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- First shovel bites dirt on

$13. million school project

by Nancy Orr

‘Five years of: preliminary

planning and work culminated on’

Friday, Sept. 7, with the symbolic

turning of the first sod for the new

multi-million dollar - Hazelton
Education Centre in Hazelton.
Edna Cooper, chairman of School
District #88, Dave. Parker, MLA
for Skeena, Ardythe Wilson, from
the office of the Gitksan Wet’su-
wet’an Hereditary Chiefs and
Elders,-and- Dr. Duncan Etches,
Hazelton trustee, each turned a
ritual spadeful of soil at the con-
struction site. .
Despite the rain, the ceremony
was attended by an interested
group of citizens, including Haz-
elton Village mayor Alice Maitland
and councillor Eric Janze; Lynn
Patrick, president and Gary Bar-
dell, vice-president of Stuart Olson

Construction, the -

| contractors;
Royce Condie, architect; school

‘district personnel Barry -Piersdorf,

secretary-treasurer, Lothar Heller,
maintenance supervisor, Frank
Hamilton, superintendent, as well
aS many others who had worked
diligently to bring the project. to
this beginning.

"The long days of planning are
over," said Cooper, "and we will
see the school actually take shape.
This is the most important day in
the process towards the realization
of the hard work of so many in-
dividuals." She expressed the
board’s appreciation to those
people, remarking especially upon
Peter Newberry and the Hazelton
Parents’ Association who made the
original presentation in 1985 for
the need of this school: :

"The new school is called an

The Best
from the
Stacks

Reviews of books from the -
Terrace Public Library

by Harriett
Fjaagesund

Flends by John Farris
_ Adult fiction published by Dark Harvest

It all began when Arne Horsfall found the strange coffin-sized
crate, The address on the lid was for Dr. Ayres, Department of

Anthropology, Vanderbilt University,

Nashville, Tennessee.

Enoch Horsfall, a poor but honest farmer, immediately sent a
letter to Dr. Ayres, Arne wanted to open the box, he was sure it
contained something wonderful, but his father forbade him to go
near it. So he waited until the day his father was away. And then

he opened the box.

Now almost a century has passed, and Arne Horsfall is an old

mani, nearly deaf and completely mute. He is a veteran resident.

of a mental institution. There.are no records to tell when or why

he was put in the institution.

Soft-hearted Enid Waller takes Arne under her wing. She feels

| sorry for the old man. But.Enid’s sister, Marjory, doesn’t like

Arne. Not one bit, She thinks he’s creepy, especially his crude
sketches ‘of a hairless woman with eyes like pools of fire tham

seem to burn right into your soul.

‘ Then Arne disappears from the Waller | house one night. It was
the same night the luna moths appeared, by the thousands. But
they weren’t ordinary moths, there was something different about

Arne Horsfall’s tortured mind,

" these creatures, something sinister, The clue is locked away inside

This book is. more creepy than terrifying. It certainly gives you

-a new w perspective on moths.

Incredible Jumbo by Barbara Smucker ©
‘Juvenile fiction published by Viking

Tod Tolliver dreamed of being a circus clown, just like his

| - father. But now his father is dead and Tod and his mother are
- barely.surviving. The future looks bleak.

- But things begin to look alittle brighter when Tod is hired by.

: the London Zoo. It is his job to: help Scotty, the zoo keeper, care

-for Jumbo, the biggest elephant i in. the world.

Tod and-Jumbo.soon become fast friends. Each day Tod.
shares his hopes and disappointments with the gentle pachyderm.
And even though he still dreams of one day becoming a circus:
clown, Tod decides that working with the giant elephant he has

‘come to love is certainly second best!

Then two terrible and unbelievable events occur: - his ‘mother
becomes desperately ill, and because they are unable. to afford a
doctor, she is taken to. the workhouse. And then Jumbo i is sold to
‘P.T. Barnum’s Cireus in New York.

-Torn between worry for his mother and loyalty toJ umibo, Tod

finally decides to stow away aboard ship with Jumbo, Praying
that he won't get caught, Tod wonders glumly what. awaits him
at the other end Of his long voyage.

: This well-written story is a. blend. of. fact and fiction,

‘Education Centre," ‘she said, "he-

cause we hope it will be the centre
for education for everyone in the
community."

Parker expressed his appreciation

at being able to assist the project f

through governmental processes
and to be present on this occasion.
He recalled his days as school
trustee in the 1980’s and paid
particular tribute. to Hazelton
school trustee Val Napoleon,
absent in Vancouver, who had

ft

"Terrace Review — Wednesday, September 19, 1990 B15

wotked so persistently for the [|

project.

Ardythe Wilson, on behalf of the
Hereditary Chiefs and Elders,
spoke of their recognition of the
importance of education and the

need to be involved in the educa- © a :
*,. the second most Important day in education in Hazelton,”

tion system.

"This is not the first, but the
second, most important day in
education in Hazelton," she said,
"The first most important day was
in 1952 with the opening of the
Hazelton Amalgamated Secondary
School. That day marked the open-
ing of the first integrated high
school in B.C. and the recognition
of the need to become part of the
education system. The methods of
teaching are improving as we
move into the year 2000 and we
live together and know more of the
Gitksan culture."

Dr. Etches added his congratula-
tions to all who had worked ‘so
hard.on the project and his hopes
that the new school will be a step-
ping stone to the future of educa-
tion.

As soon as the speeches were
ended and the photographs taken,
the machines began to clear the
land and pile the brush as the
group moved across the road to the
Humming Bird Restaurant for the

signing of the contracts.

A group from the Terrace car-
penters’ union handed out informa-
tion sheets to everyone.

The architects who designed the
building were Royce Condie of
-Terrace, and Carlberg, Jackson and
Partners of Vancouver. General
contractor is Stuart Olson Con-
struction of Edmonton with site
superintendent Franco Bardana and
project manager Tom Bourne
supervising the construction.

Lynn Patrick, president of the

company, explained that they were

expecting to usc as many local

trades and personnel as possible in

the community, and that negoti-
ations were underway to use trades
drawn from the Smithers and

' Prince George areas.

The new school will be 8,000

- square metres, cost $13,300,000,
and is targeted for completion in
early 1992,

| #4 HAZELTON EDUCATION CENTRE i

HONURAOELE Ost GROMMET 4A SENGUER OF EOUCAOIGR
s “WAR AAAS ORAL OMRER Nd MiASTOR DE ChE ans /-
IRENE CHRONO MS BDNS COOREE Sel Auk CALE

is what Ardythe Wilson, representative of the Gitksan
Wet'suwet’an hereditary chiefs and elders called the sod turning
occasion that began the new Hazelton Education Centre
construction. Watching Wilson are School District 88 chairman
Edna Cooper and Skeena MLA Dave Parker.

School designed with
21st Century in mind

by Nancy Orr

A few strokes of a pen, a few
moments in time, marked the end
of five years of. work and the
beginning of another two years for
a host of people in School District
#88.

The occasion was the actual
signing in Hazelton on Sept. 7 of
the contract document by board
chairman Edna Cooper and presi-
dent Lynn Patrick of Stuart Olson
Construction Company.

The final contract for
$13,296,459 for 8,000 square
metres of space, is designed "to
take us into the 21st century", said
Royce Condie, the project archi-
tect.

"From the beginning in 1988 we
had public meetings in Hazelton to
determine what the perceptions of
community were for space such as

gyms, science rooms, home eco-

noniics, music, drama and so on.
Then we got to work to put that
into detall. We then discussed
layouts with stafE at Hazelton
Secondary and. developed cach
section in conjunction with the
school’s personnel.

"The cooperation was great all.

along," said Condie.

Knowing that flexibility is an
essential for the future of schools,
the architects have incorporated
designs and materials which can be
altered for changing needs. There
wilt be interior steel beams which

Big issues, local perspective |

can be moved, and space under-
ground for additions or changes in
services such as electricity, plumb-
ing, heating and similar improve-
ments.

"And over ali is the view of
Roche de Boule," said Condie.
"The U-shaped entranceway for
pedestrians and busses, the admin-
istration area, the library — every-
where it is possible — look toward
that magnificent mountain which is
part of Hazelton." ;

"The original bids were too
high," said Barry Piersdorf, secre-
tary-treasurer of District #88, “but
we were able to make modifica-
tions in the grounds and landscap-
ing, some of the paving, and re-
using things like old bleachers and
such to reduce the costs by about
$650,000."

"It is a: big contract,” he said. .
"Stuart Olson is hoping to use
local trades and services, like the
machines clearing the land, in the
construction of the school."

Lynn Patrick, president of the
company, confirmed these views
- and said this was a medium-sized
contract. for his firm, which is
currently building the new city hall
in Edmonton, ‘a ‘40 million pro-
ject...
"But we are looking forward to
working with the people of Hazel-
ton,” he said. “It will be a school

we will all be proud of."

The Terrace Review

ait