COUNCILLOR: '1,200 DEAD JUNKIES ON MY WATCH'

A Vancouver city councillor yesterday issued a startling apology for the
many deaths in the drug-riddled Downtown Eastside.

"If there's a good reason not to vote for me, that's it," said Sam
Sullivan, a Non-Partisan Association councillor for the past nine years. "I
am appalled with myself.

"There are 1,200 dead junkies on my watch. I'm very ashamed."

Sullivan later tried to soften his harsh judgment of his council
performance by saying the NPA is now trying to tackle the drug problem.

Mayor Philip Owen spearheaded the four-pillars strategy to address the
problem, but the NPA dumped the three-term mayor as its candidate. Many in
the community say Owen's liberal drug strategy led to his undoing.

"You hear that the NPA is against the four pillars," said Sullivan, who was
taking part in a forum at Langara College in place of NPA mayoral candidate
Jennifer Clarke. "We wrote the damned thing."

Valerie MacLean, the only mayoral candidate at the forum, saluted
Sullivan's honesty.

"I think he's courageous -- I have to give him credit for saying that,"
said MacLean, who's running for vcaTeam. "What an amazing thing for him to
say -- pretty classy.

COPE council candidate Tim Stevenson, who was also at the forum, said he
was "surprised that he [Sullivan] would actually say that publicly. We all
know that's what's been going on.

"After five years of trying to change that, Mayor Owen was kicked out of
the party. That's why [COPE mayoral candidate] Larry Campbell is saying
that we will put an end to that immediately."

Campbell and Clarke were not available for comment last night.

n Clarke yesterday unveiled her 10-point plan to build Vancouver's economy.
Called "Foundations for Prosperity," Clarke promised to cut red tape and
impediments to business, attract new high-tech businesses and growth
industries, implement better transportation and hold a quarterly roundtable
with CEOs and small business owners.

"There's no question we have all the right ingredients, including being
ranked in the top three of the world's most livable cities," said Clarke.

"Over the next 10 years, we want to make sure we're doing everything
possible to build a powerhouse economy that provides even greater
opportunities for Vancouverites and their children."