© News

the other press e Sara James e

sjames@telus.net

September 24, 2003

New Westminster's First Murder of 2003

Sara James News Editor

New Westminster's first murder of 2003 occurred during the late evening hours of Saturday, September 13.

The New Westminster Police were called at approximately 11:30p.m. regarding a stabbing that occurred in the intersection of Sherbrooke Street and East Columbia. Upon their arrival, offi- cers discovered a 54-year-old male lying in the street suffering from multiple stab wounds. The victim, Renato Tibay, was rushed to Royal Columbian Hospital where he died.

Tibay was a New Westminster resident of the 300 block of Sherbrooke Street.

According to the police, information gathered from several witnesses indicated that a male sus- pect was seen running away from the scene of the murder. A male arrested at the time of the inci- dent was released and ruled out as a suspect.

The weapon involved in the crime was not found during a search of the area surrounding the crime scene.

The murder suspect is described as an unshaven, dark-haired, Caucasian male in his early twenties, 5°9” to 6 tall, 160-170 pounds with a thin build and wearing dark clothing.

New Westminster Police are asking the public for their assistance in solving this crime. Anyone who may have witnessed the crime or who may have any information regarding the murder are asked to contact Detectives Mullin or Matsumoto at 604.525.5411, the New Westminster Police Service Tip Line at 604.529.2441 or Crimestoppers at 604.669.TIPS (8477).

Sara James News Editor

Statistics Canada released the results of a 2002 survey on the costs of post-secondary education. The results revealed typical 18- to 24-year-old Canadian full-time university students spent more than $11,000 to put themselves through an eight-month academic year in 2001/02.

The figures were the result of the Postsecondary Education Participation Survey (PEPS), conducted by Statistics Canada in partnership with Human Resources Development Canada and the Policy Research Initiative. More than 5,000 students aged 18 to 24 from all ten provinces participated in the survey. In Quebec, the age range was 17 to 24.

PEPS provided a comprehensive picture of how much young people are paying to go to university, col- lege, and CEGEP (Collége d’enseignement général et professionnel or College of General and Vocational Education).

According to the survey the median cost for full-time university students was $11,200. The median cost for college students was $9,330 and the median cost for CEGEP students $4,550.

Students who participated in the survey answered questions about what they spent money on for the cur- rent academic year. This included educational costs such as tuition, books, fees, school supplies and non- educational expenses such as computers, insurance, rent, meals, utilities, clothing, and transportation.

PEPS revealed that as of March 2002, almost 1,622,000 young Canadians (approximately 62 per- cent of those aged 18 to 24) had taken some postsec- ondary education after leaving high school. Of those people, approximately 712,000 or 44 percent, had applied for a government student loan during their postsecondary education. Of those who applied, approximately four out of five received a student loan.

Most young Canadians entered postsecondary pro- grams before the age of 20. Two-thirds of them began their postsecondary studies within a year of completing high school, and more than one-half entered within three months.

Post-Secondary Education Costs: Survey

Of the 255,000 students who began their postsec- ondary education in September 2000, 16 percent had quit, 7 percent had completed short-term programs and were no longer in school, and 77 percent were still in school as of March 2002.

According to the survey, the median cost for an eight-month academic year for a full-time student was $9,740, with a median of $3,700 spent on tuition, fees, and books. The balance was spent on non-educational items such as rent, food, clothing, and transportation.

University students spent significantly more for their education than college and CEGEP students. The median cost for university educational expenses was $5,000, for college $3,100, and for CEGEP $750.

Non-educational expenses for university students liv- ing at home were $4,500 and for those living away from home $8,160.

Approximately 26 percent of students received gov- ernment student loans, 16 percent borrowed the money from family, and 14 percent borrowed from a bank or used a bank line of credit.

Family earnings appeared to play an important factor in the students who sought a postsecondary education. Students between the ages of 18 and 24 with an esti- mated family income of $80,000 or more were more likely to attend a university or college, with 83 percent of them having taken some postsecondary education as of March 2002.

Approximately two-thirds of students from family incomes of $55,000 to $80,000 had taken some post- secondary education. Only half of those from family incomes of less than $55,000 were likely to obtained some postsecondary education.

Students who had saved money for university or col- lege were more likely to attend than those who did not save. Roughly 80 percent pursued higher education.

The first-ever PEPS reflects educational and non- educational costs prior to recent dramatic tuition increases. Recently released Statistics Canada figures reveal a 7.4 percent tuition increase over last year.

Canada Games Pool

Karla L. Olson OP Contributor

Recoating New Westminster's Canada Games Pool (CGP) with durable epoxy paint is one of the sched- uled maintenance projects currently being done on the pool and fitness facility. Closed since September 2, the pool is scheduled to re-open for full service on October 11.

New pool users may see this as a long time to be inconvenienced by lack of services. In fact, such a long closure only takes place once every five or six years. “Tt is more cost effective to do this all at once rather than shutting down every year, and we can minimize disruptions to the public,” said pool supervisor Colin Milaney.

It took five days to completely empty the one-mil- lion-gallon pool. According to Milaney, so far there have been no major surprises to delay project comple- tion.

What changes will CGP users see? “Most of the work, such as piping replacement and repair, won't be noticeable to the public,” says Milaney. “But there will

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Closure

be a new colour scheme to update the facility’slook.”

Expect blue and white to replace’séme of the brown that currently decorates the place.

CGP’s unique feature, the high wooden-frame ceil- ing, however, won't be touched. “It’s just not practi- cal,” says Milaney. “Once you paint the wood, it will require touch-ups every few years. Besides that, with the wood that it took to make the roof, it would be too expensive to design such a building these days.” Architecturally, the wooden roof gives pools users something to appreciate when doing the backstroke. For citizens of New Westminster, who subsidize the facility, it gives them a one-of-a-kind landmark.

Other projects include new carpet for the fitness

area, exterior re-painting, and re-asphalting the park-

ing areas. .

According to Milaney, “All pools in the lower main- land, even those already using ozone, also use chlo- rine. Ozone is used at the filtration level but chlorine

is still needed to treat the water already in the pool

_ where contamination can take place].”

~ Regarding concerns over chlorine usage, there are several factors to. be considered, including time and money. Ozone reduces the amount of chlorine required by approximately 50 percent, a noticeable difference for pool users. “I am a proponent of alter- native systems,” says the pool supervisor, “but ozone is not the only answer—in Europe, ultraviolet is used.”

A concept study, commissioned by the city, provid- ed alternatives to the issue of chlorine. Projected costs, associated with changes in the filtration system, indi- cate it would be at least five years. Pool and fitness area expansion have also been proposed. In other words, getting rid of the chlorine isn’t as easy as pulling the plug.

The fitness area is scheduled to be re-opened September 27, and the pool October 11.