City mourns a leader

Backrooms column by Dan Hilborn
Published July 29, 2006


Some very sad news arrived during my two-week summer holiday. Sheila Veitch, the former Burnaby city councillor, school trustee and widow of one-time deputy premier Elwood 'Slim' Veitch, passed away July 8 after a lengthy battle with throat cancer.

Sheila was one of the first female politicians I ever met in Burnaby, and she was much more than just the gatekeeper to her husband's telephone (which she excelled at).

A dauntless campaigner, her son Brian told a terrific tale of her temerity in her eulogy, which wass heard by a standing-room-only crowd that featured both Grace McCarthy and 'whistling' Bernie Smith at South Burnaby United Church.

Apparently, Sheila and a volunteer were doorknocking on Slim's behalf when a naked man holding a beer opened the door.

"The volunteer bolted away but our Mom stared him straight in the eyes and began her campaign pitch," Brian said. When her two-minute campaign spiel was finished, Sheila asked her usual question, "Will you vote for Elwood Veitch?" Of course, the nude man was so impressed, he said "Yes."

Her list of personal achievements is nothing short of astounding.

Sheila was a mainstay of the Burnaby Council of Women, the B.C. Council of Women and one-time vice-president of the Canadian Council of Women. She was a member of the Metrotown Rotary Club and on the board of stewards at South Burnaby United Church and the board of Fair Haven United Church Homes. She was also active on the boards of Langara College, Vancouver Community College and the Burnaby College for the Retired. She served on the the B.C. Parole Board, kept books for the St. Michael's Centre gift shop, volunteered with Rotary Anns, was secretary of the New Westminster and District Concert Band and was an area captain for the Salvation Army Red Shield Appeal.

And then, of course, there was politics. Sheila served on the Burnaby school board from 1981 to 1985 and was chair of its finance and buildings and grounds committees. She was elected to city council in 1985 and also served on the city's library board, plus the crime prevention, traffic and safety and grants committees.

She was a volunteer extraordinaire and had a heart of gold that shone through in every deed of her life.

Sheila will be sadly missed by her children Barb (Reg), Brian (Lauren), Gregory (Isabelle), grandchildren Kelsey, Brock, Sarah, Connor, Spencer and Alexandria. Donations to the B.C. Cancer Foundation are appreciated.

LIQUOR DEBATE

Add another high-profile business person to the growing list of people upset with Burnaby council's recent liquor store location policy.

Bruce Orr, president of Orr Development Corp. and builder of the 150,000-square-foot Centrepoint development going up across the street from Metropolis at Metrotown, says Burnaby is unfairly blocking private liquor store applications for his project. Centrepoint has signed a tentative lease with the former Diego's Pub (now Maverick's) to operate a 4,500-sq.-ft. private liquor store in the new development, and that application is now stuck in limbo, said Orr.

"For one year, Diego's has worked tirelessly to get approval and we have kept 4,500 sq.ft. available for them on the understanding that fair play, an open and accountable permitting system would prevail. Unfortunately events have proven us wrong," Orr said in a June 19 letter to council.

Over the phone, Orr became even more irate.

"These (Diego's) are taxpaying people who play by the rules and they should be treated with respect," he said. "In Vancouver, you don't have to rezone for a private liquor store, you just get a licence. In Burnaby, they make you rezone.

"Well, Diego's did that and they still get slapped with a moratorium. I think it's an abuse of the system."

FROM THE TOP?

It's worth passing on a little observation courtesy of an unnamed social worker following the publication of my story about the new windows at the Hall Towers.

Given our provincial government's penchant for micromanaging, it's likely that the decision to spend $4.6 million to replace the gaping windows was made at the cabinet level, said the source.

The installation of the new windows comes three years after a diagnosed schizophrenic, Harry Kierans, leaped to his death from the 14th floor of one of the 30-year-old buildings, despite his repeated requests to get out of the building.

In the original announcement, a government spokesperson said that energy efficiency was the main reason for the new windows, although the safety of residents "was a consideration."

Kind of warms the heart, eh?