HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 2014-02-19, Page 1Awarded
Congratulations
Wayne Todd
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inlinn
The
1.50
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PM40064683R07656
ck ow Sentine
www.lucknowsentinel.com
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
Laura MacDuff Lucknow Sentinel
Kincardine, Tiverton and Walkerton fire departments were at the scene of a residence on Bruce Road 1 between Glammis and Highway 9 this afternoon. At 2:45
p.m. today, two police cars were on scene with officers directing traffic and one ambulance. Details were not available as The Lucknow Sentinel went to press.
More to follow next week.
Mayor Kraemer: Selling Bruce Telecom the best of bad options
Steven Goetz
QMI Agency
When council announced Bruce Telecom
was being sold to Eastlink in a surprise
announcement on Jan. 23, the public reaction
was swift.
In letters and on social media, council was
accused of betraying a 100 -year public institu-
tion and its loyal employees.
Some suspected the mayor pushed the sale
to secure the millions needed for the proposed
natural-gas project. Many said the sale didn't
meat the smell test, having been conducted out
of the public eye. Most warned councillors they
were ripe for punishment at the polls come fall.
As of Monday, Feb. 10, over 120 residents had
joined a 'Stand Up for Bruce Telecom'
www.lucknowsentinelcom
Facebook page meant to galvanize
opposition to the deal and lobby
the Canadian Radio -television
and Telecommunications Com-
mission (CRTC) to reject the sale.
We had some questions of our
own, so we sat down with Mayor
Larry Kraemer to find out in bet-
ter detail exactly why Bruce Tel-
ecom was sold.
Kraemer says council, the board
and management had fought hard
and for many years to keep the
company well-positioned in the
face of increasing competition and
damaging CRTC rulings, but with
little room left to maneuver, the
only way to protect the public's
investment was to cash out.
"We didn't make this decision
lightly," Kraemer says. "All the
options were ugly"
Why was the sale done in
secret?
The decision to sell, the search
for a buyer, and the final negoti-
ations, which concluded with an
agreement with Eastlink worth
$26.5 million, were conducted in
secret and without public
consultation to avoid eroding
the company's sale value, the
mayor says. In a public process,
perception would have been
that Kincardine had to sell,
attracting low bids, and Bruce
Telecom's competitors would
use the company's uncertain
future to lure customers away.
Why sell a profitable company?
Bruce Telecom had an operat-
ing surplus in every year at least
as far back as 2008, recording a
little more than $2 million in
profit in 2010.
The company has no signifi-
cant debt.
But earnings have fallen by
about half to just over $1 million
in 2012. And the dividend paid
to the municipality each year
has fallen from $1.5 million in
2008 to $800,000 in 2012. In
2009, that dividend was actually
higher than the company's
profit, which if included as an
operating expense would have
meant a loss for the year.
The cash flow generated by
Bruce Telecom's operations each
year has also fallen from just under
$5.5 million in 2010 to just over $4
million in 2012.
Some of that decline is because
of strong competition with other
service providers, but much of it
can be attributed to two CRTC
decisions: the first cut the subsidy
paid to telecoms operating in
hard -to -service areas; the second
increased the rents Bruce Telecom
pays Bell to serve customers using
Bell lines in Southampton and
Owen Sound.
"We tried to fight [the Bell deci-
sion] for three years but we were
unsuccessful," Kraemer says.
Earnings were projected to
decline further as the company
battled its rivals for market share,
while new players encroached on
its traditional territory.
Kincardine Cable TV, now
owned by Rogers, already com-
petes for TV and Internet custom-
ers, but an expected launch of
home -phone service over its exist-
ing cable infrastructure would end
TURN > PAGE 2
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get rt •
inlinn
The
1.50
HST included
PM40064683R07656
ck ow Sentine
www.lucknowsentinel.com
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
Laura MacDuff Lucknow Sentinel
Kincardine, Tiverton and Walkerton fire departments were at the scene of a residence on Bruce Road 1 between Glammis and Highway 9 this afternoon. At 2:45
p.m. today, two police cars were on scene with officers directing traffic and one ambulance. Details were not available as The Lucknow Sentinel went to press.
More to follow next week.
Mayor Kraemer: Selling Bruce Telecom the best of bad options
Steven Goetz
QMI Agency
When council announced Bruce Telecom
was being sold to Eastlink in a surprise
announcement on Jan. 23, the public reaction
was swift.
In letters and on social media, council was
accused of betraying a 100 -year public institu-
tion and its loyal employees.
Some suspected the mayor pushed the sale
to secure the millions needed for the proposed
natural-gas project. Many said the sale didn't
meat the smell test, having been conducted out
of the public eye. Most warned councillors they
were ripe for punishment at the polls come fall.
As of Monday, Feb. 10, over 120 residents had
joined a 'Stand Up for Bruce Telecom'
www.lucknowsentinelcom
Facebook page meant to galvanize
opposition to the deal and lobby
the Canadian Radio -television
and Telecommunications Com-
mission (CRTC) to reject the sale.
We had some questions of our
own, so we sat down with Mayor
Larry Kraemer to find out in bet-
ter detail exactly why Bruce Tel-
ecom was sold.
Kraemer says council, the board
and management had fought hard
and for many years to keep the
company well-positioned in the
face of increasing competition and
damaging CRTC rulings, but with
little room left to maneuver, the
only way to protect the public's
investment was to cash out.
"We didn't make this decision
lightly," Kraemer says. "All the
options were ugly"
Why was the sale done in
secret?
The decision to sell, the search
for a buyer, and the final negoti-
ations, which concluded with an
agreement with Eastlink worth
$26.5 million, were conducted in
secret and without public
consultation to avoid eroding
the company's sale value, the
mayor says. In a public process,
perception would have been
that Kincardine had to sell,
attracting low bids, and Bruce
Telecom's competitors would
use the company's uncertain
future to lure customers away.
Why sell a profitable company?
Bruce Telecom had an operat-
ing surplus in every year at least
as far back as 2008, recording a
little more than $2 million in
profit in 2010.
The company has no signifi-
cant debt.
But earnings have fallen by
about half to just over $1 million
in 2012. And the dividend paid
to the municipality each year
has fallen from $1.5 million in
2008 to $800,000 in 2012. In
2009, that dividend was actually
higher than the company's
profit, which if included as an
operating expense would have
meant a loss for the year.
The cash flow generated by
Bruce Telecom's operations each
year has also fallen from just under
$5.5 million in 2010 to just over $4
million in 2012.
Some of that decline is because
of strong competition with other
service providers, but much of it
can be attributed to two CRTC
decisions: the first cut the subsidy
paid to telecoms operating in
hard -to -service areas; the second
increased the rents Bruce Telecom
pays Bell to serve customers using
Bell lines in Southampton and
Owen Sound.
"We tried to fight [the Bell deci-
sion] for three years but we were
unsuccessful," Kraemer says.
Earnings were projected to
decline further as the company
battled its rivals for market share,
while new players encroached on
its traditional territory.
Kincardine Cable TV, now
owned by Rogers, already com-
petes for TV and Internet custom-
ers, but an expected launch of
home -phone service over its exist-
ing cable infrastructure would end
TURN > PAGE 2