Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuron Expositor, 2015-03-18, Page 1010 Huron Expositor • Wednesday, March 18, 2015 Murder suspect gets new lawyer Facilities review on Dave Flaherty Huron Expositor The merry-go-round of court appearances for accused mur- der Boris Panovski switched in yet another direction this week. It was revealed in Goderich court on Thursday that Toronto- based lawyer Bob Richardson would be representing Panovski. Richardson had been identi- fied as Panovski's counsel at pre- vious court appearances, but last month the 70 -year-old claimed he was intent on defending himself. Panovski, 70, is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Don Frigo and the attempted murder of Frigo's wife, Eva Willer Frigo. They were shot Sept. 13 while riding horses after a dog -training competition at the Hullett Wildlife Conserva- tion Area near Clinton. Arnold Walker, a London -area lawyer speaking on Richardson's behalf, told the court he had met with Panovski at the Elgin -Mid- dlesex Detention Centre where he is currently being held. Panovski said he still hadn't seen his disclosure, but Huron County Crown Attorney Teresa Donnelly said the information provided to her office disputed that claim. Donnelly said Panovski had received access to his disclosure on two occasions and that her office was in the process of hav- ing it returned to Richardson. The matter was adjourned until March 26, with the intent of setting a date for a judicial pretrial. Health Unit: Quit smoking and celebrate with us Dave Flaherty Huron Expositor The Health Unit, in partner- ship with the Centre for Addic- tion and Mental Health, has been offering STOP (Smoking Treatment for Ontario Patients) workshops in the cur- rent model for one year. To celebrate, the Health Unit is hosting a special anni- versary STOP workshop on March 31 at 5 p.m. in Exeter with a small celebration dur- ing the session. As always, the workshop gives participants information on building a quit plan, coping with cravings and nicotine replace- ment. Eligible participants are able to receive five weeks' worth of nicotine replacement patches free of charge. "It has been such a fabulous year. Through this program we have met many wonderful people including participants and community partners who have helped to host work- shops," said Public Health Nurse Julie Verch. "We look forward to the future and to meeting many more partici- pants and working with our community partners." Pre -registration for STOP workshops is required so please register early. To learn more, call the Huron County Health Unit at 519-482-3416 or toll free at 1-877-837-6143. 1. [ T' S MAKE CANCF R HISTORY ..,•.Yh:i•1' . 1.. i,r.- N, In ylitabeei3bcxn c,mic[ r L • , Y:t 3e1106 or to niAe a dansiion l' gr88.939. 3333 • www.ca ricer. ca ;Zlig -1/ AWL H ri"11111 11.74.15°^11 I•".. 1 riliill 1 . �l l • ■ 'C anal Chit:. Treat -Severn Waterway & Rideau Canal Captain Marc of the Kowortha Voyageur will describe t hese popular guises in a complimentary 45 minute photo show, Sefreshrner1s Will he a -labia 15 minutes prinr is thx• pri ntaiian} Monday March 23 Four Paints -1150 Wellington Road 3:D11 pm Wednesday March 25 Holideiyf Inn - 30 Fairway Road South 1030 am Pinden Park • 552 Ontario 5treot 3,DQ pal ism r ihr r da1i and pk}res web5it6 www iruis ontario.ca 1-800-561-5767 London 'Kitchener Stratford rd Would your friends like to come? the horizon for county council Dave Flaherty Huron Expositor County council will be discussing the future of the municipality's facilities later this year. Councillors were presented with a report on a potential review at the March 11 Committee of the Whole Meeting. They voted to discuss the review at a future "priority -setting" meeting. Director of planning Scott Tousaw said the idea of a long-term plan for the county's various offices has been dis- cussed in the past with no firm direction. Huron County currently has four general office buildings related to municipal services - the MPAC assess- ment office and the courthouse in Goderich, health and library complex in Clinton and the Jacob Memorial Building in Huron East. "These buildings are all quite func- tional but have issues," he said. In his report, Tousaw provided the following information: • The efficiency of county operations are somewhat impeded by offices being located in different buildings and communities • Most of the buildings were not built for office use, leading to poor floor plans, a low density of offices and higher unit costs to operate and maintain • Rent charged to third parties such as the Ministry of the Attorney General are not covering costs to operate and maintain the buildings • The current annual expenditures for operating and maintaining the areas occupied by county services are approximately $650,000 • The diversity and size of county ser- vices have grown faster than the facilities housing them • The disconnect between county functions and absence of central receptions likely fails public expec- tations for service and transparency Tousaw said the Jacob Memorial Building in Clinton in particular is very expensive and difficult to maintain. The county's 2014 corporate strategy called for a facilities review. However, Tousaw said staff must be given direction from council on how they want such a review to be undertaken. In addition to the aforementioned buildings, the registry office and corpo- rate records office in Goderich will also be subject to the review. Staff has recommended a long-term plan for the future of the county's facilities. "For this study, a 40 -year outlook is the goal, although for the projection of county functions and services, a 20 -year planning horizon is more real- istic," he said. The estimated overall cost to replace all the buildings is $25 million. Central Huron Deputy Mayor Dave Jewitt said council has also received a report about the lack of affordable housing in the county. He said both are priorities but in his view, the affordable housing issue is a bigger concern at this time. Goderich Mayor Kevin Morrison said as a new member of county council he'd like to see what has been discussed in the past. Hearing a "sales pitch" from CAO Brenda Orchard is something Huron East Mayor Bernie MacLellan is anticipating. "We need to hear what the advan- tages would be to moving or remaining where we are," he said. "We need to know what the benefits are." North Huron Mayor Neil Vincent said such a facilities review would be a "daunting task': "If you start down this road, you might find unintended consequences," he said.