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The Citizen, 2016-12-01, Page 1INSIDE THIS WEEK: TRAIL - Pg. 16 Clearing, grading prepare G2G Trail for 2017 traffic 4-H AWARDS - Pg. 19 Huron County 4-H hands out its annual awards FESTIVAL - Pg. 27 Rachael King named Festival's new GM Publications Mail Agreement No. 40050141 Return Undeliverable Items to North Huron Publishing Company Inc., P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, ON NOG 1H0 C1t1Z Volume 32 No. 47 n WELCOME TO BINT H $1 .25 GST included Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, December 1, 2016 A welcome return Saturday in Brussels marked a welcome return any way you look at it. Whether you were happy to see Santa and Mrs. Claus make their way to the village after a year away or you counted your blessings to see familiar faces George and Pat Langlois reprise their roles in the parade every year despite now living in Clinton, Saturday was a great night. Mr. and Mrs. Claus then spent time at the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre — first to get dry then to hear Christmas wishes from the little boys and girls of Brussels. (Denny Scott photo) Central Huron's Ginn acclaimed as warden By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Central Huron Mayor Jim Ginn has been acclaimed as Huron County Warden for the 2017/2018 term. Ginn declared his interest in the position earlier this year and in the subsequent months no one had expressed an interest in running against him, leaving Ginn to be acclaimed to the position — the first time the warden has been acclaimed in Huron County in a number of years. Goderich Deputy -Mayor Jim Donnelly nominated Ginn for the position and spoke of his decades of history with the Ginn family from Jim back to his grandfather. In fact, Donnelly brought along a picture of the Western Ontario Athletic Association Goderich Lions Juveniles baseball team, on which he played alongside Jerry Ginn, Jim's grandfather. "To be our best, we need to be led by our best," Donnelly said of Ginn, adding that he has brought elegance and dignity to the world of politics in the years since he first became involved. In order to tell Huron County councillors about Ginn, Donnelly took councillors on a "stroll down Jim Ginn Lane" stopping at a number of intersections along the way. First, he said that Ginn is a quality councillor who's dedicated to agriculture, one of the pillars of Huron County's economy. He also said that Ginn has spent decades taking care of the environment, which is essential in the leadership of the county going forward. Donnelly also told councillors about Ginn's "rock solid integrity" and his family's history in the politics of Huron County. Ginn's father, grandfather and great- grandfather all served as reeves of the former Goderich Township. Ginn is now the mayor of Central Huron, continuing on the long- standing family tradition of serving his community, Donnelly said. Ginn's father also served as Huron County Warden in 1978. The last six years with Ginn as mayor, Donnelly said, have been "banner years" for Central Huron and Ginn would bring that work ethic and "unprecedented growth" to the county level for the next two years. Outgoing Warden Paul Gowing of Morris-Turnberry handed Ginn his new nameplate, as well as a warden's pin, the chain of office, the gavel and the ceremonial key. He also presented Ginn with a 2017 International Plowing Match (IPM) pin, as Ginn will serve as warden in the year of the historic event for Huron County. Upon taking his seat at the head of council, Ginn thanked Donnelly for nominating him for the position, saying there was no one he would rather have had do the honour. He said that Donnelly's name and reputation is one that will live on in Goderich and throughout Huron County for decades. He also thanked his fellow Central Huron councillors, Central Huron's municipal staff and his family for encouraging him to take on the Continued on page 26 Knott begins Blyth traffic light petition process By Denny Scott The Citizen North Huron Councillor Bill Knott wants to see traffic control implemented at the corner of County Roads 4 and 25 in Blyth in the very near future. Knott feels that, with traffic set to increase with two new businesses on opposite sides of the south portion of County Road 25, the intersection, which has been the site of several collisions over the past year, could become more dangerous. As the roads are controlled and maintained by Huron County, Knott started a petition earlier this week to have traffic lights installed at the intersection, though he found the county to be less than helpful with the issue. "I was waiting on the county to provide the proper documentation and procedure for a petition," he said. "In the meantime, I'm going to start using North Huron's own petition template." The template was recently brought to North Huron Council to make sure that all petitions handed to the municipality meet the mandated requirements for identification of those who sign it and the protection of information expected after signing the documentation. Knott will also be seeking to have Central Huron Council and ratepayers involved as County Road 25 is the border between the municipalities of North and Central Huron. The biggest hurdle, Knott expects, is that the county won't want to spend the additional funds. "This isn't about money though, it's about lives," he said. "We have had people die there and it's a matter of time before there is another. We need to get traffic control in place now." Knott said he's flexible on the kind of long-term traffic control, drawing reference to the fact that, during a recent North Huron Council meeting, a roundabout was suggested for the site. "We can do that, if it's an option, but there needs to be lights there now," he said. With the opening of the Tim Horton's restaurant on the southwestern corner of the intersection, Knott says he has already seen transport trucks parking on the side of the road and sometimes not fully clearing the active traffic lane. He has also had people describe to him times that people have ignored the east - or west -bound stop signs and travelled across County Road 4. Knott also pointed to multiple collisions at the site where drivers may not have been killed, but had to be cut out of their vehicles due to the severity of the collisions. He said people may not be fatally wounded during collisions, but they are forever marked by the event. He said Continued on page 26 Wingham crash yields jail time Joshua Fryer was sentenced to four years in prison late last month in connection to a high-speed crash in Wingham two years ago. In September, 2014, Fryer was in Blyth at a friend's house when he stole a minivan and made his way north towards Wingham at a high rate of speed. Fryer ran a red light at the intersection of Hwy. 4 and Hwy. 86 and struck a pickup truck head-on after travelling through the intersection. Statistics recorded when the airbag was deployed say the van being driven by Fryer was travelling at 172 kilometres per hour at the time of impact. Driving the pickup truck was Marsha Benninger, who was nine months pregnant at the time. The unborn boy, who was to be named Sawyer, did not survive the crash. Benninger told the court that her life was forever changed as a result of the incident and losing a child. She expressed these feelings during her victim impact statement prior to Fryer's sentencing. Fryer, who was also seriously injured as a result of the crash, will now serve four years in prison, followed by a 10 -year driving prohibition.