-Cities community for your commitment to fight the COVID-19 virus.

Please contact your local MLA’s office if you need support or information on Provincial government resources.

COVID-19 Provincial Support & Information gov.bc.ca/covid19

COVID-19 Federal Support & Information canada.ca/covid19

COVID-19 Information: BC Centre for Disease Control

bccdc.ca/covid19

“This is our time to be kind, be calm and be safe” Dr. Bonnie Henry, Provincial Health Officer

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

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Coquitlam

Port Coquitlam

Port Moody

Bears are starting to wake up in the Tri-Cities.

Clinic fills health breach caused by COVID-19.

RibFest cancelled amid COVID-19 concerns.

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There’s more at

tricitynews.com

rent relief for small business + Controlled return to K-12 instruction + Number of new COVID-19 cases decreasing in B.C.

Temperature screenings and personal protective equipment may become standard as large plants fight off the spread of COVID-19. Here an employee mans an entrance point with an infrared thermometer at the Superior Poultry plant in Coquitlam before it was shut down Friday. Stefan labbÉ/the tRI-CItY neWS

P U b L i C H e a Lt H

Take COVID-19 precautions, industries told ‘These plants are challenging’ says Fraser Health doctor Diane StranDberg dstrandberg@tricitynews.com

A Coquitlam poultry plant shut down because of COVID19 will have to carry out stringent cleaning measures and ensure physical distancing for its workers before it can reopen.

The Tri-Cities’ largest COVID-19 outbreak continues to grow with 46 confirmed cases as of Tuesday, up from 18 on Friday when the plant was closed.

At a press conference on Monday, Fraser Health’s chief medical officer said Superior Poultry faces a number of conditions before it can reopen and warned other food processing and manufacturing companies to take extra precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19 or they too could face outbreaks and closures.

“What is the best guidance to provide? One that ensures the virus does not intrude,” said Dr. Martin Lavoie. “Staff should not be going to work while sick and having plans in place that could certainly screen them before coming in.”

In the case of Superior Poultry Processors Ltd., a sis-

Thanks for following us on:

ter plant of United Poultry Co. Ltd. in Vancouver, where 34 cases were found, it will have to wait a mandatory 14 days to avoid re-infection, and implement a thorough cleaning of all touch points as well as all food handling equipment and other areas of the plant where workers congregate.

And where two metres of distance can’t be maintained between workers, plexiglas barriers will have to be installed, Lavoie said.

“These plants are challenging,” Lavoie said. “They are not built with these measures.”

Temperature screening will also be required, as well as personal protection equipment made available to keep

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people from getting infected with COVID-19.

Currently, employees at Superior who have tested positive are all self-isolating and no one has had to be hospitalized, according to Lavoie.

Collaboration with federal officials is also occurring at these federally-regulated operations as at Mission Institution, where 120 cases have been identified in the facility run by Correctional Service Canada.

The concerns come as the BC Centre for Disease Control has expanded the conditions for COVID-19 testing; people can now get tested if they have symptoms of the cold or flu or any respiratory illness, Lavoie

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said, recommending that people go to the BCCDC website for a list of symptoms and places to go to get tested in the Tri-Cities.

While Lavoie didn’t go so far as to say all Tri-City manufacturers and food processors will need these precautionary initiatives, such as temperature screening, he was adamant that they should have a plan in place and protocols for preventing the spread of COVID-19.

“We are going to be looking into that and making sure they have plans in place,” Lavoie said, adding that his goal is to ensure that COVID-19 doesn’t appear in these plants so they can stay open.

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Ensuring that people don’t go to work sick is the number one priority, a point made clear by Fraser Health after it confirmed that a number of people are still going to their jobs at seniors care homes while sick.

“Right now, here’s something to consider, that protecting employees, protecting your employees on the business side protects your business and protects all British Columbians, said Health Minister Adrian Dix during a press conference Tuesday.”

He pointed to the outbreaks at the poultry plants as revealing the “serious nature of particular outbreaks.”

-with files from Stefan Labbé

.ca

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TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

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THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

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NEWS IN TRI-CITIES C O V I D - 1 9 PA N D E m I C

Crisis could see rats ‘battling in the streets’ Restaurant shut downs has rodents scrambling for food STEFAN LABBÉ slabbe@tricitynews.com

Tri-City pest control companies are warning the spike in restaurant closures due to COVID-19 could be a recipe for an explosion in the area’s rat population.

It’s hard to get a sense of just how many food service establishments have been shuttered in Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody, according to Jamie Kiffiak, the owner of Tri-Cities Pest Detectives. However, he said what is clear is that many businesses are struggling to pay for preventative pest control measures at a time when many residents have hunkered down at home with a growing stash of food.

“If restaurants stop operating, there’s going to be a scarcity of food resources, driving them to other locations,” said Kiffiak, who has owned the business for the last 13 years.

Some will go into neighbouring shuttered businesses as they seek new places to shelter, but others will follow the food.

“Rats are consensual rodents, so they live alongside people, depending on us for food and shelter. They go where we go,” said Kiffiak.

With restaurants dialling back their business or closed all together, rats could be looking for food closer to your Tri-Cities home. GETTY IMAGES

There are two species of rat in the Tri-Cities — and indeed, Metro Vancouver — the brown, or roof rat, which by nature is often a tree-dweller, and the black, or Norway rat, what Elana Varner, who studies rodent ecology as a PhD student at Simon Fraser University, calls “your classic city-dwellers.”

When wet, cold weather turns dry and sunny, rats tend to move outside, sheltering in blackberry bushes or other shrubs. Tri-City rats are also known to take refuge in people’s car engines, where they chew up wires and hoses often coated in a soy-based shielding.

“That can be a very expen-

sive problem,” said Kiffiak.

Like many rodents, rats are also prolific breeders. Females can have a litter of up to a dozen pups once a month.

Within two to three months, those babies become sexually mature, ready to start the breeding cycle all over again.

“You can have a significant population explosion in a relatively short period of time,” Kiffiak said. “It’s something that we’re anticipating.

Might be a month or so or two months.”

Varner, however, said the impact of the human quarantine on rat behaviour may be more complicated, and a sudden drop in human food sources around closed restau-

rants could lead to a decline in the rat population. That’s because rats are extremely territorial, with often one family occupying a city block.

How a city’s commercial and residential neighbourhoods interlock can be a key factor in whether a rat family finds a migration corridor from your favourite eatery — now closed — to your door.

Things could get nasty.

Varner points to other cities in North America where scarcity in food has led to territorial clashes and emboldened behaviour.

“We might see them battling on the street,” she said, not to mention cannibalism and infanticide.

For a researcher immersed in rodent ecology, Varner said the current pandemic opens up a window on the dangers of close proximity between humans and wild animals.

“Asia has their wet markets and that is a huge risk for zoonotic diseases,” said Varner, referring to the same kind of live-animal market in Wuhan, China, where the coronavirus was first thought to spread.

“Our version of that is our rat population. They’re considered hyper-reservoirs for disease. Not only are they carriers but they’re melting pots for viruses.”

And while we don’t know a lot about the rat population around the Lower Mainland, researchers do know they are increasing here in the same way as many cities across North America, she added.

That’s partly due to climate change as warm winters lead to more year-round breeding.

Varner said one study in Vancouver, started roughly five years ago, found several novel diseases carried among the population. One, known as MRSA, is an antibiotic-resistant staphylococcus bacteria. If that were to recombine with other bacteria within the rat population, it could make antibiotics useless.

“Rats are a mixing pot for diseases — that’s the scary part,” she said. “The whole risk factor is all contingent on the human-animal interaction.”

But even if the rat popu-

lation struggles due to the COVID-19 quarantine and an ensuing decline in food, Varner said there are other precedents to consider.

With virus transmission perfectly intertwined with animal behaviour, she points back at the bubonic plague, or Black Death, of the 14th century, highlighting that it was the fleas carried on the backs of rats that spread the disease, only jumping to humans when the rats started dying off.

But those are worst-case scenarios, and while important over the long term when it comes to disease control, Varner is not predicting a TriCities outbreak of modern Black Death to go along with the current pandemic.

Still, controlling the rat population and the diseases they carry comes down to a collection of individual choices. Where Kiffiak often resorts to trapping and killing rats, both he and Varner agree some of the best measures are preventative.

City officials often bang the drum about keeping bear attractants stowed away, and those same lessons apply to rats, which Varner said can easily chew through thick plastic to get at food waste tossed in the trash instead of the compost.

“Fruit trees are a big one too, so harvest everything you can as soon as you can,” said Varner.

B . C . N E W S PA P E R AWA R D S

The Tri-City News wins gold for general excellence Photos, biz writing editorials recognized with BCYNA honours Four Tri-City News reporters earned top honours in a prestigious newspaper award competition that saw dozens of B.C. community newspapers recognized for their commitment to creative, forward-thinking and hard-hitting journalism.

In addition, your home-

town newspaper took home gold in the general excellence category for its circulation size at the BC and Yukon Community Newspaper Association’s virtual awards ceremony Saturday, April 25.

The Ma Murray Awards are an annual event recognizing the best in journalism, ad design and newspaper campaigns.

Stefan Labbé won gold in the photo essay category for his visual story the “Circo

Osorio visits the Tri-Cities,” and Mario Bartel earned a bronze in the same category for his visual coverage of the PoCo Grand Prix bike race.

Gary McKenna won silver for a business feature “Priced out of the neighbourhood?”, and editor Richard Dal Monte won silver for his editorial “Port Moody mayor should step aside until his case is fully resolved.”

Other top awards went to Labbé and Bartel, who won

bronze for their multi-media feature story, “2019: The Year in Pictures.”

Former publisher Shannon Mitchell won bronze for The Tri-City News A-List in the Special Publication Award, over 25,000, and former creative director Matt Blair won gold in two advertising categories: one for his MacKenzie Park ad campaign, and another for his Accurite ad design.

Tri-City News reporter Stefan Labbé won gold in the photo essay category for his visual story the “Circo Osorio visits the Tri-Cities.” FILE PHOTO Sign up for our newsletter at tricitynews.com

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TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

APRIL 30 – MAY 6 Youth Week Goes Virtual in Coquitlam

Coquitlam celebrates BC Youth Week each year from May 1 to 7, and 2020 is no exception. We’re taking the fun and festivities online this year as we celebrate youth, their diversity and the positive impact they have on the community.

Youth are invited to take part in seven fun-filled days, with daily activities and challenges, wellness practices, virtual classes and more than a dozen prizes through random draws or participation.

Get all the details at coquitlam.ca/youthweek and join us in celebrating Coquitlam’s youth.

Message From the Mayor

This Friday Coquitlam will kick off our annual celebration of BC Youth Week, which recognizes youth and the contributions they make to their communities. Like everything else in the age of COVID-19, this year’s event will be held a little bit differently, but it will still offer plenty of opportunities for young people to connect online and have some fun.

Our teen years can be a challenging time in our development – we test our independence and figure out who we are and what our place is in our community and the world, often while dealing with a roller coaster of emotions, particularly these days. On the other hand, youth is also a time when we are creative, curious, adventurous and developing our social consciousness.

I’m often inspired and amazed at how hardworking and driven youth are when they are passionate about something. We’ve seen examples of this around the world as youth have come together to march for climate action, as well as in our own community, when they take on something they believe in, whether it the environment, social justice, bullying, mental health, poverty, homelessness, LGBTQ rights and many other worthy causes.

Even now – isolated from their schools, sports and friends and facing a future that is uncertain – we hear numerous stories of youth who continue to make a difference, whether they are supporting other youth, holding fundraisers, performing small acts of kindness or simply trying to spread some joy and community spirit.

It’s heartening to see, and their optimism and energy sets an example for all of us.

From May 1 to 7, let’s all make some time to cheer on our youth. Right now, the milestones and celebrations that connect our community are more important than ever, and there is no better reason to rejoice in the contributions of our young people and future leaders.

Join in These Fun Daily Activities

There’s something in store every day during Youth Week. Take part daily for a chance to win prizes, connect with others and have some fun!

Go to coquitlam.ca/youthweek for details and instructions, or follow the City (@cityofcoquitlam) on social media for prompts. To be entered into our prize draws, don’t forget to tag us and #BCYW. May 1: Photo and Art Challenge This month-long challenge starts today. Post a photo or artwork each day in May based on a daily theme, and by the end of the month you’ll have a beautiful gallery of photos or artwork. Watch the City’s social media posts for the word of the day.

May 2: Painted Rock Scavenger Hunt Rocks painted with letters are scattered throughout Coquitlam – can you find them?

Watch for clues posted online from Saturday to Wednesday to locate and photograph them, then try to decode the word.

Post your results on Friday as the week wraps up.

May 3: Sundae Funday Watch for the video of our youth leaders making a sundae and recreate your own version – or any other dessert you like. Then post a photo of your creation before digging in!

May 4: May the Fourth Be With You We know this can be a very challenging time. Our youth leaders will be sharing resources and tips on how youth can practise mental and emotional care and wellness, such as keeping a journal, breathing techniques or exercise.

May 5: Hip Hop Dance Class Watch for a YouTube video class with youth leaders to learn some new moves. For a chance to win a prize, leave a comment about your favourite part of the routine or other moves you would like to learn, or post a video or photo of your dance.

May 6: Walkabout Wednesday It’s time for a breath of fresh air, mental wellness and physical activity. Head outdoors for a walk and explore nature while collecting your thoughts.

Check out our web page for tips on some of Coquitlam’s hidden gems and lesser-known trails.

Post snapshots during or after your walk.

| coquitlam.ca/connect

May 7: Tri-City REACH Awards We wrap up 2020 Youth Week with the Tri-City REACH Awards, which recognize individual youth, youth groups, adult mentors and businesses who are working to make Coquitlam more youth friendly.

Watch the REACH awards video online and congratulate the winners in a post.

Opportunities For Youth

Check out the Youth section on the CoquitlamSPIRIT page at coquitlam.ca/spirit for art projects and other interesting things to do at home, ways to connect and enjoy the outdoors safely, fitness at home and activities for youth.

Missing your usual recreation programs?

Check out the free offerings in the Youth section of our new Virtual Program Guide at coquitlam.ca/programguide. Registration begins May 1 for programs in May and June such as home alone and babysitter training, the Youth Leadership Engagement Committee, calligraphy and breakdancing. You can also learn to do a handstand, find out about sport concussion management (16 +) or join in fitness classes such as yoga, Pilates, kickboxing and high-intensity interval training.

Have you thought about volunteering for the City?

It’s a great way to gain skills, have fun, get involved in the community and meet graduation requirements. While some volunteer programs are suspected, some are still available, including Adopt-a-Trail and Adopt-a-Street. Visit coquitlam.ca/volunteer for information.

Looking For More Info or Support?

Y BC Government youth COVID-19 information: www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/family-socialsupports/covid-19-information Y Youth crisis support: youthinbc.com (chat, 12 p.m. to 1 a.m.) or 604-872-3311 (24/7) Y National Kids Help Phone: text CONNECT to 686868 or call 1-800-668-6868 to connect to a counsellor 24/7, or visit kidshelpphone.ca Y ERASE (Expect Respect and a Safe Education): ERASE.gov.bc.ca Y Resources and hotline (24/7) for trans people: Translifeline.org or 877-565-8860

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

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COQUITLAM NEWS CRIME

Police arrest man hiding behind false wall in Coq. Police followed suspect from Surrey to Coquitlam garage GARY MCKENNA gmckenna@tricitynews.com

As many as 31 bears were destroyed in Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody last year. TRI-CITY NEWS FILE PHOTO

BEAR AWARE

Bears are waking up so secure animal attractants Coquitlam offers a few tips to reduce conflicts with wildlife GARY MCKENNA gmckenna@tricitynews.com

Bears are waking up and residents are being reminded to do their part to limit human-wildlife conflicts.

The city of Coquitlam said simple actions can help residents keep bruins away from populated areas, including keeping garbage and food waste secure and making sure all pet food, bird feeders and ripe fruit are not accessible to wildlife.

“Unsecured garbage continues to be the most common bear attractant in Coquitlam,” the city said in a press release. “It’s a problem because bears that become habituated to eating garbage can become aggressive and may be destroyed by the Conservation Officer Service.”

The city also suggests freezing smelly food scraps until collection day, cleaning carts after waste has been picked up to minimize odours and only putting garbage and green carts out after 5:30 a.m. on collection day as opposed to the night before.

Property owners who do not properly secure wildlife attractants could face fines of

up to $500, the city said. Last year, 1,182 tickets and warning were issued and 318 incidents of unsecured garbage were reported to city staff.

“While this number is high, it represents almost a 60% decrease from violations in 2018, showing that more and more residents are doing a better job of managing their garbage,” the city said in a press release, noting they would be continuing to patrol neighbourhoods in 2020.

According to the Conservation Officer Service, as many as 31 bears were destroyed in the Tri-Cities in 2019. One of the bears was euthanized because it was sick or injured, but 30 were

killed because they were in conflict with humans.

In a typical year, about 15 bears are destroyed. Statistics reported by The Tri-City News going back to 2006 show as few as a handful of bears had to be destroyed in 2007.

To report wildlife attractants or improperly secured attractants, call the city at 604927-3500 or email urbanwildlife@coquitlam.ca. To report an aggressive animal or wildlife causing property damage, call the Conservation Officer Service at 1-877-952-7277. For more information about city rules to limit animal attractants, go to www.coquitlam. ca/bearsmart.

A false wall in the garage of a Coquitlam home was not enough to help one man evade capture after being pursued by the Uniform Gang Enforcement Team (UGET) last week.

The incident began in Surrey on April 14, when officers conducting enforcement patrols spotted a vehicle on 150th Street and 20th Avenue that had been reported stolen. With the help of the RCMP’s Air One helicopter, police followed the suspect to Coquitlam, where the driver dumped the car on Quadling Avenue.

According to the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit Sgt. Brenda Winpenny, police chased the man on foot to a garage associated with a home on King Street, where he was arrested.

“While officers were dealing with this man, they came across another man

hiding in a false wall built into the garage,” CFSEU said in a statement. “After taking this second man into custody, UGET officers also located several air soft guns, a homemade police-style duty belt, gun holsters, and a tactical vest in the false wall cavity.”

According to the press release, Bolt Trainor, 35, of no fixed address was the man found in the wall and he was arrested on outstanding warrants for unrelated driving offences.

Police said the investigation is ongoing and they have yet to lay charges in relation to the stolen vehicle.

“Yet again, a UGET initiated investigation achieved success as a result of a cooperative and coordinated response between units of several LMD jurisdictions, the integrated police dog services team and RCMP Air services,” said Sgt. Brenda Winpenny. “Our UGET officers have a tremendous ability to detect criminal activity and they, along with all of the CFSEU-BC, are committed to ensuring our communities remain safe during this pandemic.”

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May & June 2020

Virtual | SPRING

Registration starts May 1 R ffor FREE spring virtual programs in Coquitlam!

Learn more at coquitlam.ca/registration

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TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

CITY OF P RT COQUITLAM

celebrate ONLINE

6m ay

9, 2020

PoCo’s 97th annual spring festival goes virtual

Sat May 9, 3-5 pm

LIVE

RUNNING OR WALKING

ENJOY A PICNIC WITH YOUR FAMILY

PLAY, KICK OR TOSS A BALL

Broadcast Celebration

Join us for performances by local artists, family activities & more.

Hosted by the Mayor.

Plan an online viewing party to celebrate with friends and neighbours!

A few of our performing artists include Paul Filek and Ben Cottrill

Festivities also include: • “What my community means to me.” Art Project • Mother’s Day Card Making Workshop • Flash Fiction Contest & Writing Workshop • ‘PoCo Has Heart’ street banners unveiled

Event info: portcoquitlam.ca/maydays

MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCE AT LEAST 2 METRES

NO LARGE GATHERINGS/ ORGANIZED SPORTS/GAMES

STAY HOME IF SICK OR HAVE TRAVELLED

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

PORT COQUITLAM NEWS

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CITY OF P RT COQUITLAM

CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19)

HELP SLOW THE SPREAD & STAY SAFE!

MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCE AT LEAST 2 METRES

STAY HOME & AVOID NON-ESSENTIAL GATHERINGS

P U B L I C H E A LT H

PoCo clinic takes on non-COVID cases STEFAN LABBÉ slabbe@tricitynews.com

R

ay Croteau is a pandemic regular at the clinic, but he’s got no choice.

Without a weekly visit to the Burke Mountain Medical Centre in Port Coquitlam, he wouldn’t have his shot to stimulate the production of red blood cells through his body and help him get through another day.

“We started four months ago. Before, he couldn’t walk across the living room,” said Croteau’s doctor, Ian Woods, as the senior rolled up his sleeve inside an exam room.

The Port Coquitlam man suffers from a chronic bone marrow disease that requires constant attention by a physician. For Croteau, like many of the ill and injured across the Tri-Cities, the coronavirus has squeezed access to primary care. Family clinics have been forced to shutter their doors for lack of masks, gloves and gowns, and hospital emergency rooms have urged only the most acutely sick and injured to come through their doors to minimize potential exposure to the virus.

In an effort to fill that breach, last week, practices across the Tri-Cities coordinated through the Fraser Northwest Division of Family Practice (FNWD) to designate the Burke Mountain Medical Clinic as a clearinghouse for

Ray Croteau, left, is taking part in his weekly checkup with Dr. Ian Woods at the Burke Mountain Medical Centre in Port Coquitlam. TRI-CITY NEWS FILE PHOTO

patients who can’t see their doctor, or for others who never had one to start with.

“This is the pandemic solution,” said Woods, who’s the senior physician at the clinic.

When, in January, Woods first starting hearing about a strange new respiratory virus in Wuhan, China, he immediately remembered thinking: “This is going to be a problem.”

Soon, he began getting calls from patients who had just returned from trips to India with severe coughs and fevers.

“Emerg said not to come in.

The walk-in clinics told them to go away,” said Woods.

Then Italy got hit and Woods started talking with FNWD to find a solution for patients sick with anything but COVID-19.

By April 20 the new family medicine hub was set up at the clinic parallel to its normal work. Stocked with personal protective equipment, it now

takes on non-COVID patients who otherwise could slip through the cracks of a strained medical system.

“There are thousands of patients in the whole Tri-Cities that have no physicians and have nowhere to go right now.

And we don’t want them to go to emerg,” said Woods.

Each of the doctors has added several hours a day to their regular shifts to see new patients. Patients are first screened by a COVID-19 online testing tool set up by FNWD. If after a virtual visit with a doctor, it’s deemed necessary to follow up face-toface, they’re either transferred to a coronavirus testing facility, or they make their way to see one of the six doctors at the Burke Mountain Medical Centre.

“We don’t just want people walking in. It’s too risky,” said Woods.

Any error in diagnosing a

patient COVID-free falls back on the Tri-City physician who made the initial referral, so there’s a lot of incentive to be hyper-vigilant, added Woods.

Still, COVID-19 patients don’t always exhibit textbook symptoms, and so the Port Coquitlam clinic is working on the presumption that any patient could be infected with the virus.

Patients arrive on a staggered schedule to minimize contact with one another, a physical distancing measure made easier by the fact the shuttered dentist and physiotherapist offices are on the floor. Inside, a plexiglass barrier installed six weeks ago separates patients and the receptionists, who have also been working extra shifts to cover the increased patient load and extended hours.

“We learned from Italy,” said Woods. “They didn’t have this protocol in place. Guys who were doing what I’m doing are dead in Italy.”

From Monday to Friday, the clinic remains open for 12 hours a day, with staff putting in another six hours a day on Saturdays and Sundays.

“It’s like running two clinics at the same time,” said Woods.

Beyond the regular staff — including cleaners, who spend 12 hours a day sanitizing the facility — the Port Coquitlam clinic has an extra nurse onsite and has so far received a steady supply of masks, gloves, gowns and face shields from FNWD.

“It’s tight. There’s not a lot of equipment around. At the moment we’re okay, but if we get a lot busier, hopefully, we won’t run out.”

Each doctor can see up to 50 patients a day, though a large share of those are now done online through virtual Telehealth consultations that have ramped up across all areas of primary medicine since the COVID-19 outbreak began.

Doctors at the clinic see a range of patients, from young children to seniors. Some come in with strep throat, after a traumatic fall or just to check their blood pressure.

But at least half are like Croteau, said Woods, with long-standing medical conditions like prostate cancer, hyperthyroidism or are recovering from alcohol or drug addictions. Woven through all of the patients looms depression.

“A lot of them are manifesting serious psychological distress. Their disease is accelerated by isolation and there’s no end in sight for them,” said Woods.

Woods worries that the general population is getting restless at home, and that self-isolation is starting to hit them. For those who’s baseline is living with chronic pain or the symptoms of a debilitating disease, the isolation can be nearly unbearable.

“If you got a complex disease, this almost acts as a tipping point,” said Woods. “They say, ‘Doc, what am I going to

do?’”

Inside the exam room, Woods and Croteau chatted about family as the doctor prepared the needle. The Port Coquitlam resident said he’s lucky he has his wife to take care of him and keep him company while in isolation, and his adult children regularly come by to drop off groceries at the front door.

Still, trips to the doctor have become Croteau’s outing, his only contact with another person outside of the home and a vital medical link to keep his energy and spirits up.

Whether through online video check-ins or in person consultations, Woods said he and other working family physicians have become an increasingly important part of patients’ social life as they try to offer them some “light at the end of the tunnel.”

And while Woods is cautiously optimistic about the falling daily caseload across the province, he has no illusions about the potential for a second or third wave of the virus to ripple through the population between now and when someone develops a vaccine. Until then, Woods and the other five doctors at the clinic said they’re ready to help fill the gap between emergency and no medicine at all.

“We can go on as long as it’s needed,” said Woods. “To me, that’s why we’re in medicine…

You shouldn’t just be in it for the good times. You need to be here for the bad, too.”

Join the conversation at facebook.com/tricitynews

A8

TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

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A9

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Pandemic claims popular Port Moody RibFest event

Residents getting a property tax break

This July would have been the Rotary-run festival’s sixth year MARIO BARTEL mbartel@tricitynews.com

You can go ahead and use your paper dinner napkins.

That is if you can find any at all amidst shortages of paper products at most grocery stores.

Port Moody’s RibFest has been cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The annual celebration of barbecued meat slathered with sticky sauce was scheduled for July 17 to 19 at Rocky Point Park.

Ian MacPhail, the past president of the Port Moody Rotary Club that stages the event, said with continuing recommendations from British Columbia’s chief medical officer to discourage large gatherings of people this summer so transmission of the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 is minimized, “it just didn’t make sense” to carry on. He said the organizing committee had hoped to hold out until June 1 at the latest to make a final decision.

“But it felt like we were pushing a rock up a hill,” MacPhail said of their earlier

The cries of barkers beckoning hungry meat-eaters to smokey barbecue pits at Rocky Point Park have been silenced after organizers announced the event’s cancellation on Thursday because of the COVID-19 pandemic. TRI-CITY NEWS FILE PHOTO

optimism, adding the closures and struggles of so many local businesses also made it difficult for the group to solicit their support for the event.

The cancellation will also mean fewer funds available to various community organizations and projects the Port Moody Rotary Club supports with money raised from the event.

MacPhail said last year’s RibFest collected more than $100,000 that supports the group’s community grants program, and organizations like Camp Jubilee, the Amanda Todd Foundation, Eagle Ridge Hospital, and the Summer Sundays concert

series.

“It will force us to take a hard look at where we spend money,” MacPhail said.

He added while Rotary has already committed to funding some projects, “it will mean less” for new initiatives.

A highlight of Port Moody’s summer calendar since it first started in 2015, RibFest has attracted thousands of hungry meat-eaters from around Metro Vancouver to feast on the charred offerings of some of North America’s top grillers, including Port Moody’s Rusty Johnson. The champion grillmaster made his debut at last year’s event and his food was so popular

he was planning to order a new, larger grilling rig so he could make even more meat to keep up with demand.

“We wanted to come back bigger and better,” he said, adding those plans are now on hold.

MacPhail said the ever-increasing list of summer event cancellations is “surely sad.”

But, he added, “It’s really important to do the best we can to limit things.”

MacPhail said RibFest will return in 2021, with July 16 to 18 already circled on his calendar.

“With an extra year of planning, we will be back better than ever,” he said.

MARIO BARTEL mbartel@tricitynews.com

Port Moody residents won’t have to dig as deeply into their pockets to pay their property taxes this year. They can also take longer to pay without a penalty to help them get through the COVID-19 pandemic.

Council unanimously approved Tuesday a staff recommendation to retain the July 2 deadline for property tax payments, but extend the date at which they’ll be charged a penalty for late payment to Oct. 1. The penalty is also being reduced from 10% to 5%.

On April 21, council’s finance committee recommended a planned tax increase of 3.62% be whittled back to 1.61%. The reduction also includes a trim to the asset renewal levy to replace city infrastructure from 1% to 0.4%.

The average household in the city will pay about $35 more on their property taxes this year. The savings, which amount to more than $690,000, were achieved through the cancellation of several cityfunded special events, like the third annual community fair, scheduled for June 13, Canada Day celebrations at Rocky Point Park, and car-free day on Aug. 23. The city will also spend less money on flowers for its gardens, as well as less

maintenance on boulevards.

It also cut transfers to various operating reserve funds.

And while Mayor Rob Vagramov said the city is “not losing any staff as a result of these reductions,” today (Thursday) is the last day 370 casual and temporary employees will be paid after their jobs were cut April 17.

City manager Tim Savoie said they include fitness and recreation instructors, administrative clerks, theatre technicians, events workers, librarians and circulation assistants.

Many work limited hours or on an on-call basis.

Savoie said the layoffs “are operational in nature” because of cancelled programs and events as well as temporary facility closures. He said they’re not a result of council’s budget discussions.

Coun. Diana Dilworth said while the cuts will save taxpayers money this year, they’ll likely be in for a bigger jolt next year when many of the excised items are put back into the budget. But, she added, they’re necessary.

“We all agreed on what needed to be done,” she said.

“City hall is hurting as much as the households in our community.”

The revised budget will now go to council for the first of three readings before it’s adopted by the provincial deadline of May 15.

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THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

OPINIONS & MORE

A11

Find a variety of voices online: tricitynews.com/opinion

The Tri-City News is a division of LMP Publication Limited Partnership, published at 118-1680 Broadway Street, Port Coquitlam, BC V3C 2M8

DIFFERENT VIEWS

Topic: Help for struggling students

“I’m one of the teachers scheduled to go in for a shift next week. I think my middle school has enough safety protocols in place to offer some peace of mind to staff, parents and students.”

“Personally I would not send my kid to school this year.

Kids will pick up in September and hopefully we don’t get a second wave of [COVID-19] in the fall.”

Nicole Van Veenendaal

Lisa Civitillo Blok

via Facebook

via Facebook

THE TRI-CITY NEWS’ OPINION

W E E K LY O N L I N E P O L L

Lowest paid workers often put at greatest risk during pandemic

Last Week t

Tip generously and be kind to those who serve during crisis

H

ealth authorities identified 28 COVID-19 cases at a Vancouver poultry plant last week.

Later in the week, a Coquitlam poultry processing plant was closed by Fraser Health due to positive tests.

These processing facilities are just another example of vulnerable workers during this crisis Kristan Ash, executive director of the Fraser Northwest Divisions of Family Doctors Practice Society, said her organization has been involved with several outbreak investigations across our region.

Ash said she’s done consulting work for food pro-

cessing facilities, and in that work found most workers are new arrivals to Canada, who often don’t speak English and sit at the bottom of the economic ladder.

“They work long hours in very close quarters,” Ash said. “They’d be significantly at risk.”

We’re telling you this as a reminder about the people who are being put at risk during this pandemic.

We’re reminding you that there are more people to salute than just front-line health workers.

There are food service workers who handle the takeout orders. There are the folks working in local grocery stores, from the cashiers to the people working all day cleaning baskets and all surfaces touched by customers. There are transit workers who are facing terrible abuse

from stressed-out riders.

There are janitorial staff who are cleaning our offices and condo buildings. And then there are food-app delivery drivers.

The list goes on.

Many of these workers are paid low wages and yet are being put at tremendous risk during the pandemic.

And all in order to serve us.

Instead of just cheers and our respect, they also deserve a few other things.

Better pay is at the top of the list.

Some businesses have increased the wages of these workers, but not by much, and it’s not really enough compared with the risks they are taking. These increased wages are still not considered a living wage for highflying Metro Vancouver.

For restaurant workers and food-app drivers, you

can help by tipping generously. Give and give a lot.

They deserve it.

Oh, and follow the social distancing rules if you are inside a grocery store.

Most stores have put feet or symbols on the floor so you know where to stand.

We say this because we’ve seen some people still getting too close to staff in stores.

We’ve also seen some staff getting yelled at outside of stores because they have to wait in line due to limits on the number of customers. Just chill and follow the rules. They are there for a reason.

If you don’t have an avenue to compensate some of these workers financially, then at least thank them and express your appreciation.

After all, they are risking their lives for you.

For editorials, columns and more, visit: tricitynews.com/opinion

YES

79%

NO

21%

This Week t If restaurants were re-opened in May, would you go for a sit-down meal?

Vote in the online poll at tricitynews.com

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The Tri-City News is an independent community newspaper, qualified under Schedule 111, Part 111, Paragraph 11 of the Excise Tax Act. A division of LMP Publication Limited Partnership, it is published Wednesday and Friday. Copyright and/or property rights subsist in all display advertising and other material appearing in this issue of The Tri-City News. Second class mailing registration No, 4830 The publisher shall not be liable for slight changes or typographical errors that do not lessen the value of an advertisement.

The publisher’s liability for other errors or omissions in connection with any advertisement is strictly limited to publication of the advertisement in any subsequent issue or the refund of any monies paid for the advertisement.

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YOUR LETTERS

A15

Find even MORE letters online: tricitynews.com/opinion/letters

C O V I D - 1 9 pa n D E M I C

Smoking neighbours have made quarantine unbearable The Editor, I realized too late that I had moved into a building where smoking is permitted — even inside the suites.

I did not think that it would be legal even in 2019, as I had never experienced such a torment before.

I feel so upset, trapped and frustrated by not being able to open a window to cool down or breathe fresh air.

I doubt, sadly, that I am alone in this. No doubt there are many tenants like me out there stuck at home

and powerless to make the necessary changes.

I realize that in these stressful, community virus days, coping mechanisms like smoking are treasured companions.

But these individual’s coping strategies do heighten stress for others.

Why, in a time when we know that even second hand smoke is a known carcinogen, is this allowed?

I am not opposed to individual freedoms, except when they impinge on the health and safety of others.

Their smoke does not stay within their apartment’s boundaries. I am being forced to live with their habits in my home.

I was led to believe that smoking was only permitted outside and when I spoke to my downstairs neighbours when I moved in, they assured me they didn’t smoke cigarettes much, however the smoke is coarse and incessant.

What they smoked was cannabis.

Are there no other options? Why should the only

apparent choice in 2020 be that I would have to move at great inconvenience and incur expense? Are there truly no other choices here?

I did not ever think I’d have to ask for the freedom to open a window, to breathe clean air, have a window open at night when I sleep and enjoy my balcony.

I am a tenant, not an owner, but does that mean I am not entitled to enjoy my home?

Shannon Levesque Coquitlam

Should smoking still be allowed inside apartment buildings? GETTY IMAGES

Join the conversation at facebook.com/tricitynews

CITY OF P RT COQUITLAM

CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19)

Support and Resources for Seniors ST

AY TO DAUP TE

We’re here for you!

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• For the latest COVID-19 City updates and trusted information for older adults visit: portcoquitlam.ca/covid19 • Sign up for our weekly Wilson Seniors e-Newsletter online

portcoquitlam.ca/wilsonseniors, by email wilsonseniors@portcoquitlam.ca or phone 604-927-7974.

• View online programming for virtual fitness classes and more: portcoquitlam.ca/wilsonseniors

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If you can afford to, please make a one-time contribution or sign up for our monthly membership at support.tricitynews.com.

If you prefer, please contact our office at 604-472-3021 and we would be happy to help you over the phone.

Please reach out to our staff at wilsonseniors@portcoquitlam.ca or by phone 604-927-7974, if you have any questions, suggestions or need any support.

DONATE:

portcoquitlam.ca/covid19

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A16

TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

‘Listen to Nigel’ 11”x17” poster

shop at www.bit.ly/listentonigel

printed digitally on 60lb paper stock

1 poster

$15

ONLY AVAILABLE FOR A LIMITED TIME

3 posters

$30

Orders will be shipped through Canada Post

10 posters

$50

Partial proceeds will support the Deaf Children’s Society of B.C.

25 posters

$100

and the Greater Vancouver Food Bank

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

A17

SCHOOL DISTRICT 43

703 families without laptop when school was shut down A smaller than expected technology gap, says SD43 DIANE STRANDBERG dstrandberg@tricitynews.com

The notion that everyone has access to reliable internet and a computer, laptop or tablet for work or school is a myth, School District 43 has learned after making hundreds of laptops and internet subsidies available to TriCities students.

Approximately 4% of the school district’s 16,630 families needed laptops so students could access school work online, according to statistics revealed Tuesday at a board of education meeting.

A number also needed a subsidy, which allowed them access to Telus internet services, and some were provided with LTE-supported devices when they couldn’t afford any internet services or reception was poor.

The picture provided by Stephen Whiffin, director of instruction, showed there are gaps in access to technology,

Students use laptops to do their school work outdoors and online as classrooms are closed for social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic, except for those of essential service workers and students who struggle with online school. sD43 PHOTO

but they turned out to be much smaller than expected.

“Most schools already have a bring-your-own-device policy and the vast majority had a device,” said Whiffin, but approximately 703 families, mostly with children in elementary school, needed a laptop.

In addition, an estimated 800 families were lent devices at the beginning of the school year so students, mostly in middle and secondary school, could participate in their school’s technology-based education.

Having bring your own device programs in place at school and equity policies providing loaner machines to students put SD43 in a good position to roll out virtual learning, Whiffin said.

“It ensures every child has access to a device at home,” Whiffin said.

As well, some teachers needed laptops to enable them to provide instruction virtually, with 185 loaner computers handed out.

According to Whiffin, fewer than 50 families needed help to get internet so their children

could log on to programs.

“We are putting those layers in place to ensure every single family can have access to continue the learning,” Whiffin said.

With children spending their classroom time on screens, parents are looking at alternative ways to keep their kids distracted while they stay at home. According to a recent survey, Canadian parents with children aged 14 or younger are relying on a wide range of alternatives to keep kids entertained during the COVID-19 outbreak. Almost two-thirds (65%) have incorporated options that do not involve electronics into their daily routine, such as board games or puzzles.

While computers and laptops are the main way teachers connect with students, many are finding unique ways to open up students to nature or help them relax and focus.

Ross Jacobsen, principal at Coquitlam River elementary, said students start their morning routine on SafeYouTube, which offers video streaming but prevents children from accessing other areas of the internet.

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DELIVERING TO THE TRI CITIES! Pallas Athena will continue to serve our community delicious food for Pick-up and Delivery during these challenging times.

Along with Port Coquitlam, we are extending our delivery boundaries to reach Port Moody and Coquitlam (within 10 km) helping more people stay home and safe.

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A18

TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

YOUR COMMUNITY CRAFT BREWING

Pandemic can’t slow growing beer biz Fraser Mills Fermentation starts selling beer, cider MARIO BARTEL mbartel@tricitynews.com

As businesses across the Tri-Cities struggle to stay open amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the latest addition to Port Moody’s craft beer scene is about to throw open its doors.

Well, maybe squeeze one of them open a crack.

Four years in the making, and after 14 months under construction, Fraser Mills Fermentation on St. Johns Street is getting ready to sell its first beers in early May. It’s a month later than the brewery’s eight business partners had hoped, and none of them expected to be welcoming their first customers in the middle of a public health crisis.

But, said Michael Druce, “We have to be able to go with the flow.”

The special circumstances of the brewery’s opening has meant some alterations to its plans, Druce said. The expansive tasting room with space for 140 people being served by

Michael Druce and Chris Walton toast the imminent opening of their new brewery, Fraser Mills Fermentation, with bottles of hand sanitizer they’ve been making and donating to businesses and organizations in the community. mario bartel/tri-CitY NeWS

40 taps will remain closed and Fraser Mills’ first four beers and one cider will only be available in cans for off-sales at the front door.

It’s a bit of a bit of a leap of faith, said another partner, Chris Walton.

“It’s pretty hard to define ourselves when we can’t show ourselves off,” he said, gesturing to the rustic tasting room populated with heavy wooden benches and tables, steel keg stools and decorated with old wagon wheels, as well as a col-

lection of antique handsaws.

That’s put the attention of Fraser Mills’ earliest days solely on its beer. But head brew master Kristy Tattrie said she’s not feeling any extra pressure as she puts the finishing touches on her first creations,

a farmhouse ale, hazy and session IPAs, along with a wit beer.

“The pressure was always on me,” Tattrie said. “My focus is on my beer.”

Canning their beer also wasn’t in Fraser Mills’ plans.

Druce said from his first

vision of adding a brewery to the home-brew supply store he’s run for 20 years, he saw the place as a social gathering point for friends and neighbours to meet and hang out while enjoying a variety of balanced beers. It’s that dream that sustained him through construction delays and permitting hold-ups.

Then COVID-19 happened.

Druce said there was never any hesitation amongst the eight principals to forge ahead.

“We just have to reshape our expectations,” he said, adding remaining nimble and flexible has been key to surviving the whole build-out process.

With a little extra time on its hands, the brewery’s also been producing gallons of hand sanitizer that it’s been distributing free of charge to neighbouring businesses and community organizations, as well as designating some proceeds from sales at its supply shop, that remains open, to the food bank.

It’s all about creating a sense of community when the community needs it most, Druce said. And when the restrictions on gatherings and business openings lift, they’ll be ready to open the doors wide.

PORT MOODY

Back to drawing board for Woodland Park plan More than 2,300 units in proposed redevelopment MARIO BARTEL mbartel@tricitynews.com

A proposal to redevelop Port Moody’s Woodland Park neighbourhood needs more work and less density.

After getting its first formal look at the plan, by Edgar Properties and Acton-Ostry Architects, that would transform the community’s 200 rental townhomes in 19 lowrise buildings into a master-

planned community of more than 2,300 units, council’s committee of the whole said on Tuesday it’s just too much for the L-shaped 23-acre parcel of property along Cecile Drive.

Mayor Rob Vagramov said the plan, that could bring more than 5,000 new residents into the area by the time it’s built out in 2036, is too far from transit and doesn’t offer enough amenities like shopping, schools and daycares to support such an influx.

“This is a ridiculous amount of density for this area,” he said.

“I want to see this go back to the drawing board.”

Earlier, proponents Peter

Edgar and Mark Ostry told councillors the project would be built in seven phases over the next 16 years, with the first comprised of 325 belowmarket rental homes that, in conjunction with a partnership with BC Housing, would allow existing families to remain in the neighbourhood.

Subsequent phases would be strata units in buildings ranging from four to 26 storeys, separated by expansive public green spaces and connected by a 1.5 km multi-use trail.

Ostry said a 1.25-acre active park would be a focal point for the neighbourhood, with a natural amphitheatre configu-

ration that could accommodate outdoor concerts or plays.

It would be complemented by a small retail and maker amenity space as well as a 5,000-sq. ft. daycare to accommodate 37 children.

Ostry said in total, the city would realize about $45 million in community benefits, including $1.5 million for improvements to make the neighbourhood more friendly to pedestrians and cyclists.

Edgar called the plan a “new standard for responsible development.”

However, several councillors said it falls far short.

Coun. Meghan Lahti said

she would have expected more benefits to the community from such a massive project.

“This is about a complete shift and complete change in scope and density,” she said, echoing concerns expressed

by André Boel, Port Moody’s general manager of planning and development in a staff report. “It will forever change that community.”

Coun. Hunter Madsen said while he liked some elements of the plan, such as its commitment to preserving green space and the potential for innovative construction using mass timber, it doesn’t address the need for residents to be

able to live near their work place, have access to a grocery store, nearby schools and childcare.

“I’d really like to see the developer come back with more innovation,” he added.

But Coun. Diana Dilworth said any amenities are more than what currently exist in the neighbourhood. She urged her fellow councillors to take a longer-range look at the proposal, which will likely evolve further as it develops.

“Don’t just look at what the neighbourhood needs today,” she said. “There’s a number of positive things around this development.”

Join the conversation at facebook.com/tricitynews

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

A19

The team at RE/MAX All Points would like to recognize and thank all the healthcare workers, support staff, first responders and all others working in essential services who are delivering supplies and services during the Covid 19 pandemic.

The Real Estate industry has also been deemed an essential service. To protect our clients and the public we have developed a number of innovative tools and protocols to allow us to safely and professionally deliver our services at this time.

Together we will get through this. Please stay safe.

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“Go With Those Who Know” Call or email today for your complimentary market evaluation

A20

A

TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

CH MBER NEWS Michael Hind, CEO

WE GOT THIS TRI CITIES

-

We're stronger together!

May 2020

Check in daily at tricitieschamber.com/covid-19 to see the latest information on funding, employee benefits, employer support, deferral programs, and more.

The Chamber continues to advocate for long-term and effective policies that will help the community not only weather this storm but facilitate economic recovery.

We must work collaboratively to bring about a stronger and more resilient community as we emerge from this crisis.

We are taking your concerns to the provincial and federal governments daily. Every two weeks, we send out a survey to garner feedback on the current and future impacts to your business. This provides valuable data that directly impacts the government programs and funding. Sign up to share your experience at BCMindReader.com. This data will continue to shape our advocacy efforts and will create the framework for our regional business recovery plan.

Through it all, we have also seen incredible leadership and resilience, with so many businesses stepping up to help their community and pivot their businesses to supply essential products. A special thank you to the many truck drivers, warehouse staff and grocery stores workers that are keeping stores running so we can all get the necessities we need! It goes without saying that we thank the front line medical staff in the hospitals dealing with the outbreak head on. To hear the salute every evening at 7 o’clock is inspiring.

Connect

To support our business community, we operate from the pillars of connect, educate, and advocate. We pivoted our organizational offerings to ensure we continue to provide the necessary support our community needs.

Educate

In this time of unprecedented uncertainty, we want to make sure our business community can find answers to the most pressing questions facing their businesses.

Through a series of free webinars, experts are providing guidance and answering questions to help companies navigate the changing business landscape.

Our COVID-19 Resource web page is full of information to help the community access critical government updates.

Taking your concerns straight to government!

Advocate

To say the last few weeks have been crazy would be the biggest understatement in recent memory.

These have being extremely trying times for all of us dealing with this pandemic, as we’ve never experienced anything like this before. That being said, the reaction of people in British Columbia and the Tri-Cities has been exceptional. The vast majority of us are following the wise direction of our elected officials and medical staff who have done an outstanding job protecting all of us.

For the past month, the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce has been at the forefront of the COVID-19 crisis, advocating for necessary business support.

Tri-Cities businesses have struggled tostay viable under the health restrictions and have rapidly adapted to sustain. We have been and will continue to be here for business every step of the way, all the way through recovery.

WORKING FOR YOU

Canadian officials offered hope that some of the restrictions that have closed so many businesses and kept British Columbians at home may begin to be eased in the next few weeks. There will be some challenges, there’s no question, but there is light at the end of the tunnel. We will be here for you when we phase into a return to normalcy.

Make no mistake, we need to take precautions to stay safe so that we don’t relapse into a second wave that is worse than the first. But we need to start the process of reopening the economy and get people back to work and businesses open.

It is important to work collaboratively to bring about a stronger and more resilient community as we emerge from this crisis. That's why the Chamber, along with the Downtown Poco and Austin Heights BIA’s, Shop Local Port Moody, and the Tri-City News have launched a #SupportLocal campaign. The goal is to support locally owned businesses whenever through their adapted procedures whenever possible.

See the growing list of businesses at wegotthistricities.com These local businesses need our support now more than ever when they open in the new normal!

Local businesses foster our economy - investing your dollars in local shops allows our community to sustain.

We’re stronger together! #WeGotThisTriCities www.tricitieschamber.com

Bart Aldrich

WINS Wage subsidy increased from 10% to 75% Forgivable loan eligibility extended Unemployment support eligibility extended Tax and GST remittance deferrals EHT payment holiday Increase to property tax relief Commercial rent assistance

IN PROGRESS Additional commercial rent assistance Delay of minimum wage increase Support for business owners that are ineligible for CERB and CEBA For more info on these programs and more visit tricitieschamber.com/covid-19

COVID-19 Business Resources Contact us today for advice and referrals to programs that can help you during this uncertain time.

Notary Corporation

Real Estate Transfers Declarations Mortgages Affidavits Wills General Notary Power of Attorney

Let’s work together to maintain a strong local economy. #SupportLocal We are here to help provide continuity and support.

Reach out to us today.

A Good Person To Know

Tel: 604-464-3136 Fax: 604-464-4010

604-927-3442 | economicdevelopment@coquitlam.ca

#105 - 2655 Mary Hill Road, Port Coquitlam V3C 6R9 (across from Poco Building Supplies)

Email: info@notaryco.ca

www.coquitlamnotarypublic.ca

| coquitlam.ca/ecdev

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

A21

Pickup & Delivery Guide

#ExploreCoquitlam … later #SupportLocal now!

Local businesses going the extra mile to deliver your daily essentials.

For a list of Coquitlam businesses offering Takeout and Delivery, go to visitcoquitlam.ca/eat-drink

#SUPPORTLOCAL #SHOPLOCAL

#explorecoquitlam

WE ARE OPEN

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Kitchen Cabinet

Refinishing

To keep everyone safe we are only open for phone-in orders, with curb side pick-up or FREE delivery in the Tri Cities and Pitt Meadows areas.

Colour help can be done via email or for more personalized service, Video Consultations.

BBB A+ LIABILITY INSURED WCB WARRANTY

Although our doors may be closed, our online shop is available 24/7 at www.villagetoyshop.ca We are also accepting phone orders Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

604-949-0444

Thank you for your continued support!

NEWPORT VILLAGE 262 Newport Drive, Port Moody 604-949-0444 toyologists@villagetoyshop.ca www.villagetoyshop.ca

www.keystonepainters.com @keystone_painters

604.719.2070

ALL MAKE

REPAIRS

We are OPEN for BUSINESS GRiP Tire & Auto Port Moody continues to be open for business during this time.

The health and safety of our staff and customers is our top priority.

We are maintaining the Canadian Government recommended health & safety measures during this challenging time.

Thank you for your continued support!

HOURS OF OPERATION Mon – Fri: 8:00am – 5:00pm Closed Sat & Sun

604-937-5531 2625 St Johns Street, Port Moody

A22

TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

SOrOPtiMiSt CLUb

Sewing to help docs during COVID-19 crisis Tri-City team sews colourful gowns for doctors during crisis Diane StranDberg dstrandberg@tricitynews.com

Spring fashion shows may be cancelled but TriCity, New Westminster and Burnaby doctors may want to hit the runway when COVID19 is beaten back so they can show off their handmade colourful gowns.

Thanks to a coordinated effort by the Soroptimist International of the Tri-Cities to sew and deliver more than 200 gowns, the local doctors have reusable gowns to keep them safe during the current pandemic.

And these aren’t boring gowns in bland pastel fabrics you might usually see on your family physician, according to organizer Cindy Paddington, who is also the president of the local Soroptimist club.

They are colourful, even zany, made from donated fabric, sheets and bright patterned socks that are stitched on to make cuffs.

“It’s like the kind of gown you’d wear if you were patient in the hospital that if you

weren’t wearing underwear your bum would be hanging out,” explained Paddington of the doctors’ garb.

Her years working in the clothing manufacturing business were key in the effort because an assembly line had to be created to bring together delivery drivers, pattern cutters and sewers.

The pattern was sourced from a Dr. Charles Best home economics teacher and altered. After several tries, the best way to cut, sew and produce a gown was identified.

Paddington said 35 volunteers quickly jumped to the task when they learned from a Soroptimist member that there was a shortage of gowns, and before long, Paddington, Darlene McCann and Bridget Fox had enough of a supply chain to turn an idea for gowns into a practical reality.

There were challenges, of course, a few mistakes, and planning meetings had to be done outdoors, using social distancing.

But the results have been stunning and meet an important need in the community, according to Paddington, who said several of the colourful handmade gowns have already been

City of Coquitlam

COUNCIL MEETINGS Coquitlam City Hall – 3000 Guildford Way

Monday, May 4, 2020 TIMES

delivered to Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Burnaby and New Westminster doctors, with more to be delivered in the coming week.

“We’ve received some of the most beautiful letters from the doctors,” commented Paddington, a local realtor.

It’s not every day a group

of women can come together to create a sewing bee, but this effort came together at just the right time in the pandemic, reinforcing the old saying “a stitch in time saves nine.”

For more information about the Dress the Docs project visit the Soroptimist International of the Tri-Cities on Facebook.

A volunteer cuts fabric for one of the gowns in the Dress the Docs project. Submitted PHOtO

City of Coquitlam

NOTICE OF PUBLIC CONSULTATION The City has received an application to amend the Citywide Official Community Plan (CWOCP) relating to properties at 3646, 3648, 3650, 3654, 3674, 3680 Victoria Drive, 4189 Cedar Drive, as well as an unaddressed parcel (“0” Cedar Drive) and an unconstructed road right-of-way portion. The application proposes an amendment to the proposed street network in the Partington Creek Neighbourhood Plan (PCNP) by replacing a future Collector Street and conceptual Local Street portions (Map 1) with two new future conceptual Local Street portions (Map 2) on the subject properties.

The application does not propose any land use designation amendments.

This amendment would facilitate the rezoning and subdivision of the subject properties to permit a two-phased development of 276 townhouse units, and the transfer of Streamside Protection and Enhancement Areas to City of Coquitlam’s ownership.

You are now being invited to provide input to Council with respect to the above-noted application.

The City of Coquitlam will be receiving the input requested herein up to Friday, May 8, 2020. Written correspondence can be provided in one of the following ways: •

Email: clerks@coquitlam.ca;

•

Regular mail: City Clerk’s Office, 2nd Floor, 3000 Guildford Way, Coquitlam, BC, V3B 7N2;

•

Fax: to the City Clerk’s Office at 604-927-3015.

To obtain more information on this application you may email Andrew Yu, Planning and Development Department, at AYu@coquitlam.ca.

Written submissions provided in response to this consultation, including names and addresses, will become part of the public record which includes the submissions being made available for public inspection at Coquitlam City Hall (at the Planning and Development counter) and potentially on our website as part of a future agenda package at www.coquitlam.ca/agendas.

Should Council grant first reading to the proposed CWOCP amendment, a Public Hearing will be held with notification to be provided in accordance with the Local Government Act.

2 p.m. Council-in-Committee* Closed Council** 7 p.m. Regular Council* *The City is following physical distancing provisions and the public are asked to view the meeting online as set out below. **A Closed Council Meeting will convene immediately following the adjournment of the Council-in-Committee Meeting. The first item to be considered in the public portion of this meeting is a resolution requiring adoption prior to the Council Meeting being closed to the public.

Watch Live Broadcasts and archived Council videos online at coquitlam.ca/webcasts Agendas are available online by 3 p.m. on Friday at coquitlam.ca/agendas Sign up for Council News direct emails at coquitlam.ca/directmail

coquitlam.ca/publicnotices

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

TRI-CITY SPORTS

A23

Let’s get digitial. tricitynews.com

LACROSSE

Lacrosse leagues looking to salvage seasons BCJALL was supposed to start last Saturday MARIO BARTEL mbartel@tricitynews.com

The commissioner of the Western Lacrosse Association says he’s troubled at the thought his league could lose its 2020 season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

But Paul Dal Monte said, the league’s executive and governors are doing everything they can to ensure that doesn’t happen, even as the uncertainty about when re-

Lacrosse floors in the BCJALL and WLA could stay silent all summer if COVID-19 restrictions on gatherings remain in effect. TRI-CITY NEWS FILE PHOTO

strictions on public gatherings could be lifted continues.

At the very least, the com-

ing season, which has already been postponed from its scheduled May 21st start, is

unlikely to look like any other normal campaign.

Dal Monte said the league has a contingency to play a schedule as short as 12 games.

But any decision on how to proceed relies on continuing direction from health authorities as well as the Canadian Lacrosse Association.

Dal Monte added he’s also in regular communication with his counterpart at Major Series Lacrosse in Ontario, which is supposed to be hosting the Mann Cup national championship in September.

“We stay on top of things,” Dal Monte said. “We understand the pain points and challenges.”

One of those pain points is the financial viability of the league and its seven teams, including the Coquitlam Adanacs.

Dal Monte conceded some teams might have a hard time operating if sponsorship dollars aren’t forthcoming.

Still, he said, time is on the league’s side. Virtual meetings with team governors are being held May 2 and 16 to assess the current situation and options for moving forward.

Any final call on how to proceed with a season could be held off as late as June 1, Dal Monte said.

Meanwhile, The BCJALL, which includes the Coquitlam

Jr. Adanacs, and PoCo Saints among its eight teams, was supposed to play its first regular season game last Saturday.

But that’s now on hold with the league executive meeting next on May 19.

Karl Christiansen said the league could reduce its schedule to 14 games from 21, or even stage a tournament-style season to determine playoff teams that could compete for a chance to go to the Minto Cup in St. Catharines in August. That is, if the national championship even gets the green light to play.

“We are hopeful we can play some lacrosse this season,” he added.

Join the conversation at facebook.com/tricitynews

Business Owners:

Regional watering regulations

We’re here for you Complimentary Business Listing

MANAGING THE DEMAND FOR DRINKING WATER

LAWN WATERING REGULATIONS MAY 1 to OCTOBER 15 | TWO DAYS PER WEEK

We’re offering free GuidedBy.ca listings, listings, courtesy courtesy of of the theTri-City Tri-City News, tohelp help connect connect locals to your business business during to duringthese thesetrying tryingtimes. times.

Residential lawn watering allowed between 4 am and 9 am

Tri-City staff are busy up profiles now. Email Marchand at Tri-City News staff aresetting busy setting up profiles now.Jarrod Email Manny Kang jmarchand@glaciermedia.ca and we’ll get you connected. at mkang@glaciermedia.ca and we’ll get you connected.

EVEN ADDRESSES Wednesday, Saturday

ODD ADDRESSES Thursday, Sunday

Watering trees, shrubs and flowers with a sprinkler is allowed any day between 4 am and 9 am.

For the complete regulations and enforcement information, visit metrovancouver.org

A24

TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

COMMUNITY MARKETPLACE classifieds.tricitynews.com

Call or email to reserve your space, Book your ad online 24/7: Monday through Friday 8:30am to 4:30pm: tricitynews.adperfect.com

604.444.3000 • 604.630.3300 Or call or email to reserve your space, DTJames@glaciermedia.ca Monday through Friday 8:30am to 4:30pm: 604.444.3000 • DTJames@van.net

Or book your ad online 24/7:

tricitynews.adperfect.com

EARLY COMMUNITY CHILDHOOD SUPPORT WORKER

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REMEMBRANCES

MARKETPLACE

IN MEMORIAM

WANTED BECK - Agnes Jean (MacKay) .

In loving memory of a wonderful mother who passed away on May 4, 2015.

.

We have only a memory, dear mother, We cherish our whole life through; But the sweetness will live forever, As we treasure the memory of you.

Lovingly remembered by daughters, Darlene and Diana, son Brad and grandson Christopher.

CASH for your CLUTTER I will pay CASH for your UNWANTED ITEMS! I specialize in English Bone China & Figurines.

I LIKE: Collectibles, Tools, Antiques, RECORDS. ETC

WAREHOUSE LIEN SALE

No Reserve Auction Date: June 11, 2020 10 AM Place: Reed Point Marina, 850 Barnet Highway Port Moody, BC

1981 32ft. Trendsetter boat Debtor: Hiopan Cheong

Rob • 604-307-6715

BUSINESS SERVICES BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

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INCOME TAX Taj Damji

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OBITUARIES

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Free Pickup & Delivery in Tri-Cities Single $60, Couples $90 No limit on # of Slips. www.tajdamji.com

TAX RETURNS

PINDA, John The Pinda family regrets to announce the passing of John Pinda on March 29, 2020. He was 90 years old. He lived in Port Moody all of his life. He packed shingles for a living at different shingle mills on the coast. He enjoyed the family garden and was a traveler. He will surly be missed.

A celebration of life will be held at a later date.

How will you remember them? photos • tributes • more legacy.com/obituaries/tricitynews legacy.com/obituaries/nsnews

COMMUNITY

LEGAL LEGAL/PUBLIC NOTICES

ACCOUNTING/ BOOKKEEPING

.

Puzzle Answers

Current and overdue Starting at $60.00 per return.

Over 20 yrs exp. Free check up of last year’s tax return MAREK and JOANNA BRAGIEL Tri-City Business Centre, 3rd Flr, 2300-2850 Shaughnessy St. Port Coquitlam, BC V3C 6K5 604-552-4389

INVENTORS! Ideas wanted!

Call Davison today!

1.800.218.2909 or visit us at inventing.davison.com/BC Free inventor’s guide! tricitynews.adperfect.com

EMPLOYMENT GENERAL EMPLOYMENT

The Tri City News is looking for a Driver to deliver bundles to carriers in the Tricities area on Thursdays.

Must have reliable van or the like.

Call 604-472-3040.

Please recycle this newspaper.

NOTICE OF kʷikʷəƛ̓əm FIRST NATION COMMUNITY RATIFICATION VOTE Take notice that a Ratification Vote will be held in accordance with the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm First Nation Community Ratification Process on the 30th of May 2020, in order to determine if Eligible Voters approve the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm First Nation Land Code and the Individual Agreement.

The following question will be asked of the Eligible Members of kʷikʷəƛ̓əm First Nation by ballot: “DO YOU APPROVE THE kʷikʷəƛ̓əm FIRST NATION LAND CODE DATED FOR REFERENCE MARCH 25th 2020, AND THE INDIVIDUAL AGREEMENT WITH HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN IN RIGHT OF CANADA?”

RATIFICATION VOTE LOCATION

MAY 30, 2020 - 9:00am TO 8:00pm kʷikʷəƛ̓əm FIRST NATION COMMUNITY HALL 2- 65 COLONY FARM ROAD, COQUITLAM, B.C. AND FURTHER TAKE NOTICE: That all members of kʷikʷəƛ̓əm First Nation 18 years of age or older as of the last date of the Ratification Vote (May 30, 2020) are eligible to vote. Mail in Ballot voting packages will be mailed to all Eligible Voters in Canada for whom an mailing address is on record with the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm First Nation. Furthermore, information documents will be emailed to ALL members for whom an email address is on record with the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm First Nation AND are also available from Fred Schiffner, Ratification Officer, at the address and telephone number appearing below.

VOTE BY ELECTRONIC BALLOT FROM APRIL 28TH TO 8:00 PM MAY 30th, 2020 To register to vote electronically, please visit:

https://onefeather.ca/nations/kwikwetlem

Please read and follow the instructions provided. You will be required to provide your Registry Number (this is your 10-digit Status card number - starting with “560...”), Date of Birth and an Email Address and Phone Number. If you encounter any problems or are unable to complete this registration process, please use the “HELP” button or contact Ratification Officer information on the website.

Please Note: Any Eligible Voter may vote in person or by Mail-in Ballot or by Electronic Voting.

If an Eligible Voter has not received a voting package please contact the Ratification Officer with your residential mailing address information so that the necessary documents can be provided to you.

Questions with regard to the Land Code and Individual Agreement must be directed to Sue Lizotte, Land Code Coordinator via email: Sue@Kwikwetlem.com or by phone (778) 908-1250. You may visit https://www.kwikwetlemlandcode.com for more information.

Dated at Victoria, Province of British Columbia, this 8th day of April, 2020.

CARRIERS NEEDED

The following routes are now available to deliver the News in the Tri City area.

save 4

14

$

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Fully Cooked Chicken Wings

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ALL PRICES IN EFFECT THURSDAY, APRIL 30 TO WEDNESDAY, MAY 6, 2020 UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED. Prices of products that feature the M&M Food Market Rewards Special logo are exclusive to members of the M&M Food Market Rewards program. Simply present your membership card, or sign up for a free membership in store or online, to take advantage of these exclusive offers. M&M Food Market Express and other non-traditional stores offer a limited range of products; therefore special pricing and promotions are not valid at M&M Food Market Express or other non-traditional stores.

If you are interested in delivering the papers, please call Circulation 604-472-3040 Other routes not listed may be available, please contact our office

Fred Schiffner, Ratification Officer For more information please contact: Fred Schiffner, Ratification Officer Lawrence Lewis, Deputy Ratification Officer Office: (604) 943-0522 Email: lawrence@onefeather.ca Email: fschiffner90@gmail.com Toll Free: 1-800-813-2173 Office: (250) 384-8200 Toll Free: (1-855) 458-5888 Fax: (250) 384-5416 209 – 852 Fort Street, Victoria BC V8W 1H2 https://onefeather.ca/nations/kwikwetlem

.ca

SHOW SUPPORT

for the local businesses that give your community its hometown feel.

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

RENTALS

HOME SERVICES

APARTMENTS/ CONDOS FOR RENT

BUILDING CONTRACTORS

GARDEN VILLA 1010 6th Ave. New Westminster.

Suites Available.

Beautiful Atrium with Fountain. By College, Shops & Transit/Skytrain.

Pets negotiable. Ref req’d.

CALL 604-715-7764 baysideproperty.com

We do all types of renovation at the best price!

Specialize in: Interior & Exterior Painting, Flooring, Kitchen & Bathroom Upgrade, Fencing & Roof Decking 778−244−8707 perspective−solutions.com

CLEANING Messy House or Office?

The most thorough cleaning ever or it`s Free Call: 604 945 0004

CONCRETE

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Hi-Rise Apartment with River View & Indoor Pool.

1 BR & 2 BR Available.

Rent includes heat & hot water. Remodeled Building and Common area.

Gated underground secure parking available.

References required.

NO JOB TOO small!

Serving Lower Mainland 29 Yrs! •Prepare •Form •Place •Finish •Granite/Interlock Block Walls & Bricks •Driveways •Stairs •Exposed Aggregate •Stamped Concrete •Sod Placement EXC Refs • WCB Insured

604-657-2375 604-462-8620

www.HerfortConcrete.ca

EXCAVATING

LAWN & GARDEN

Landscaping, water lines, cement work and chimney repair.

604.468.2919

604-941-1618 call robert 604-844-4222

FLAT SCREEN TV WALL MOUNTING $200. for 50 inch or less, + Bracket $40. Total = $240.

• Installed on wood studs.

• Metal studs + $30.

Full Insured. BBB Member.

Call/Text • 604-317-0490

VILLA MARGARETA Suites Available.

All suites have nice balconies, Underground parking avail. Refs req’d.

Small Pet OK.

CALL 604-715-7764 baysideproperty.com

SUITES FOR RENT BBY North, Furn’d bsmt ste, full kitchen, bathroom, priv entry. One person. N/S. N/P. $750 incls utls. 604-294-3047

Reduce Reuse Recycle The classifieds can help!

604.444.3000 604.795.4417 604.630.3300

ELECTRICAL

Electrical Installations Renos & Repairs. BBB Member.

www.nrgelectric.ca

604-520-9922

.

604-240-2881

DISHWASHER INSTALL We install:

• Dishwashers • Over-the-Range Microwaves • Range Hoods • TV Wall Mounts 26 Years Experience. Insured Lic#477479

THE LAWN BUTCHER Only Prime Cuts will Do! Call Jim • 778-839-6250

#1 Backhoes & Excavators Trenchless Waterlines Bobcats & Dump Truck & All Material Deliveries Drainage; Video Inspection, Landscaping, Stump/Rock/Cement/Oil Tank & Demos, Paving, Pool/Dirt Removal, Paver Stones, Jackhammer, Water/Sewer, Line/Sumps, Slinger Avail, Concrete Cutting, Hand Excavating.

Basements Made Dry Claudio’s Backhoe Service

Spring Specials & Clean-up Chafer Beetle Repair Lawn Seed, Install, Repair

Tree Pruning & Hedge Trimming Blackberry Removal

• Power Wash & Gutters • Concrete & Stucco Repairs • Driveways •Paths •Patios’ • DECKS & FENCING & more

25+ yrs exp. WCB. Insured

Jag • 778-892-1530

a1kahlonconstruction.ca

Bros. Roofing Ltd.

PAINTING/ WALLPAPER

Residential & Commercial Commercial Residential “Award Winning Renovations”

37 Years of Experience

604-728-3009

Top Quality Affordable Prices Drywall Repair Ext/Int. Years of Exp. • WCB • Free Estimates

info@jkbconstruction.com www.jkbconstruction.com www.jkbconstruction.com

SPECIAL SPRING PAINTING DISCOuNT EXTERIOR & INTERIOR

35%OFF 778-984-0666 D&M PAINTING .

Interior / Exterior Specialist.

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Top Quality • Quick Work.

Free estimate.

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Over 40 Years in Business SPECIALIZING IN CEDAR, FIBERGLASS LAMINATES AND TORCH ON.

Liability Insurance, WCB, BBB, Free Estimates

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All Season Roofing

Re-Roofing & Repairs Specialists

20 Year Labour Warranty Available

.

778.628.7590 POWER WASHING Gutter Cleaning, Power washing, Window Cleaning, Roof Cleaning Call Simon for prompt & professional service 30 yrs exp. 604-230-0627

PROPERTY MAINTENANCE

Property Maintenance $50.00 Pressure Washing, window cleaning, gutter cleaning, aerating and power raking.

604−209−3445 www.npservices.ca

ALL RENOVATIONS: •Kitchen •Baths •Additions •Patio •Stairs •Deck •Fences •Painting •Drywall & MORE

778-892-1530

a1kahlonconstruction.ca

604-591-3500

New Roofing & Repairs.

Gutter Cleaning • $80 Free Est. • GLRoofing.ca

604-240-5362 A-1 Contracting. Bsmt, bath, kitchen cabinets, tile & laminate flrs, painting, decks..

Call Dhillon, 604-782-1936

Please thoroughly wash your hands to keep us healthy!

TREE SERVICES TREE SERVICES

Pruning, Hedge Trimming Tree & Stump Removal 75 ft Bucket Trucks Covid-19 Safety Guidelines strictly followed.

604 - 787-5915

.

www.treeworksonline.ca 10% discount with this ad

tricitynews. adperfect.com

Spring Special PGP Contractors

PAINTSPECIAL.COM

3 rooms for $375, 2 coats any colour (Ceiling & Trim extra) Price incls Cloverdale Premium quality paint.

NO PAYMENT until Job is completed.

Ask us about our Laminate Flooring & Maid Services.

604 -230 -3539 778-895-3503 604-339-1989

FAIRWAY PAINTING Fully Insured

20 yrs. exp. • Free Est. Lawn & Garden Care

• Power Rake, Pruning • Tree Topping, Trimming

SPRING CLEAN-UP

• Power Washing Junk Removal Available.

Senior Disc

All Work Guar. Free Est. John 604-616-2934

INTERIOR & EXTERIOR SPECIALS 10% OFF

Call 604-

7291234

PRO*ACC PAINTING LTD Est 1985

• Residential Specialists • WCB, Ins’d, Lic’d • Free Estimates

604-942-4383

www.pro-accpainting.com

SPRING CLEAN-UP • Power Rake • Aerate • New Lawns & Seed • Lawn Cuts •Power Wash • Retaining Walls • Rock, Gravel, Pavers • Hedging & Trimming All Garden Work & Maint.

PATIOS

BC AWNING & RAILING

POWER RAKING Spring Cleanup

Complete Lawn & Garden Care

• Chafer Beetle Repair Hedge Trim & Tree Prune • Flower Beds • Weed •Top Soil •Mulch

604-729-8502

ACROSS

1. Curved symmetrical structure 5. One’s partner in marriage 11. Male admirer 12. Spend in a period of dormancy 16. Popular Easter meal 17. Doc 18. Bearing a heavy load 19. Gratitude 24. The Mount Rushmore State 25. Driving 26. Girl 27. British thermal unit

DOWN

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.

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RENOS & HOME IMPROVEMENT

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ASK ABOUT OUR SPECIAL PRICING!

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A-1 Contracting & Roofing New & Re-Roofing • All Types All Maintenance & Repairs GUTTER CLEANING Gutter Guard Installations • RENOVATION WORK • WCB. 25% Discount • Emergency Repairs •

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Donny 604-600-6049

YOUR ELECTRICIAN Lic#89402. Insured. Guar’d.

Fast same day service.

We love BIG & small jobs!

604-568-1899 goldenleafelectrical.com

BOWEN ALUMINUM

PLUMBING

.

Boarding & Taping, Good Rates! Reliable, Free Est. Reno’s & Small Jobs Welcome! Call Gurprit 604-710-7769

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ADVERTISING POLICIES

agardenerandagentleman.ca

A. RIGHTWAY PAINTING Ltd. 24 years Experience.

Fully Ins’d. Lic’d & WCB • Spring Clean-up • Lawn Maintenance • Power Rake • New Sod & Seeding • Tree Topping & Trimming • Power Wash • Gutters • Patio’s • Decks • Fences • Concrete • Retaining Walls • Driveways & Sidewalks & Much MORE All work guaranteed Free Estimates

http://ecityelectronics.ca

All advertising published in this newspaper is accepted on the premise that the merchandise and services offered are accurately described and willingly sold to buyers at the advertised prices. Advertisers are aware of these conditions. Advertising that does not conform to these standards or that is deceptive or misleading, is never knowingly accepted. If any reader encounters non-compliance with these standards we ask that you inform the Publisher of this newspaper and The Advertising Standards Council of B.C. OMISSION AND ERROR: The publishers do not guarantee the insertion of a particular advertisement on a specified date, or at all, although every effort will be made to meet the wishes of the advertisers.

Further, the publishers do not accept liability for any loss of damage caused by an error or inaccuracy in the printing of an advertisement beyond the amount paid for the space actually occupied by the portion of the advertisement in which the error occurred. Any corrections of changes will be made in the next available issue. The Tri-CityNews will be responsible for only one incorrect insertion with liability limited to that portion of the advertisement affected by the error. Request for adjustments or corrections on charges must be made within 30 days of the ad’s expiration.

For best results please check your ad for accuracy the first day it appears. Refunds made only after 7 business days notice!

604-319-5302

Residential & Commercial

LAWN & GARDEN

Free Estimate 604-821-8088 • 604-518-6395

LAWN - GARDEN - TREE Services. Yard Waste - Junk Removal. Power Washing.

21 years experience.

Free Estimates

DRYWALL

320-9th St, New Westminster

Patio Covers, Sunrooms, Vinyl, Railings

HANDYPERSON Tiles, drywall, painTing, doors (repairs), misc jobs Deck, Fence & Stair Repairs If I Can’t Do It, It Can’t Be Done!

ROOFING .

Pedro’s ContraCting & drainage

CALL 604-525-2122 baysideproperty.com We do ALL kinds of Concrete Work.

• Seniors discount.

Local, family business 40+ yrs.

604-240-3408

PATIOS

A25

•Aluminum/Glass Patio Cover •Sunrooms & Windows •Aluminum Railings, Vinyl Deck Free Est • 604-521-2688 PatioCoverVancouver.com

To advertise call

604-444-3000

1. Remove body tissue 2. Harvester 3. Roadside living quarters 4. Excessive self-confidence 5. Lapp 6. Bicycled 7. Entrance to a passage 8. Western U.S. state 9. Grain towers 10. “Westworld” actress __ Rachel Wood 13. Commercial 14. One who left a will 15. Makes it through 20. Within (prefix) 21. Sea patrol (abbr.)

28. Makes a mistake 29. A defined length of time 30. Lions do it 31. Large quantities 33. Become less intense 34. Famed peninsula 38. Emerges 39. Rare Hawaiian geese 40. Dance style 43. Drove 44. Measures speed of an engine (abbr.)

45. Yankee hero Bucky

49. Midway between west and northwest 50. Monetary unit of Samoa 51. Makes clothing 53. Spielberg’s alien 54. Agreeable to the taste 56. Injury treatment protocol 58. Cools your house 59. Imaginary line 60. New convert 63. Some do it to their windows 64. Wore away 65. Work units

22. Cigarettes (slang) 23. A doctrine 27. Constrictor snakes 29. Atomic #73 30. Baseball stat 31. Female sibling 32. A soft gray metal (abbr.)

33. Southern constellation 34. Belgian city 35. Go in again 36. In a different, more positive way 37. A place for sleeping 38. Blood type 40. Syrian news agency (abbr.)

41. A salt or ester of acetic acid

42. Millihenry 44. Populous Israeli city __ Aviv 45. Widen 46. Magical potion 47. Acknowledging 48. Private romantic rendezvous 50. Cavalry sword 51. Terabyte 52. Artificial intelligence 54. Bullfighting maneuver 55. Breezed through 57. Santa says it three times 61. __ and behold 62. 36 inches (abbr.)

A26

TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

e m o c l we r u o o t back e! storek • 10am-5pm

e w a s y a d 7 open W

e are ready and excited to invite you to now shop inside our store! We thank all of you who have shopped our outdoor nursery and worked patiently with us as we navigated our system. We have been working hard behind the scenes to prepare the inside of the store to allow for a safe shopping experience for our customers and our staff! You will now have access to our plant pharmacy, garden decor, indoor pottery, houseplants, outdoor nursery, seeds and more!

We ask you to follow these important shopping guidelines to ensure a positive and safe experience for all! We will be allowing a limited number of customers to shop. Guidelines here...

• All shoppers must sanitize their hands prior to entering. (sanitizer will be provided) • Every customer must use a shopping cart.

• All shopping carts will be sanitized.

• Follow all directional arrows, one entry, one exit.

• Wait to be called to a cashier upon checkout.

• • • • •

Max 2 family members.

Limit your shopping experience to max 1 hour.

No public washrooms will be available.

If you are sick, PLEASE stay at home.

Debit/credit payment only, no cash.

THIS WEEK’S SPECIALS!

MOTHERS DAY IS MAY 10!

This year more than ever we need to celebrate the “Mom’s” in our world.

Overnight moms have become homeschool teacher, playdates, birthday drive by organizers and virtual event organizers, to name a few!

Let’s celebrate our Mom’s who are working extra hard to balance work and family during these challenging times.

Our florists have designed some extra special bouquets for easy ordering!

Lightweight fiberglass handle

‘(flowers may not be exactly as shown)

Large

$49.99 $29.99

Hanging baskets are a Mother’s favorite!

We have a beautiful selection starting at

Popular pollinator plant.

Loves full sun!

$39.99

Mom’s “Cup of Tea”

Spring floral arrangement set in a pretty teacup. ‘(flowers may not be exactly as shown)

$34.99

Raised Planter Box With Greenhouse Lid

Perfect for starting seeds or young plants.

Grow your own fresh organic vegetables!

Fits patios and balconies!

sale $9.97

reg $110.00

sale $69.97

Strawberry Bag

Makes growing yummy berries simple.

Suitable for patios & small gardens 2 per pack

Small

Hanging Baskets

ers 65+

Tuesday & Th ursday 9-10am!

Garden Shovel

Hat floral bouquet

Yarrow

reg $14.99

SPECIAL SHOPPING HOUR for our custo S m

To ensure your bouquet is ready for Mother’s Day, please pre book by May 5!

Simply call 604-942-7519 ext 212 or email flowers@artknapps.ca

Seed Potatoes

sale $12.97 Herb Planter

Choose from Yukon Gold, Kennebec and Red Pontiac.

3kg bag (produces min 60lbs of potatoes) Share a bag with your neighbour!

reg $19.99

reg $19.99

sale $14.97

4 piece set, plants not included, terra cotta clay

reg $29.99

sale $24.97

OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK • 10 TO 5

reg $24.97

sale $14.97

Flowering Plants Packaged Bulbs

Choose from dahlias, lilies and more.

Buy Two Get One

FREE

Sale ends Wednesday, May 6

FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK AND INSTAGRAM FOR GREAT INFORMATION AND UPDATES

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

2020

Showcasing fresh ideas from the creative young minds of Tri-Cities students

Some of our most creative young minds helped Tri-City News advertisers design their most memorable ad ever!

The Tri-City News, in conjunction with School District 43, are pleased to present this special section with ads created for local businesses by Tri-Cities students.

B1

TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

Rodney T. (Gr.4, Alderson Elementary)

B2

DL# 7557

2960 Christmas Way, Coquitlam

www.CoquitlamChrysler.ca

604-502-9836

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

B3

2 0 2 0

creativity & children A G R E AT M I X That’s one of the reasons our annual Design an Ad special supplement continues to be popular in the Tri-Cities.

The Tri-City News, local businesses and organizations, and our local schools, team up and ask students to design newspaper ads for the special section.

Every year, the students produce insightful, creative, thoughtful - and often humorous advertisements that highlight the strengths of their subjects and often carry compelling messages. The businesses and groups get to choose which students’ advertisement they want to run in the section and students learn about the community newspaper business. The ads and photos of students are put together by our team at the Tri-City News and another Design an Ad section is complete.

This year, we did things a little differently due to Covid-19. We reached out to families in our communities and designs were created in homes around the Tri-Cities and we are so proud of the artwork that was created. I would like to thank all of the students, teachers and participating advertisers who continue to make this annual project a real success!

If you are a grade 4 or 5 teacher in the Tri-Cities, and would be interested in participating in next year’s Design an Ad feature, please contact us.

SUPPORTED

Tri-City News Publisher, Lara Graham

BY

Lara Graham Publisher, Tri-City News publisher@tricitynews.com

SD43 Proudly Supports Student Creativity and Expression Skil Skills s come o e in ininmany any ffo oforms rm ms..

Skills come many School District No. 43 (Coquitlam) is proud of our students and their many skills. But it’s more than just great academic, athletic or technical skills.

It’s also about helping students build skills like communication, creativity, problem solving and artistic expression, which builds their self-esteem, selfconfidence and pride.

That’s why we’re pleased to partner with the Tri-City News and local businesses so our students can again put their skills to work by developing artwork for the ads in this feature.

This includes the artwork for our ad. We asked students to show us their school pride, and they did!

Justin

Learn more here: www.sd43.bc.ca

TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

Ellen O.

Ella W.

B4

EED GH LOU

N

SHAUGHNESSY

VETERINARY HOSPITAL

604-945-4949 2129 - 2850 Shaughnessy St. Port Coquitlam coolvet.com

Sofia K. (Castle Park Elementary)

Pitt River Bridge

Y. HW

SWAY

KEBET WAY

KING

STORE HOURS: Mon. to Thurs. 9am to 5pm, Fri. 9am to 5:30pm, Sat., 9am to 5pm Closed Sundays & Holidays

MARY HILL BYPASS

BROADWAY ST.

1606 Kebet Way, Port Coquitlam

-➤

MADE LOCALLY RIGHT HERE! Your local source for European Meats, Deli & Specialty Products

CELEBRATING �� YEARS

B5

Audrina G.

Alisa Y. (Nestor Elementary)

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

Your Spring Forecast: Cloudy with a Chance of Books!

Sunwood Square Coquitlam

westernskybooks.com

#500-3025 Lougheed Highway

604-461-5602 I info@westernskybooks.com HOURS: Open Daily 11:00 am - 4:00 pm Deliveries Wednesday and Friday

(By Coquitlam Centre)

whitespot.ca

NEWPORT VILLAGE 262 Newport Drive, Port Moody 604-949-0444 toyologists@villagetoyshop.ca www.villagetoyshop.ca

Erika L.

Zoey M.

Unit 2132-2850 Shaughnessy Street, Port Coquitlam Unceded Coast Salish: Kwikwetlem & Katzie Lands

Mikayla D. (Mary Hill Elementary)

Brennan

TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

For information on becoming a carrier call 604-472-3042 or email circulation@tricitynews.com

Contact: Kailah Knittle 604.469.3128 or kailah@erhf.ca

James W. (Nestor Elementary)

www.erhf.ca/golf

Matthew M.

B6

facebook.com/meadowbrookcats/

111-3200 Westwood Street, Port Coquitlam

604-944-7297

Check us out on line, call us today or drop by for a tour:

coolcatvet.com

2233 McAllister Ave, Port Coquitlam (604) 942-1200 1121 Austin Avenue, Coquitlam Ph: (604) 931-2468

www.meneds.ca

B7

Olivia Reilly

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

1881 UNITED BOULEVARD, COQUITLAM

Trans -Cand a Hw y

1-866-980-3427 KIAWEST.COM

Lough eed H wy

BLACK FRIDAY Unite

d Blvd

We Are Here!

Anaya P. (Castle Park Elementary

Andrei M. (Castle Park Elementary

Peter G. (Castle Park Elementary

Nate M. (Castle Park Elementary

B8 TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

portcoquitlam.ca/sortitright

Zoe M. (Gr. 5, Mary Hill Elementary, Mme. Nazari)

Claire Y. (Castle Park Elementary)

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM B9

B10

TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

Abigael T. (Mountain Meadows Elementary)

OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK IN COQUITLAM CENTRE (Lower level near Sears)

604-464-1511

www.coquitlamcentredental.com

40 Off %

Plus

Free Installation

PLUS TAKE AN EXTRA 15% Off

Sienna M. (Castle Park, Miss Wong)

Terms and Conditions: 40% off any order of $980 or more or 30% off any order of $680-$979 on any complete Custom Closet, Garage Cabinets, Home OfďŹ ce, Pantry, Laundry, Wall Bed, Wall Unit, Hobby Room or Garage Flooring system.

Take an additional 15% off on any complete system order. Not valid with any other offer.

Free installation with any complete unit order of $600 or more. Expires May 31, 2020.

Imagine your closets, totally organized!

SPECIAL FINANCING FOR 12 MONTHS

With approved credit. Call or ask your Designer for details. Not available in all areas.

Custom Closets, Garage Cabinets, Home Offices , Laundries, Pantries, Wall Beds, Hobby Rooms and more...

Call for a free in home design consultation and estimate

604-670-9600 www.closetsbydesign.com

TRI

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

B11

Suzanne Carswell

James Walker

Joe Apolonia

Leah Baynes-Bettger

Shirley Brown

Mike Buonassisi

Danny Camele

Janice Christie

Adil Dinani

Nic Dominelli

Jeff Golding

Wayne Goudal

Craig Guthrie

Ali Hondl

Terry Hyska

Willi Isaak & Ann Ceolin

Satpal Kaur

Sonia Lagiglia

Brian Lamb

Deborah-Leo LeBlanc

Janice Mazzone

Rod McLeod

Marcela Neciu Lamb

Ollie Nietzel

Eric Nygard

Kellie O’Brien

Hafez Panju

Angela Parrotta

Brad Parrotta

Rebecca Permack

David Reimers

Jennifer Roycroft

Area Managing Broker

Managing Broker

Janice Strachan

Madi L. Nestor Elementary

Anna Ruscitti

Mohamed Sabry

Aly Sach

Josh Spence

Kim & Marie Taverna

Sigrid Wilcox

Coquitlam Port Coquitlam 2185 Austin Ave 101-2264 Elgin Ave 604-939-6666 604-942-7300

Helping you is what we do.™

B12

TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

Michael Z. (Castle Park Elementary)

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glacier media special report

On B.C.’s rOad tO reCOvery

B.C. restaurant reopenings could start in May Hospitality |

By Glen Korstrom gkorstrom@biv.com

bc

restaurants could be allowed to open their dining rooms as early as next month, although the provincial government has made clear that any loosened restrictions w i l l come from provincial health officer bonnie Henry.

When she issues orders to loosen restrictions, she will act in part on recommendations that the industry has drafted and provided to government.

Henry said on April 20 that she wanted to work with the industry to come up with “innovative ways that we can have in-restaurant dining that protects both the staff, as well as people who are coming in.” customers may have to pick up their food from an area in the restaurant that is behind a Plexiglas shield, ian tostenson, cEo of the bc restaurant

Public confidence key for restaurants to return to profitable operations

& Foodserv ices A ssociation suggested.

Hand sanitizer will almost certainly be at the entrance, and customers and employees may have to be temperature-checked before entering the premises. if the bistro has servers, they may be required to wear masks and gloves. there will almost certainly be a limit to the density within the restaurant – perhaps halving the number of seats that it is allowed to service.

Whatever proportion is necessary to maintain physical distancing, tostenson said, would also have to allow a restaurant to remain viable. tostenson sprang into action when he learned that Henry wanted to work with industry to come up with guidelines for how to open dining rooms.

He put together an “A team” of hospitality-sector leaders to come up with a plan for how to operate safely and profitably.

He then organized an April

B.C. Restaurant and Foodservices Association CEO Ian Tostenson intends to present a plan to government on how the sector can be safe enough to open for dine-in service | chung chow

22 conference call with several dozen industry insiders from companies such as the glowbal group, Earls, cactus club and starbucks (Nasdaq:sbUX).

Unions were also represented. “i would love to see this industry develop standards that are so aspirational that we become a

model, with Dr. Henry, for North America,” he said. “they can point to b.c. and say, ‘You know, what those guys up there did it right.’”

Henry ordered a stop to all dine-in service at restaurants provincewide on march 20 – a crushing financial blow to many in the industry. some switched to take-out only, or debuted delivery service, but even with those stopgap measures many wondered how long their ventures could survive.

“We’re going to do this in a way that is so strict from a safety point of view, but we’re going to have fun doing it from a hospitality point of view,” tostenson said. tap and barrel restaurants group cEo Daniel Frankel – one of the restaurant owners in tostenson’s group – had to lay off approximately 600 hourly workers at his six restaurants.

He is left with 100 salaried staff.

“t he key is el i m i nati ng as many touch points as possible,” Frankel said.

For example, he said that instead of leaving cutlery on tables servers will likely have to bring out fresh utensils after customers arrive. some of Frankel’s restaurants are licensed to serve hundreds of people, and much of the seating for them is outside. He said it could make sense to have a different maximum allowable density outside because Henry has said repeatedly that transmission of coviD-19 is much easier inside. gaining the public’s trust is as important as convincing Henry to loosen restrictions.

An Angus reid poll released April 20 found that 60% of canadians said that they would wait at least until their province had gone two weeks without discovering a new case of coviD-19 before they would return to prepandemic routines. •

The province’s fashion retailers face a long road to recovery retail |

Insiders differ on when they think B.C. government will allow non-essential stores to reopen

By Glen Korstrom gkorstrom@biv.com

r

etailers in b.c. face major changes to the shopping experience they offer when fashion boutiques reopen after the coviD-19 pandemic eases. many fashion retailers have closed partly because customers want to try on clothing, which poses the threat of infected garments. others closed because they doubted they could remain profitable if they limited the number of people in their stores. closed fitting rooms, extending the time in which customers can return goods and limiting customers is a strategy that Fields cEo Jason mcDougall said he has

pursued in his 64 stores’ fashion departments. He also sells food and other essentials.

Whether b.c. companies such as Lululemon Ath letica inc.

(Nasdaq:LULU) or Aritzia inc. (tsX:AtZ) can keep their bricksand-mortar stores open while prohibiting shoppers from trying on clothes remains to be seen. “change rooms are going to be essential,” said Lululemon founder chip Wilson. “Women are wearing different types of clothing, and fit and look is so critical.”

Wilson added that he expects the coviD-19 virus to “pingpong” a rou nd the world for years and that people younger than 40 will want to get on with

their lives, and that will include shopping.

Not allowing returns would deter sales because there would be such a high cost and risk to the consumer, he said. boys’ co. owner David goldman said he didn’t know if it would be viable to operate without allowing customers to try on clothing. both goldman and mcDougall have asked landlords for patience during the pandemic. mcDougall believes that his 31 stores in b.c. will survive the downturn.

Predictions differ on when non-essential retailers will open but that decision will be up to corporate owners and not the

government because even though many non-essential retailers have closed they are allowed to stay open. the catch is that retailers must “adapt their services and workplaces to the orders and recommendations of [Provincial Health officer bonnie Henry], according to the b.c. government. retail insider media owner craig Patterson said he foresees those stores reopening in early summer, but the fear of catching coviD-19 may keep customers out.

High-end retailers on vancouver’s posh Alberni street may be particularly hard hit because they rely on tourist spending, and non-essential international

travel appears to be months away. “there will be a significant decrease in demand for fashion clothing,” Patterson said. “How many formal events will women go to where they have to be seen?

How many ball gowns are you going to sell?”

Joseph calvano agreed.

He founded Dollar giant in 2001, sold the company to Dollar tree in 2010 for $62 million, and was president of Dollar tree canada until he retired in 2018. “i don’t see fashion being a priority from a shopping point of view for many people,” he said. “the majority of stores in the fashion business will be in for a rough ride for the next 12 months.” •

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TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

glacier media special report

On B.C.’s rOad tO reCOvery

Big energy projects await return to full power resources |

Some B.C. megaprojects don’t need to restart because they never stopped

By nelson Bennett nbennett@biv.com

U

nlike other sectors, like hospitality and retail, big energy projects underway in b.c. have not been forced into a wholesale shutdown by the coviD-19 pandemic, since they were deemed essential, although a number of them with large work camps have had to drastically scale back their work force. so like all other business in b.c., they are just waiting for the green light from the provincial health officer so they can gradually start bringing workers back to make up for some lost time. they expect that, even when restrictions begin to ease up, many of the preventive measures now being enforced will remain, such as limits on the number of people on work sites or in work camp dining halls, enhanced cleaning protocols and screening of employees coming in to work camps to begin two-week work rotations.

There would typically be 1,700 workers at the Site C dam work camp, but COVID-19 measures have reduced it to less than 1,000 | Bc hydro

the four big energy projects in b.c. that were underway when restrictions on travel and physical distancing in the workplace went into effect in march were the $40 billion Lng canada project, the associated $6.6 billion coastal gasLink pipeline, the $12.6 billion trans mountain pipeline expansion and the $10 billion site c dam project.

Lng canada drastically scaled

back its workforce in kitimat in march, reducing the number of workers at the site and in a work camp there by 65% – from 1,800 workers to about 600. there has been one confirmed coviD-19 case at the site. ramping back up to pre-pandemic activity depends on guidance from public health officials, said susannah Pierce, Lng canada’s director of corporate affairs.

“We really don’t have a timetable for it,” Pierce said. “it’s really just going to have to be when we’re able to do it safely. ty pically, we’re going to want to get back to doing those things that have already been underway.” that includes completing the construction of cedar valley Lodge, a 4,500-unit work camp in kitimat that will house all the workers who are working on site.

“We will not do anything until it’s safe to do so,” Pierce said. the related $6.6 billion coastal gasLink project has been less affected by pandemic restrictions than the Lng site construction in kitimat.

Work has continued to clear the natural gas pipeline route. the project is operating with a reduced workforce right now, with about 300 workers, about 30% of whom are in work camps. but that reduction was more about spring breakup than pandemic health and safety restrictions. “ t y pic a l ly, we wo u ld s e e

construction activities begin to increase after spring thaw in midto-late may,” coastal gasLink said in an email. “However, due to the coviD-19 pandemic, we are currently evaluating, and will adjust our construction schedules as required, prioritizing safety, working closely with our contractors.” bc Hydro and its contractors have reduced the workforce at the site c dam work camp to 961. t he project would typically have 1,700 workers on site pre-pandemic.

Work on the trans mountain pipeline expansion, meanwhile, has never stopped throughout the coviD-19 pandemic. more than 2,000 workers have continued to work on the project in Alberta and b.c. For trans mountain, it has basically been business as usual, minus the public protests.

“We expect to have construction underway in every spread and at all our terminals in b.c. and Alberta this summer,” trans mountain said in an email. •

Pandemic could usher in online era of property sales real estate |

Buyers and sellers will face changed market landscape after lifting of restrictions

By Graeme Wood neWs@biv.com

b

uying real estate is likely never to be the same as it was before coviD-19 restrictions were introduced into the marketplace. significant logistical limits to buying a home are currently in place, but with an expected easing of pandemic-related health advisories over time, a new online buying and selling landscape will emerge as the new norm, according to Dinnell real estate group. real estate sales have been declared an essential service in b.c., and property sales have

continued during the coviD-19 lockdown – although in significantly limited capacity. the sector is one of a few that has not entirely shut down, so buyers and sellers have had to quickly adapt.

Until at least some public health advisories are lifted, b.c. residents can expect a slower and different process to buying and selling a home as the real estate council of british columbia (recbc) encourages limiting in-person interactions, which are typically the norm for transactions. the most apparent shift has been the cancellation of open houses – not a legal requirement but rather a recommendation of

the recbc and one that is supported by the bc real estate Association (bcreA) via the cancellation of bookings and notices on the multiple Listing service website. realtors Angela Dinnell and chris Dinnell said virtual open houses will likely persist, but they hope that in-person viewings will not become a thing of the past.

Angela Dinnell, however, sees realty services being pushed further into the digital realm.

“How can we evolve and do the same things in our business as we did before and do them online?

We’re doing that now,” she said. t he Home i n sp e ctors A ssociation of bc has published

guidelines for inspectors entering homes. in the near term, inspections may be delayed as a result of owners who are sick, isolating or have had possible contact with the ill. inspectors are to conduct an inspection alone, with various precautions.

And expect to see more online documentation regardless of when restrictions ease.

For instance, the Land title and survey Authority of british columbia is now allowing remote witnessing of affidavits in support of land title applications. this practice enables only lawyers and notaries to remotely witness affidavits, at the direction of

the Law society of bc.

As restrictions ease and people become more accommodating to online interactions and sales activity picks up, buyers, sellers and realtors will need to make more judgment calls. “common sense is important,” kim spencer, bcreA manager of professional services, said in a bcreA podcast. “since real estate is an essential service, professionals are relieved of liability if someone contracts coviD-19 at a showing, unless of course there is “absolute negligence.”

He advises everyone to document health advice and known health risks. •

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 TRICITYNEWS.COM

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glacier media special report

Public confidence is key to B.C. tourism resurgence tourism |

Industry’s many sub-sectors will face different timelines for restarting their operations

By Glen Korstrom gkorstrom@biv.com

t

he consensus in the tourism sector is that governments will gradually lift restrictions and that a return to anything resembling how the economy operated in February will not be possible until at least next year.

A reopening of hotels could mark the beginning of a recovery. many are closed even though they are allowed to be open. golf courses – another tourism niche – are allowed to be open, but many owners have decided to close. the cruise sector has been ordered not to operate until July 1. industry representatives such as barry Penner, spokesman for cruise Lines international Association - North West and canada, hopes that part of the season

can be salvaged. if it can, he said, cruise lines may offer significant discounts, easier cancellation policies and other perks to attract passengers. separate government restrictions govern where airlines can fly. Air canada (tsX:Ac) has suspended scheduled flights to the U.s. until may 22, and most international flights until June.

Air transat (tsX:trZ) and sunwing Airlines Ltd. have cancelled all trips until may 31. tourism industry Association of bc cEo Walt Judas said he expects all travel restrictions to be lifted only after authorities are confident that the virus is under control worldwide.

He foresees the U.s. border opening first, with restrictions eased on international travel to follow. singapore’s experience in loosening travel restrictions only to

The Vancouver Aquarium has warned that it might not survive if COVID-19 restrictions continue for many months | rob kruyt

see a resurgence in coviD-19 cases could serve as a warning against governments acting too quickly. meanwhile, danger looms large on the horizon for local attractions. vancouver Aquarium and

science World bc executives have voiced uncertainty about their organizations’ futures. “some attractions are perilously close to folding,” Judas said. outfitters and backcountry guides in b.c.’s northern and

interior regions might have some reason for optimism, he said, because their season starts in may and extends to september or october. tourism vancouver acting cEo ted Lee is co-chairing a task force made up of more than 50 tourism groups and businesses that is lobbying government for increased wage-subsidy programs and other funding to help the sector stay afloat. it has modelled three scenarios for recovery or a loosening of restrictions of groups with more than 49 people. one model contemplates a midlate summer loosening, but Lee said that this is “fairly optimistic.” the other two scenarios include an opening up in the fall and an opening up in spring 2021.

Lee and Judas suggested that the pandemic will change the sector as indelibly as the september 11, 2001, terrorist attacks did. •

Smaller crews, higher costs face post-pandemic film industry film and tv |

B.C.’s reliance on foreign productions will require dealing with border restrictions first

By tyler orton tortoN@biv.com

i

f b.c.’s film and tv sector can make buildings safely explode for the cameras, Phil klapwyk feels confident his industry can devise ways to make workplaces safe from coviD-19 when productions resume. “these are challenges or difficulties with safety that are being contemplated by some of the most creative and innovative professionals that b.c. has,” said the business representative for iAtsE Local 891, the labour union representing 9,000 artists and technicians in b.c. and the Yukon.

First up will be dealing with border restrictions, which klapwyk described as being a particularly thorny issue. s e r v i c e w o r k fo r fo r e i g n

productions accounted for $2.82 billion out of the $3.4 billion of b.c. film and tv production volume generated during the 2018-19 fiscal year, according to the canadian media Producer Association’s (cmPA) Profile 2019 report. restrictions against non-essential travel between the U.s. and canada will remain in effect until at least may 21.

Liz shorten, chief operating officer for the cmPA’s b.c. chapter, said her industry is developing protocols for quarantine measures, which could either apply to sets used for filming or to industry professionals entering canada for work.

Protocols involving personal protective equipment and sanitation, as well as potential new requirements such as providing an on-set nurse, are among the most pressing matters that must

be addressed before productions can resume, she said.

Peter Leitch, president of North shore studios and burnaby’s mammoth studios, said a timeline for how long it would take to restart productions after getting the go-ahead from government is difficult to determine. but current productions – those with sets already standing – are the most likely to resume first, he said.

Leitch added that changes will even affect catering services, which will need to adjust how they serve food on sets that have smaller crews that must practise social distancing. “i f you’re pu sh i ng a dol ly a rou nd w ith a camera on it, there’s no way the camera operator, and the dolly grip, and the focus puller [camera assistant] can ever be more than three feet

way from each other. it’s just physically difficult,” klapwyk said. considerations will also need to be made to facilitate good hygiene for outdoor location shoots as well concerns over sanitization before and after shooting at private homes. since productions were halted march 13 on the West coast, more than 70 stakeholders – unions, producers, studios – across the country have been taking part in weekly conference calls to help navigate challenges facing industry. shorten said scripts may have to be adjusted to accommodate the new reality of working with sma l ler crews, wh i le crowd scenes might have to be created digitally.

An April 21 report commissioned by the cmPA, meanwhile,

estimated disruptions brought on by the pandemic could cost the industry $2.5 billion nationwide and affect up to 81,000 jobs directly. those estimates are based on production suspensions extending to the end of June.

What comes next in a second phase, in which production activity picks up significantly, remains difficult to discern at this point, Leitch said. “that [first phase] might last for quite some time. that may be the new way of how we work until there’s some sort of a vaccine. the worst-case scenario for us is that we have outbreaks in the film and television industry because we did the wrong things. … so i think you’ll see us erring on the side of caution. but that might be the new norm for quite some time. •

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TRICITYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020

glacier media special report

On B.C.’s rOad tO reCOvery

Post-secondary schools focus on the fall education |

By Hayley Woodin hwoodin@biv.com

s

tudents from kindergarten to grade 12 could head back to school before the end of an unusual school year. while a date of return remains merely a possibility, the idea has not yet been ruled out by the b.c. ministry of Education. the same isn’t true for b.c. postsecondary schools, which have largely committed to delivering courses online throughout the summer. over the last two weeks, those institutions have started to shift their focus to the fall, according to Universities canada president and cEo Paul davidson.

And a big part of that focus is to find ways to deal with a potential financial hit if the number of international students attending canadian colleges and universities doesn’t recover from losses suffered in the covid-19 pandemic. “in straight business terms, universities are facing a real challenge when it comes to the future of international students in canada,” davidson explained,

Restoring international enrolment is top priority for colleges, universities

adding that students from abroad contribute more than $22 billion to canada’s economy on an annual basis. “what do you do if, come the fall, the borders are still closed? t hat’s going to be a significa nt challenge for ca nada’s universities.”

At present, it remains unclear when and how canada may reopen its borders, which means educational institutions are planning for a variety of scenarios.

University canada west (Ucw), a private university with a new campus slated to open in vancouver this summer, has a new term starting in July, but president brock dykeman isn’t expecting to physically welcome international students, who make up the majority of the school’s student body. “i think it’s going to be messy for quite a time,” he said, adding that while international students can take Ucw courses online, enrolment numbers for the current term are already down between 25% and 50%. “it’s definitely going to hurt. it is hurting and will continue to hurt.”

Post-secondary schools such as Simon Fraser University have faced a steep decline in international enrolment, which typically provides a significant portion of operating revenue for B.C. colleges and universities | Submitted

Accord i ng to dav id wa l ls, president of college of the rockies, the presidents of more than two dozen post-secondary institutions in b.c. speak with the province’s deputy minister of advanced education on a weekly basis. collectively, the sector is exploring what the easing of government restrictions in mid-may

could look like. “we’re beginning to think about what would that be like, what would the fall semester look like,” said walls. “we’re not expecting that we suddenly could to be delivering a l l face-to-face i nstruction either. Everybody’s talking about probably a bit more of a hybrid situation.” that could be in effect for the fall semester, with some students continuing to take courses online, and some returning to classrooms. it could be one student in every three classroom seats, said dykeman.

Feroz Ali, president of the international Language Academy of canada’s higher education division, says classes could be broken into two or three smaller sections per day. “it’s hard to look at people and say, ‘it’s going to end on this day.’ we just don’t know,” said geoffrey Payne, interim president of the University of northern british columbia. it also remains unclear how a downturn in the canadian economy and rising unemployment could affect enrolment. simon

Fraser University president Andrew Petter believes demand could increase, with laid-off workers looking to upgrade their skills. “i think it’s recognized that education is the best insurance against economic uncertainty,” he said. brett Fairbairn, president of thompson rivers University, said, the school is exploring the transition from an all-remote model to a hybrid model, or one where priority services or handson classes are delivered in-person with physical distancing. “we’re really looking at the time frame of about the next 12 months and when in that period we might be able to resume some of those things.” in the span of 10 days, universities across the country plugged more than one million students into online learning as covid-19 physical distancing measures took effect. “it is quite remarkable,” Petter said. “the shift in the whole way we deliver our services, particularly our educational programs, has probably been the greatest challenge.”•

Governments peer anxiously at post-COVID-19 horizon politics |

Municipal, provincial officials aim to mitigate damage while considering their next moves

By mike HoWell nEws@biv.com

bc

municipal officials, civic politicians and members of the legislature continue to discuss what returning to some semblance of normalcy looks like in government. but w it h a l l i nvolved ta king their cues from Provincial health officer dr. bonnie henry, who has cautioned about lifting physical distancing restrictions too soon, plans for reopening governments to pre-pandemic operating levels remain a work

in progress. “it’s something we’re thinking about and talking about, and trying to figure out how to be ready,” said sadhu Johnston, city manager for vancouver, whose present worry is the $5 million per week loss in the city’s revenue. t hat loss, wh ich has come mainly from suspending parking enforcement in most of vancouver and closing community centres and other facilities, will mean the city won’t be able to immediately restart large parts of the organization.

Libraries, for example, are not big money-makers for the city, said Johnston, acknowledging they are an important service for citizens but are largely funded by property tax. “many of the recreational programs that have been cut would bring in revenue, but the question would be, ‘when are people going to want to participate in those types of programs again?’” cowichan valley bc green Party mLA sonia Furstenau anticipates some changes to how government eases back to work both in the legislature and in her

constituency.

Furstenau, who is the greens’ house leader, said she received a letter April 20 from the clerk of the legislature about possible options for the next sitting. that may include having a reduced number of mLAs present, as occurred in the march 23 sitting of the legislature, where she attended with about a dozen other politicians. “it was a bit surreal,” she said. “however, i think it’s important that we find ways to ensure that democracy and our institutions continue to operate as

best they can in these types of circumstances.” that connection with people and colleagues during the pandemic has come via the suddenly popular Zoom online conferencing platform.

Furstenau said the technology has allowed committee meetings to continue and make for more efficient use of time in the busy calendars of an mLA. “i think there’s going to be a shift on how widely online meeting tools can be used,” she said of anticipated changes in how politicians govern.•