Download - May 25, 2016

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OMEGATHE

THOMPSON RIVERS UNIVERSITY’S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER

VOLUME 25

Ω@TRU_OMEGA· · FB.ME/TRUOMEGA A B Γ Δ Ε Ζ Η Θ Ι Κ Λ Μ Ν Ξ Ο Π Ρ Σ Τ Υ Φ Χ Ψ ΩWWW.TRUOMEGA.CA·MONTHLY SUMMER EDITION

BUILDING A NEW VIEW AT TRU

LOOKING AHEAD COMING DOWN THE PIPE

Local therapeutic riding charity to host food truck festival, with plans for an annual event • Page 4

Food truck festival planned for mid June

Brian Chiduuro shares his thoughts on the future of TRUSU and his own future • Page 7

With pipeline expansion approval in place, the proposal still faces provincial approval • Page 2

HUNGRY?

New TRUSU president talks future plans Energy board approves Trans Mountain

CONSIDER IT BASHED

TRU Sustainability’s 2016 Trash Bash managed a hefty cleanup • Page 2

Campus cleanup a success

OPINION

Distracted driving fi nes to more than double, testing the power of deterrence • Page 3

Doubled fi nes wil test deterrence

RIDE ALONG

This year’s Bike to Work Week event has a lengthy extension for TRU, and some prizes, too • Page 7

Bike to Work Week gets an extension

ISSUE NO. 28

MAY 2016

Development planned behind Old MainNow rezoned for development, TRU looks at next steps towards master plan, p. 5

NEWS MAY 25, 20162

The National Energy Board has recommended that Kinder Morgan’s proposed Trans Moun-tain pipeline be approved with conditions.

The proposed pipeline is mostly an expansion of the existing pipe-line that runs from Edmonton to Burnaby, including a stretch along the North Thompson River and through Kamloops city limits.

Along with its approval, the National Energy Board also rec-ommended 157 conditions, which pertain to regulatory matters, safety, environmental protection and emergency preparedness and response.

But while the NEB decision signals approval at the federal level, there are still hurdles at the provincial level.

“We are not yet in a position to consider support for any heavy-oil pipeline in B.C.,” said Environment Minister Mary Polak following the announcement.

Polak noted that the province’s five conditions to approve the pipeline, which include Aborigi-nal consultation, environmental safety and economic concerns, still haven’t all been met.

“Meeting all five conditions will be a challenge. We set the bar high for a reason. We need to ensure B.C.’s concerns around the

environment, First Nations’ par-ticipation and overall economic benefit are taken seriously,” Polak said following the decision.

Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson told CBC’s The House that the decision was “incredibly disappointing” and called the NEB process a “sham.”

The National Energy Board has long been the target of criticism over the abundance of former industrialists on its board. In a December 2015 report out of the Auditor General of Canada’s office, auditors said that the NEB wasn’t doing enough to track company implementation of approval conditions and that it wasn’t following up with compliance and regulatory requirements.

Both TRU and Kamloops stand to benefit if the pipeline is constructed.

In February of 2015, Kinder Morgan made an agreement with the City of Kamloops that would land the city $700,000 if the pipeline project is approved and constructed. Kinder Morgan later struck the same deal with TRU, but for $500,000 intended for scholarships to be doled out over 20 years.

The two conditional payments are part of Kinder Morgan’s $4.5 million-plus Community Benefit Agreement plan that has offered money to more than a dozen communities along the proposed pipeline route.

Energy board approves pipeline expansion

Sean BradyEDITOR-IN-CHIEF Ω

Pipeline approval might mean a Kinder Morgan payout for TRU and Kamloops

Kinder Morgan’s proposed route for its pipeline expansion through Kamloops. (Kinder Morgan)

TRASH BASH 2016

The Trash Bash returned for another year and another successful campus cleanup. Prizes were awarded to teams Detritus Andronicus for best name and The Collectibles and Dirty Money for the most trash bashed.

A total of 82 volunteers found and removed two pickup truck loads worth of garbage plus a couch.

Photos courtesy TRU Sustainability

WWW.TRUOMEGA.CA 3OPINION & EDITORIAL

ΩA B Γ Δ Ε Ζ Η Θ Ι Κ Λ Μ Ν Ξ Ο Π Ρ Σ Τ Υ Φ Χ ΨA B Γ Δ Ε Ζ Η Θ Ι Κ Λ Μ Ν Ξ Ο Π Ρ Σ Τ Υ Φ Χ ΨΩA B Γ Δ Ε Ζ Η Θ Ι Κ Λ Μ Ν Ξ Ο Π Ρ Σ Τ Υ Φ Χ ΨΩΩA B Γ Δ Ε Ζ Η Θ Ι Κ Λ Μ Ν Ξ Ο Π Ρ Σ Τ Υ Φ Χ ΨΩ Ω

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Starting June 1, the cost of a ticket for distracted driving will be set at $368, but the violation also imposes four penalty points, which carries a $175 premium, bringing the total cost of a distracted driving ticket to $543. Tack on second offense to that and a repeat distracted driver is looking at fines of $888. It gets a lot worse from there.

The need to reduce distracted driving is well established. Police in Ontario said it’s even worse than drunk driving, especially among youth.

According to ICBC, distracted

driving currently ranks third (22 per cent) in causes of fatal car accidents among youth, after speeding (39 per cent) and impaired driving (27 per cent).

With the new fees in place, B.C. has set itself up to test just how well big money fines work as deterrents. Along with the fines, new methods of enforcement are in place, too. According to a CBC report, the RCMP rolled out new spotting scopes for the May long weekend across B.C. that are capable of spotting device-users from as far as 1.2 kilometres away.

Recent enforcement also illustrates the problem. On May 17, Kamloops RCMP set up on various locations around town

and handed out 19 tickets for use of an electronic device, which was nearly one third of all tickets they handed out that day. It won’t be a surprise if that kind of enforcement returns, especially after the fine more than doubles in June.

We’re all busy. We’re all tempted by the sound of notifi-cations, calls or messages, but it’s really not that difficult to ignore your phone while you’re driving. There is no one who will hear you say “Sorry, I was driving” and not understand why you didn’t respond to them right away. Reading that message isn’t worth $543, let alone your life or endangering the lives of others.

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Testing the power of deterrence

Sean BradyEDITOR-IN-CHIEF Ω

New fi nes for distracted driving aim to address a growing problem on our roads

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more than that? Find us online!

Weekly publishing returns September 7, 2016.

MAY 25, 20164 NEWS

Have any dinner plans for June 17? The Kamloops Ther-apeutic Riding Association is hosting an event that will give you some options. The non-profit will be hosting trucks from Kamloops and beyond on its Crestline Drive property in what will be one of Kamloops’ largest food truck gatherings.

KTRA Executive Director Ashley Sudds said the festival has already attracted a lot of attention, with more than 1,000 people marked “going” on Facebook and another 3,000 interested.

“People keep inviting friends and tagging each other. I haven’t had to do anything other than create the event,” Sudds said.

As of May 22, a total of 12 food trucks had committed to attending. Sudds said they’re mostly from Kamloops and the surrounding region, but some are coming from as far away as Vancouver. Along with the trucks, Sudds also has plans for live music and entertainment

for kids.The event will serve as a fund-

raiser for KTRA, a registered charity that provides therapeu-tic horse riding to children and adults with mental and physical disabilities. Therapeutic riding can provide a calming expe-rience in interacting with the animals, and a horse’s natural walking movement can be soothing.

The organization also has a program to support and reha-bilitate youth at risk and takes referrals from the RCMP and the Ministry of Children and Fam-ilies. The aim of the program is to help youth at risk rebuild trust, find support and remove

fear, according to the KTRA website.

The organization, which formed in 1988, is located on Crestline Drive in Brocklehurst and has 12 horses on property leased to it by the Kamloops airport. It runs sessions in the spring and fall with help from 60 volunteers.

“We rely heavily on all of our volunteers, and without them we wouldn’t be able to provide our lessons. They provide side support if needed, they lead the horses, they get them tacked up for the lessons,” Sudds said.

With each food truck giving back a portion of its profits and with admission by donation,

KTRA is hoping the event will help boost its fundraising eff orts.

“I didn’t really expect the amount of interest we received, which I think is fantastic,” Sudds said.

Sudds also mentioned that there is already talk of another event in the fall, as well as this event returning next year.

Food truck festival will benefi tlocal charitySean BradyEDITOR-IN-CHIEF Ω

Therapeutic riding organization plans a feast around food trucks for mid-June

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Kamloops Therapeutic Riding Association Executive Director Ashley Sudds poses for a photo with Rebel. (Sean Brady/The Omega)

A horse on the KTRA property near the Kamloops Airport. (Sean Brady/The Omega)

WWW.TRUOMEGA.CA 5NEWS

Thompson Rivers University’s application for rezoning has been approved and now the university is one step closer to the next phase of development in the campus master plan – one that includes the development of a university village.

Development of the village will be managed through the TRU Community Trust (TRUCT), a non-profit entity that will submit development proposals to the TRU Board of Governors for approval. Because the province doesn’t allow the sale of university land, TRU will grant the trust leasehold parcels of land with a term of 99 years instead.

The rezoning moves TRU from the city’s post-secondary (P-8) zoning designation to a new designation, a comprehensive development zone (CD-11). This updated zoning will allow TRU to proceed with the development of the most recent iteration of its Campus Master Plan.

According to TRU’s VP Admin and Finance Matt Milovick, who also sits on the TRUCT board, the next step will be to speak with developers and start a competitive process. The TRUCT board’s focus for a first develop-ment is a housing develop-ment behind Old Main, near the thicket of trees on the North Side.

When asked about parking availability, Mi-lovick said that the new de-velopment would consume approximately 120 of TRU’s current parking stalls, but that the parking problem at TRU is generally one of perception.

“We actually have an oversupply of parking, but the problem is the abundance of that parking is in Lot N right behind the residence. People don’t want to walk that far,” Milovick said.

“What you will see as the

university develops in the core of the campus, all that parking that’s close to the heart of the campus is going to be lost and you’re going to see parking pushed more to the fringes, and eventually you’ll see the con-struction of structured parking.”

To ease the pain of less parking, Milovick said he hopes that transit and bike access will both improve and that there’s less focus on the car as things move forward.

On the academic side of

things, the university has applied for a portion of the $2 billion in federal funding made available for innovation and sustainable growth at Canadian post-secondary institutions announced in April. The two applications put forward by

the university are for the proposed Trades building announced in March and a new nursing building that would go across from the science building. Ground would be broken “probably in January” for the two buildings looking to receive federal funding, if they’re approved.

In terms of development by the trust, Milovick said those on campus will see

shovels in the ground sometime in the next eight months to a year.

“Where our campus is situ-ated, it’s some of the last prime buildable lots in the city and if we can build a community

around it, densify the campus, and keep people on and using our campus 24/7, it’s going to

make for a vibrant university and a more vibrant Kamloops,” Milovick said.

Rezoned university land primed for development

Sean BradyEDITOR-IN-CHIEF Ω

Housing developments fi rst up, with academic buildings hoping for federal funding

The view from the corner of the property behind Old Main where a new housing development may be built. (Sean Brady/The Omega)

““It’s going to make for a vibrant university and a more vibrant Kamloops,”

Matt Milovick, TRU’s VP Admin & Finance and TRUCT board member

McGill Road

Sum

mit D

rive

OLD MAIN

The blue star indicates where a new housing development may be built on campus.

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WWW.TRUOMEGA.CA 7NEWS

This year’s TRUSU election saw a new president put in place by the student body. Brian Chiduuro took nearly half the votes to beat out incumbent president Melissa Gordon.

Chiduuro ran as part of a slate called the Student Advocacy Coalition, made up mostly of international students. After the dust settled, the new TRU board emerged split among the two biggest slates running, with the coalition holding the balance. But now that the campaigning is done, Chiduuro says that the path forward is in working together.

“That was trying to get the seats. But now, if we have a split, there’s no success for us,” he said.

Chiduuro has been in Canada for two years. Before he came here to study, he was a student in Zimbabwe and also worked for his father at a Steel Company and in real estate. He was preceded in Canada by his brother Blessing, who made his mark on TRU, as well. With Blessing’s help, he hit

the ground running at TRU.“I already knew what to do. I

was already ahead. My brother helped me a lot. He was the one who made me come here,” he said.

Here at TRU, Chiduuro is working towards a bachelor’s in business administration, with eyes on a master’s or possibly law school beyond that. Once he’s finished, he doesn’t know what he’ll do, but returning to Africa is a real possibility, since he sees opportunity there.

“I believe Africa is actually the first world. You can make more money in Africa than here because it’s still developing. People don’t see this,” he said.

“That’s why international students tend to come a long way from back home. We have to get all this knowledge and then invest it back. That’s exactly what you’re supposed to do. Some people find it better to stay here because it’s not hard – everything is already set up. You just work and go up the ranks.”

Chiduuro, 20 now, says his goal is to become “very rich” by the time he’s 24.

But with four years to go, he’s got TRUSU to worry about. The newly elected board is still

learning the ropes, and Chiduuro is trying to take it all in.

He ran a campaign on reform and new ideas and against the establishment, but now that he’s on the inside, he says things look different.

“It’s a whole different picture from when you’re outside complaining to when you’re now inside. Now you actually know how things go and how things are supposed to go and how things are,” he said.

But he’s still got his eye on changes, and the ambition remains. Food service and en-tertainment are two things he’s preparing to deal with, looking to address concerns raised by students over the availability of campus food and the number of events put on by the union.

“The more student engage-ment we have, the more students we have for campaigning, the more we have for advocacy, for everything. It all starts with entertainment.”

Chiduuro doesn’t lack confi-dence. Although it’s early, he’s positive this will be a good year for the union.

“Everything that I plan for doesn’t end up how I want it to be, it always ends up better.”

This year’s Bike to Work Week has been extended to a whole month at TRU. The event will run from May 30 to June 30 this year.

Some of the planned events include a bike maintenance clinic on June 2 from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. at the TRU bike shelter, a French breakfast on May 31 from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m., and the Bike to Work Week Celebration Station on the lawn at Summit and McGill from 3:30 to 6 p.m. on June 1.

Participants who enter their name are also eligible for free stuff like bike-related tools, gadgets, bags, etc. with daily draws from May 30 to June 3 and then once a week thereafter. There will also be a grand prize draw on June 30 to wrap up the event. Riders can enter each day they commute to campus on their bikes.

TRU Sustainability’s James

Gordon, a life-long biker to work, is organizing the event and shared some tips for those interested in participating.

In terms of safety, Gordon said that if they can see you, they won’t hit you, and recommended wearing high-visibility clothing, using flashing lights on the front and back of your bike, using a rear-view mirror and being aware that you can take up an entire vehicle lane if you need to be seen and safe.

Gordon also recommended that participants can make use of city bus bike racks to get around some of Kamloops’ hills if they feel the need to, insisting that they’re a lot easier to use than you might think.

“People are reluctant to try it. Watch the video, it’s a very simple device. The hills of Kamloops can be daunting,” he said.

For more information, contact James Gordon at 250-852-7153 or by email at [email protected].

New TRUSU president talks future plans

Bike to Work Week becomes month-long eventTRU’s version of event runs from May 30 to June 30

Thanks to a five-year loan from the Kamloops Art Gallery, Old Main now features the Tousignant Ovale by Canadian painter Claude Tousignant, an 8 ft. by 16 ft. installation above Starbucks. The art was installed on April 18.

Below the installation is a plaque memorializing the late Jann Baily, long-time executive director of the Kamloops Art Gallery. TRU President Alan Shaver said that Bailey had asked if campus might have a spot for it, and the university was happy to accommodate.

Photo courtesy TRU

Sean BradyEDITOR-IN-CHIEF Ω

Brian Chiduuro is busy preparing for the year to come, with lots still to learn

Brian Chiduuro at the podium during the campaign period of the 2016 TRUSU General Election. (Jim Elliot/The Omega)