Burnaby goes back to the past

Photo of Burnaby Village Museum courtesy Tjflex2's

From neon signs to gates, protecting Burnaby’s history seems to be all the rage at city hall these days.

Councillor Colleen Jordan said, in addition on the community heritage commission, she has a personal reason for caring about the past.

“Having just become an official senior citizen I am more than ever occupied with making sure we preserve the legacy of previous generations,” said Jordan.

The neon sign

Council voted Monday to use gaming money to buy the iconic arrow-shaped Lost in the 50’s Drive-In sign from its original owner, Neon Sign Crafters, for $2000. Council also agreed to spend another $9000 to restore the neon sign, which sits on city owned land on Edmonds Street.

According to a planning and building report, the sign is the only neon sign left in south Burnaby and “has been a much-loved community landmark on Edmonds Street for over 50 years.”

The sign will need maintenance every month at a cost of $1,800 a year.  This amount will come from the property’s lease expense. The leaseholder of the land would also have to pay for the hydropower required to operate the sign.

Brian Tahrriha bought the drive-in last summer. He is happy the city is going to restore the sign, which points at his restaurant. He said he was inspired to purchase the iconic drive-in because it represents “a concept being lost due to the misdirection of other establishments.” He says he offers “50s style and 50s taste.”

Signs from the era of bobby socks and Elvis are one thing, but for anyone who has visited Europe, saying Burnaby and heritage in the same sentence may seem ridiculous. Burnaby city archivist, Arilea Sill, says people would be surprised how far back this city’s past goes.

“One of the first deeds of land granted to a European settler … went to William Holmes, for lot one, block 1—close to North Road and Brunette River in Burnaby. The title is dated March 5, 1860.  Holmes is considered Burnaby's first resident,” said Sill.

The gate

Council dealt with far more ancient Burnaby history Monday when it voted to send to public hearing the proposal of having the city owned W.J. Mathers estate gate and wall protected by a heritage site bylaw.

The report to council says William and Mary Mathers began construction of their estate, which was designed by Frank Macey, at Deer Lake in 1912. The estate was known as Altnadene and was a unique example of the Romanesque Revival style.

The estate was surrounded by a granite capstone wall and had an elaborate wrought iron gate, which was designed by New Westminster’s James Blair, a Scottish blacksmith. The extremely rare gate and wall were saved from their original location when road improvements threatened to destroy them. They now sit on what would have been the driveway to the original estate on Deer Lake Avenue.

Archivist Sill said the casino revenue spent for the sign and the gate are well worth it because cultural assets are beneficial to the community as a whole.  

“ If we don't capture these assets when we have the chance, they will be destroyed and we will lose a piece of our past,” she said.

2012 YouTube video featuring the drive-in. 

Burnaby activist to watch

Photo courtesy of Trevor Ritchie

Every city needs people who stand up and say what they think is wrong in their community. Burnaby has its share of people who speak their minds. Whether you agree with activists or not,  their opinions often spark healthy debate.

Trevor Ritchie is a 23 year old UBC student, activist, blogger and Burnaby resident. His opinions can be found in more than a few letter to the editor sections of local papers.

Lately, his dissatisfaction is with city council and its cancellation of plans for an Edmonds area childcare centre, slated for the current Value Village site.
I contacted Ritchie and asked him to elaborate on his issue.

Background

In February a report to Burnaby city council recommended that a 70 spot daycare be built at the corner of Kingsway and Edmonds Streets, to accommodate a growing need in the rapidly developing Edmonds area.

Council sent the recommendation back to the community development committee. On the committee's advice, council voted early in March not to go ahead with the planned daycare. Councillor Colleen Jordan said at council that the $5 million estimated for the centre was a lot of money to spend on only 70 daycare spots. She said the issue needed to be looked into further to see what the need actually is and the best way to go ahead.

Childcare is a provincial responsibility, though cities can fund centres.

Ritchie's opinion

"What I’ve been seeing in the past couple of years from Burnaby city Council is an unwillingness to delve into the issues that are most affecting Burnaby families. 

At this point, the lack of childcare spaces in Burnaby is a crisis.  According to the city’s own statistics, there are only 4,110 full time childcare spaces within the city, or enough for 15 out of every 100 children who require such care facilities.  What few facilities we do have in Burnaby are often quite costly to families, with the city also calculating that the average cost of the facilities being used as between $700-$1200 a month.  

 [This is] unacceptable, especially when the city has the ability to create some meaningful changes in policy that would alleviate at least some of the lack of facilities in the region.

Specifically, the Edmonds location could have been built. ...  If we are to create childcare that is that affordable, that is going to require additional spaces to be built. 

I’m appreciative of the fact that less expensive facilities could be created in greater numbers than the Edmonds location would have allowed for under existing bylaws and provincial legislation, but the problems associated with that one particular project should not preclude the municipal government from engaging in discussions with senior government and private developers about the creation of childcare spaces in other locations throughout the city. 

What Ritchie proposes

What I would like to see out of the municipal government is for council to be more assertive in the construction and zoning of childcare facilities in Burnaby  ... with funding coming from developer grants issued to the city in exchange for the zoning density bonus, in lieu of cash in hand or other specific community amenities that would otherwise have been required to increase the density of a specific zone.  Funding for a dedicated childcare facility fund could also be done in partnership with the federal government through the renewal of the infrastructure transfers for municipalities.  Both would be solid ways of creating a fund that could develop Burnaby’s childcare stock and provide stable funding for the maintenance of those facilities."

What do you think of Ritchie's proposal?  Share your views with us. 

It is baccckkkkkk! Return to the PST—how will it impact local businesses?

Photo courtesy of strogg 

The return to the PST will have a ripple effect across Burnaby, from city hall down to the swimming pool.

Councillor Dan Johnston said even city hall will feel the change. The switch will “marginally increase the cost of office supplies” and the city will lose the goods and services tax rebate they have been getting.  In terms of Burnaby citizens though he says they will see a positive impact in parks and recreation costs. Even with an increase of golf fees voted in by council last month— $1 on weekdays per game and $2 for weekend games —the return to the PST will mean golf fees will still be lower this year than they were last.  

This is an important part of the story because Burnaby is quite known for its golfing and recreation. We have four golf courses and they are often very busy. Also our 24 recreation facilities are well used. Bonsor Recreation Complex has approximately one million visits a year of people coming to take classes, exercise in the pool or work out in the gym. Staff at Bonsor said prices will go down, for things like swimming sessions, by seven per cent as of April 1 which has meant a revamping of their cash registers.

Burnaby resident and business student Carrie Walkker says for local businesses it is mostly going to be a hassle to convert back to the PST. Examples of updates the average small business owner needs to do include changes to sales equipment, such as cash registers-to show the two tax rates-price lists, payment software as well as formulas and spreadsheets for expense accounts.

Mike Klassen, representative of the Canadian Federation of Business B.C. told reporters that the move back to the provincial sales tax from the HST will cost the average small business $3000.

With Burnaby having half of all the film studio space in B.C, the return to the PST will undoubtedly have a negative impact the industry, which is already reeling, and on our community. In Ontario the film production is considered a type of manufacturing. In B.C. that is not the case so the PST will mean an extra seven per cent cost. Many in the film industry, including Paul Clausen, vice president of Burnaby's Mammoth Studios, fought hard to keep the HST and now that is gone, have to deal with the fall out.

While the harmonized sales tax was vastly unpopular and ultimately voted out 18 months ago, it had its advantages for small businesses. Notably, the HST only required businesses to report to the federal government four times a year with the PST businesses have to report to the province every month.

 Also, “on a bright side, the B.C. government is now in control of the rate the PST is, and what is and isn't taxable which could lead to some future exemptions if lobbied for,” said Carrie Walkker.

Tattoos, your teen and the law

Photo courtesy  Rev Will

It is a nightmare every parent wants to avoid—a teen coming home to display a new tattoo, gotten without permission and by goodness knows who. The mind races with fear of disease or, at the very least, a regretted permanent mark.

According to a government of B.C. health document on tattooing, most complaints about the tattoo industry are because teens have been tattooed. The government advises parents give consent for any tattoo:

"In order to give their informed consent minors must have the maturity to and must understand all the implications of being tattooed."

Law student Deb Weber says that many tattoo parlours do not follow the guideline not to tattoo teens and there is no specific law against it.

B.C. Health Minister Margaret MacDiarmid told the CBC the province does plan to bring in tougher guidelines, but has no plans to make parental consent for teen tattoos a legal requirement.

"To me, the most beneficial thing is for parents to be having the conversation, and to really be thinking, helping their child think long term about what could be the unintended consequences of tattooing or piercing in certain locations,"  MacDiarmid told reporters.

Burnaby tattoo shop owner Yves Sharron says he does not tattoo minors without parental consent.  Even with consent he will sometimes refuse. Sharron has owned his shop, Geronimo Tattoos for 13 years and says the reputation of his shop is far more important than making money off of tattooing teens.

Here is the rest of his response to how he feels as a father and parlour owner regarding tattoos and teens.

Are you a teen who has been tattooed? Did you get a tattoo as a teen? Are you happy with what was done? Is it fair to require teens get consent?

Burnaby lawyer talks about youth crime

Photo courtesy of Ann Pollak

Ann H. Pollak is a barrister and solicitor in Burnaby. She kindly took a few minutes to share her opinion on the following questions about youth justice.

1. How do Burnaby youth find themselves in court? 

I'm not a sociologist or criminologist, so these comments reflect my

experience, and are not an authoritative opinion. Youth get into

trouble when they make bad decisions.  Their thinking is immature

because they have experienced a lot of personal stress, and because

they don't have much confidence. Some young people are resilient to

stress because they have had opportunities to experience

accomplishment in other ways.  Different things make life hard—

family conflict, poverty, mental illness and addiction in the family.

It's not always easy to see, in what might otherwise look like a good

home. Along comes the classic bad peer group, and a young person is

doing dumb things for the wrong reasons. They drive the family car

while their so-called friends are selling pot from the back seat. Or

they carry a pocket knife, and say stupid things that might have

sounded clever or tough in a screenplay, but in real life they are

frightening and amount to criminal threats.

2. What kinds of things are they in front of a judge for?

Theft, drugs, assaults.  The justice system can be a mill that

generates offences for breaching the court process because a young

person is so badly organised or otherwise ill equipped to comply with

court-imposed conditions or to engage in a helpful way in his or her

own rehabilitation. That becomes another stress that further erodes

the young person's capacity to make good decisions.

3. What is the main misconception about criminal law that you encounter? 

People think a youth record is no big deal and that young people get

away with too much. A youth record doesn't simply disappear when you

hit 18. There are circumstances in which it can be used against you,

and of course the police always know about it, and it affects the way

they treat you when you have a police encounter. That's part of the

purpose of keeping the records.

Young people with criminal convictions didn't get away with anything.

Think about how long summer vacation was when you were a kid. Now

imagine spending three of those vacations back-to-back in jail, while

the rest of your friends stayed in school, went to dances, and sent

zillions of text messages to each other. That's six months of youth

custody —don't forget to add in the fights, the bullying, the lack of

privacy, the absence of nurturing family, and all your new "friends"

behind the walls.

Some people think tough love is what's needed. I understand tough

love, in the same way I understand that sometimes mountaineers need to

cut the rope that sends their climbing partner plummeting into a

crevasse. Sometimes you just have to save yourself. I get that. But

don't delude yourself by thinking you are doing anything therapeutic

or beneficial for a young person in trouble by cutting that rope.

Ann Pollak practices law in Burnaby.


What do you think Burnaby? Do young people have it tough enough in our court system? Let me know your thoughts on this. 

A few words with Green Party candidate Rick McGowan

Photo courtesy of Rick McGowan

As Green Party candidate for Burnaby-Deer Lake, what do you think are the most important issues for your constituents?

This may sound hokey, but I think the most important issues will vary from person to person. For those who are seniors, I think healthcare and mobility will be important. For the baby-boomers, holding on to what they have seems to be important, whether it is keeping taxes down or ensuring their retirement is comfortable and worry free. For young parents like myself public education, daycare and housing affordability are concerns. For younger voters, post secondary affordability and the environment are important. For children, having a stable, cohesive family and opportunities to play and learn are important. For those in relative or absolute poverty the concerns are much more immediate. For those operating small businesses, economic viability is essential.  

The one commonality among all these issues is that people are concerned about their future, both short and long term. As I am wishing to represent all these groups fairly, my concern is ensuring a friendlier, healthier, sustainable  and more democratic future for my children and my great grandchildren. 

How are you different from the other candidates running in this election?

I am offering an alternative to business-as-usual politics. We need to think outside the box we've created. We all know we will need to transform our economy to meet the needs of our diverse population. We can either make those hard choices for ourselves starting now, or put them off till later and have others make those hard choices for us later. 

How are you going to vote Burnaby?  Let me know. I will continue to feature candidates for the upcoming provincial election right up until voting day May 14.

Residents vs cemetery in Burnaby fight

Photo courtesy of  lunacalle66

It was a packed Burnaby council chambers last Monday as residents turned out in droves to show their frustration over potential truck traffic going through their neighborhood.

The delegation

Bob Thompson represented the group as he spoke for over 15 minutes to Burnaby city council. He said he and his neighbors are angry city staff have proposed a residential route for the comings and goings of semi trucks and construction vehicles that will be working on the latest Forest Lawn Cemetery expansion starting this summer.

"They are making their problem our problem," Thompson said.

The route and the problem

The planned truck route is down  Royal Oak Avenue and Moscrop Street.

Thompson, who is an injury lawyer, said the plan is "not acceptable" and the residents would not put up with it.

"Basically they want three months for this—50 per cent of the dry season. We can't enjoy our yards six days a week 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m," said Thompson.

He said they are concerned traffic will be loud and dangerous, especially for children who walk back and forth to schools in the area.

The argument

Thompson had three main points for council:

• There is an existing truck route bylaw which designates truck route options, the current plan by city staff does not follow the designated route.
• If the trucks are going to bypass the designated route they have to take the next shortest route, the plan is not the shortest route.
• The plan cuts through residential neighbourhoods which includes two high schools and a church.

"The standard of proof should be against the cemetery," he said.

Thompson ran video showing trucks in front of his house the last time the cemetery was expanded two years ago. On the video a semi-truck is seen leaving the cemetery and rolling through a stop sign. Later a young girl is seen trying to maneuver around a truck to walk down the street.

The solution

Thompson said there is an easy alternative to the proposed route which is to use the northern gate of the property, on Canada Way, as the entrance and exit point for all the vehicles working on the project. 

Mayor Derek Corrigan said council is "jurisdictionally frustrated" because cemeteries fall under the province. He said council would not have approved the level of construction that is going to take place on the cemetery grounds, but "the reality is we have to accomodate this" project. 

He agreed with Thompson's interpretation of the bylaws and said council would send the plan for the proposed truck route back to staff and see if a better solution can be found. He told the group that if staff couldn't find a better solution he would call a meeting with the residents to work something out.

Audience reaction

The group of residents broke out into applause at news the proposal would be sent back to staff, but at least on local wasn't totally convinced.

"We''ll see what comes up from this," said Don Harkquail, "We've been through issues before and it didn't turn out favourably."

Update

At March 18 council meeting it was announced staff had reached an agreement with Forest Lawn to have the traffic leave through the north gate of the property as the residents had requested. 

Defending yourself—not worth the risk

Photo courtesy of kylebaker

We all know someone who has defended themselves in court—our own Langara media law instructor has done it, but there are risks to going to court by yourself.

Vancouver labour lawyer Dan Rogers said there are more people defending themselves than ever before.

"Lay litigants (people without lawyers) are increasing because of a) the cost. Totally understandable. People want access to justice and can't afford it—something wrong with that picture—and b) a lot of it has to do with the long term downsizing of Legal Aid and increasing of costs attached to the Courts.

Burnaby family law lawyer Mark Rozenberg disagrees that it is because of Legal Aid cutbacks. For family law cases, he says, it has been at least 12 years since aid has been available.

Since that time Legal Aid has only been available for extreme cases where violence is involved or some other extenuating circumstance that is very severe.

He attributes the increase mainly to the cost of hiring a lawyer and people just thinking they can defend themselves without help. Some people, he says, will hire a lawyer for an hour or so to do the paperwork and then go into court without legal assistance.

Rozenberg said the problem with not having a lawyer is "many don't understand what is going on. They may not know the procedures."

Rogers said that some lay litigants do just fine, but many are lost. Both men agree the  irony is that people without lawyers often slow the process down because judges have to stop proceedings to help them through the process and they because people without a legal background will litigate issues that a good lawyer could resolve. 

Rogers said, there are resources to help people understand the court system,  but there really is no substitute for a good experienced lawyer.

Resources if you defend yourself: 

The Canadian Bar Association - a step-by-step guide to what you need to know if you do decide to go to court on your own. 

Canadian Judicial Council - another guide to what you need to know if you are thinking of defending yourself and not hiring a lawyer.

The other side

Not everyone agrees that it is risky to defend yourself. Here is a site dedicated to helping people fight the law on their own.

The U.S.

The Gideon ruling of 1963 says that everyone has the right to a lawyer even if the person can not afford one. Is that right being honoured? This article looks at the legal situation for the poor in America.


Have you defended yourself in court? Let me know your story thuncher@shaw.ca

Question and answer with NDP candidate Janet Routledge

Photo courtesy of Janet Routledge

As we lead up to the provincial election, I will feature different points of view from each of the political parties. Janet Routledge is the Burnaby North NDP candidate.

1.What issue do you think is most important to your constituents?

Since I was nominated as the NDP candidate in Burnaby North I have knocked on the doors of more than 10,000 voters and had conversations about the issues that concern them most.

One frequently mentioned issue is the high cost of post-secondary education. I met a recent graduate who is working at three minimum wage jobs to pay off her student loan. I met a family who sold their house so they could afford to send their son to college. I met a senior who is only able to stay in his own home because his granddaughter moved in with him – so she could afford to go to SFU. I have also met leaders in emerging high tech industries who can't find enough locally-trained employees and must advertise outside B.C.

2. What would you and the NDP do differently if elected?

Adrian Dix and the NDP are making post-secondary education and skills-training a top priority. For example, once elected we will re-instate a tax on banks and earmark $100 million of the revenues for non-refundable, needs-based  student grants. We have made a commitment to tell the voters what we will do and how we are going to pay for it.

3. Many people are concerned about the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain pipeline, what is your position on it?

 Like many of the people in Burnaby north, I am concerned about the potential environmental impact of a pipeline expansion and the risks associated with significantly increased tanker traffic in Burrard Inlet.

The B.C. NDP is publicly opposed to the Enbridge pipeline. Many of the concerns we have about the Enbridge pipeline also concern us about a Kinder Morgan expansion.

 Adrian Dix has already announced that, within a week of being elected, an NDP government will revoke the equivalency agreement that surrendered jurisdiction over the environment assessment of the pipelines to the federal government of Stephen Harper.

 Kinder Morgan has yet to make a formal application to expand its pipeline. Should such an application be made to an NDP government, it will be subjected to a rigorous made-in-B.C. environmental assessment process.

I welcome any of the candidates to contact me and I will present your point of view as well.  thuncher@shaw.ca

Burnaby fitness trainer gives top ten tips for toning teens

Debbie Jessen is a Burnaby fitness trainer and mom of two teen boys. She shares her tips on getting children of all ages into exercise.

1. Make exercise fun: 

• Put on some music and have a "so you think you can dance" contest. 
• Create a fitness circuit (push ups, sit ups, burpees, jumping jacks, etc) and make them do each station for 30 seconds to one minute.
• Find some stairs (or a hill) and see how many times you can go up and down  in a timed period.
• Make a walk into a scavenger hunt.
• Get a couple of pedometers and compare how many steps you take everyday.

2. Make exercise a family affair - put aside some time each day to exercise together. Children—and even teens—are more likely to get involved in activities when their parents participate with them.

3. Try new activities such as indoor rock climbing, yoga, kayaking or stand up paddle board.

4. Book a fitness play date for your children with some of their friends.

• Take them to the local  swimming pool or skating rink
• Take them to a local park with a basketball, soccer ball or frisbee.

5. Check out the drop-in activities schedule at your local recreation centre; they usually have programs for all ages.

6. Limit screen time.

• Try to keep it under two hours per day (TV, computer and personal gaming devices).
• Make them take an activity break every 20 minutes. 
• Schedule timed activity for every minute that they have screen time - for example, 20 minutes of screen time equals 10 minutes of physical activity.

7. Book an appointment to have your teen shown how to properly use the equipment in the weight room. Many gyms allow teens as young as 14 years old to use the weight room.

8. Encourage them to join sports clubs at school.

9. Educate yourself and your children about healthy nutrition by focussing on the lunches they take to school. 

10. Practise what you preach —if you want them to be healthy and fit, lead the way with your own active lifestyle!