Benjamin Alldritt, North Shore News
City of North Vancouver council decided on Monday night to go ahead with a visit to Asia despite an acrimonious debate over the trip's cost. Mayor Darrell Mussatto, councillors and city manager Ken Tollstam are invited to Chiba, Japan, later this year to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the two cities' twinning. The provincial government has also given the city a $50,000 grant to pursue a new twinning project with a Chinese city, Huizhou.According to Mussatto, the total cost of eight people visiting both cities this October will be $54,000. The provincial grant will cover the bulk of this cost, with the remaining $4,000 being drawn from the North Vancouver's sister city budget, which currently holds $28,500.
Coun. Rod Clark tabled a motion Monday to decline the Japanese invitation and put the Chinese twinning on hold until economic conditions improve. "I ask anyone who supports this trip to point out to me and to the public any economic benefit that has occurred in that 40-year period," he said. "It is completely, completely a high-level political junket and a waste of taxpayers' money." Clark told council he had visited Chiba once as a twin city representative and was disappointed in the lack of substance in the meeting. "It was a completely ceremonial affair. We went into a back room with lots of dignitaries there. There were lots of pictures, I had my picture taken shaking hands with the mayor and the economic development officer and then I was ushered out."
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