Vancouver Mayor Fails To Hire Renters’ Advocate In First 100 Days

Kennedy Stewart: ‘If I had a majority, I probably would have hired one right away’.

Mayor Kennedy Stewart campaigned on a promise to hire a renters’ advocate within his first 100 days in office but acknowledged Wednesday—his 100th day in office—that such a person is not in place and the reason is connected to him not having majority rule at city hall.

During his campaign last year to become mayor, Stewart identified six “priority areas” that he promised to see through in his first 100 days on the job. Near the top of the list was hiring a renters’ advocate to better serve citizens in a city where more than 50 per cent pay rent.

bit.ly/2GQxlKU via @VanCourierNews ‏

Charges Dismissed Against Ship In English Bay Oil-Spill Case

A judge found that the 2,700-litre spill of oil by the MV Marathassa in 2015 was caused by shipbuilder defects and the ship did its due diligence.

A judge has dismissed all charges against a ship that spilled 2,700 litres of fuel oil into English Bay in 2015.

A ring of oil was seen around the hull of the MV Marathassa while it was anchored in the Vancouver bay on April 8, 2015.

Although most of the fuel was recovered or dissipated within 48 hours of the spill, there was an environmental impact on the shores of English Bay and four migratory birds were smeared with patches of oil, Provincial Court Judge Kathryn Denhoff noted in a ruling released Thursday.

After an investigation by Transport Canada, the Marathassa was accused of discharging a pollutant into the waters and with discharging a substance that was harmful to migratory birds.

The Cypriot-registered vessel was also charged with the offences of failing to implement its shipboard pollution emergency plan by failing to take samples of oil in the water and by failing to assist with the oil containment.

bit.ly/2Nhc4el via @VancouverSun ‏

‘We’re Thrilled’ Anonymous ‘Angel’ Helps Kelowna Couple Recover Stolen Dog In DTES

Sunday marked a happy ending to a frantic search for a stolen dog in Vancouver.

“We’re thrilled. Really, we can’t tell you… we’re still trying to digest what an amazing journey this has been,” said Lesley Spiegel.

Kelowna couple Lesley and Tim Spiegel had stopped for soup in Mount Pleasant on Friday evening when someone allegedly broke into their car and dognapped their 19-month-old Coton de Tulear named Luc.

bit.ly/2DVAgyP via @globalnews

This Week In History, 1949 Frank Harris Lived In Stanley Park For 60 Years

Most civic workers toil in obscurity. But not Frank Harris, whose death on Feb. 2, 1949, earned obituaries in both The Vancouver Sun and Province.

“A hardy pioneer who slung a hammock in Stanley Park back in 1889 as his first B.C. residence died in St. Vincent’s Hospital Wednesday,” The Sun reported.

“He is Frank Alfred Harris, 87, who lived in the white frame cottage in the park near Lion’s Gate Bridge.”

Born in Teignmouth, Devon, England, on June 13, 1861, Harris moved to Canada in 1884. After working as a carpenter in Manitoba, he moved to Vancouver in 1889.

He landed a job with the fledgling Vancouver Waterworks Company, and helped pull the first submerged water mains across the First Narrows, bringing water from the North Shore to Vancouver.

bit.ly/2Ebmo4E via @VancouverSun

Police In Canada Can Now Demand Breath Samples In Bars, At Home

It may sound unbelievable, but Canada’s revised laws on impaired driving could see police demand breath samples from people in bars, restaurants, or even at home. And if you say no, you could be arrested, face a criminal record, ordered to pay a fine, and subjected to a driving suspension.

You could be in violation of the impaired driving laws even two hours after you’ve been driving.

Now, the onus is on drivers to prove they weren’t impaired when they were on the road.

bit.ly/2B3r4rz via @globalnews

Councillors Say Money In Suitcases, Shopping Bags Used To Pay Taxes At Vancouver City Hall

Citizens are bringing money in suitcases and in reusable shopping bags into city hall to pay taxes, according to accounts from two city councillors, including one who says she saw this happen “a few times” last year.

The accounts from NPA Coun. Melissa De Genova and Green Party Coun. Adriane Carr surfaced in debate Tuesday before council unanimously approved a lengthy motion from De Genova to have city staff work with police and government to prevent and deter money laundering in local businesses and in transactions at city hall.

bit.ly/2BG9nP6 via @VanCourierNews ‏

69-Year-Old Grandfather Gunned Down In East Vancouver

A 69-year-old man was shot dead on the doorstep of a home he shared with three generations of his family, including five children, one as young as two years old, neighbours say.

Zenen Cepeda Silva was killed just after midnight on Fraser Street just south of 51st Avenue Sunday. His horrified wife and some of his children stayed in the house next door while police combed the lawn for evidence and dusted for prints.

“They are scared, some of them were crying,” said one neighbour, Omar Mahdaoui. “It’s scary.”

bit.ly/2GWmyPv via @CTVVancouver