Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - June 23, 2004, Winnipeg, Manitoba Wednesday june 23, 2004 City editor Steve Pona 697-7292 b4 City & District City a festivities for Canada Day expand Winni Eggers will be Able to Cele strict business improvement zone said in operation to link the Sites. Rival Favourite Captain Braggadocio brate Canada Day with fireworks on its going to be a Good the Canada Day fun actually begins hosting free entertainment geared both the july 1 Holiday and the night this year the Forks Exchange Dis the night before on june 30, when a Man toward children and families. There a before at the Forks. Strict Osborne Village and St. Boniface Ito a night of jazz is held on the Scotia also free refreshments inflatable rides and ? Cross your fingers the River have joined forces to celebrate Canada Bank stage at the Forks. The bands to and games and a special guest appear walk might actually be above water and Day. Play starting at 7 ., include the win Ance by the Fol Lorama Llama. Open to pedestrians by then. Linking All of the Sites is the free Winnipeg pops orchestra and Walle Larsson. The Street festival in Osborne Village we Hope the River walk will be Back Nipes transit downtown shuttle bus that the night ends with a fireworks Dis begins after City Crews close Osborne to Normal by Canada Day Dorothy will do a circular route. Buses will oper play at 11 Street on june 30 at 6 30 The Street Ridd of the Forks North Portage part ate every 10 minutes on july 1, from the next morning the fun continues wont reopen until july 2. Pership said. Noon until 12 15 . The splash dash at the Exchange districts old Market there will be two stages set up and Megan Deaust of the Exchange Dis water taxi service is also expected to be Square with Winnipeg kids fringe fes several places for children a activities. Tax Case risky for City outcome May Force refund of millions by David Kuxhaus ast. Germain residents Battle with the City Over a backdated $5,400 property tax Bill could potentially Force the City to refund millions of dollars in taxes to other homeowners. The Case is currently before the Manitoba court of Appeal. If the court rules in Jim Shapiro a favour it would mean that other Home owners already disputing the amount of supplemental property tax Bills could also Challenge whether the Bill was even valid. City officials estimate the number of cases that could be affected involve several million dollars in tax Revenue. That a Why this Case is so important City attorney Denise Pambrun said. We stand to lose a lot More Money that we would Shapiro a lawyer Michael Mercury says his client should get a refund because the tax collected by the City is the court of Appeal ruled in april that the City was wrong to Bill David Asper retroactively for improvements he made to his Wellington Crescent Home. Mercury said the facts Are the same for his client Shapiro. I frankly cannot understand Why the City of Winnipeg insists on collecting taxes that the courts have now in Asper ruled to be illegal Mercury said. Wayne Glowacki / Winnipeg free press in 1997, Shapiro a St. Germain Home Shapiro at Home with dog Puppy says even if court finds he a liable for disputed taxes his Bill should be Cut. Was damaged by floodwaters forcing him to temporarily move out. Shapiro is appealing. Required to file new appeals which she should be reduced. After making repairs to restore it to but Shapiro like the other Home indicated the City would fight even in he said recent government policies its original condition Shapiro moved owners possibly affected challenged Light of the Asper decision. Pambrun that restrict new construction in the Back in 1998. Only the amount they had to pay not said its arguable whether filing such area because of flood risk and the fail the assessment for the years 1999 whether the City had the right to Back an Appeal would be within the accept ure of the government to build a ring through 2001 was $11,700, reflecting Date tax Bills. Able time limit. Dike have devalued his Home. The damage resulting from the flood Mercury said that Given previous the Appeal court has reserved its i can to sell this Home there a no and the fact the Home had at one Point court rulings that option did to seem decision on the matter. Market for it Shapiro said. Been uninhabitable. Viable. However he said that changed the Manitoba legislature clarified the province did offer area Resi however Mercury said that in 2001, with the Asper decision. The Law in 2002 to say the City May dents a buyout but Shapiro unlike the City reassessed the property for but Pambrun said she believes it Amend the tax Roll Only for the year in most of his Neighbours declined. 1999 and 2000 to take account of the would be unfair to allow people such question and one previous year to pre i be been Here 23 years. I a too old repairs Shapiro had done. This result As Shapiro to now expand their appeals vent future disputes. To Start Over again. De in a backdated tax Bill totalling $5,400 for those two years which to include the Issue of liability. Pambrun said they should be Shapiro said even if the court rules he is liable for the tax Bill the amount. Crow in City tests positive for West Nile culex tarsal is ? needs hot weather to but risk of human build up High numbers the longer the province has cooler weather the lower the risk. Infections very Low things could change very quickly if it got hot and stayed hot said Rob by Kevin Rollason Anderson the provinces West Nile entomologist. Its so dependent on a dead Crow found in the Western part of because of this Summers below nor the City on saturday is the first Bird in Mal temperatures and plenty of precis the province to test positive for the West station the number of mosquitoes is Nile virus this year. Shaping up to be the Mosquito equiv however provincial officials yester Lent of a perfect storm. Day downplayed the risk of a Manitoban Ken Nawolski the City a insect con getting infected. Tool research and surveillance co Ordi the presence of West Nile virus in Nator said because of this years Manitoba does signal the possibility that below Normal temperatures Winnipeg humans will be exposed to West Nile Gers Are actually slapping two season virus but we think the risk of humans Worth of mosquitoes when they go out being infected at this time is very Low Side. Said or. Joel Kettner the provinces the Cool weather has delayed the chief medical officer of health. Summer mosquitoes and the Snow melt if we continue to have cooler weath last year there were 142 identified he said that by june 22 last year the ones Are still coming out now when theyer like this through the summer. It human infections in Manitoba of which province had found two Birds with West should have been going Down awol would diminish that 35 people had serious illnesses including Nile virus. Sky said. We re getting the two mos West Nile virus is a disease transmit two people who died. The virus has already been reported quinoes together and they re intersecting Ted by mosquitoes. Most people infected Kettner said this years appearance of this year in Ontario Quebec and in a major Way either Don to become ill or have minor an infected Bird is Only nine Days behind Saskatchewan. Symptoms but some people do die from last years when the first positive Bird but Kettner said because the main. it. Was discovered on june 10. Type of Mosquito that carries the virus ? ;