The Citizen, 2015-11-12, Page 8PAGE 8. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2015.
MacLellan suggests new single Huron East centre
Peters’ OHL team
protests dismissals
A foot race
The Blyth and District Community Centre was the stage for Blyth’s annual broomball
tournament, which saw teams from all over the province come to the village to compete. Here,
the Blyth Brussels Midget Girls took on their counterparts from Palmerston, edging the visitors
by the tightest of scores, 1-0. (Shawn Loughlin photo)
Continued from page 1
over $30,000 that the municipality is
paying to subsidize the service.
MacLellan disagreed, saying
simply that paying rent is part of
providing the service. He said that
Huron East could easily cut its
public works costs if council chose
to no longer provide snow removal,
but it’s part of the expected service.
Councillor David Blaney,
however, agreed with Chartrand,
saying that the rent costs would be
something that Huron East would
have to pay anyway, so in terms of
accounting, there is only just over
$30,000 going out of the
municipality’s accounts, not over
$70,000.
Councillor Larry McGrath said
that councillors could call the money
being paid whatever they wanted,
but at the end of the day, on the
municipality’s bottom line, it’s just
over $30,000 that’s leaving the
municipality’s bank accounts, and
that’s what should matter.
Chartrand also said that council
needs to consider the money that had
recently been paid by the county to
help with improvements to the
building. MacLellan agreed, saying
that the county paid that money
because they don’t want to be in the
daycare business, where, he said,
there is no money to be made.
RECREATION SERVICES
As part of the review, MacLellan
said that Huron East residents
certainly expect the municipality to
provide recreation services, but, he
said, do they need to be provided in
three centres?
With demand decreasing and
fewer children playing hockey,
MacLellan said, it is getting more
expensive for Huron East to run
three community centres –
especially in three aging buildings.
He wondered aloud if the
municipality could simply build one
large centre that the entire
municipality could use.
Councillor Dianne Diehl stuck up
for those running the community
centres. While it’s true that the
centres are descending into disrepair
over the years, that’s simply a reality
of age, she said. In addition,
recreation boards have been asked to
come in with zero-increase budgets
for years. Under those constraints,
she said, there can’t be a reasonable
expectation that the centres will be
able to keep up with necessary
repairs and maintenance.
She said that if those running the
community centres were allowed to
be upfront about costs, including
capital items, perhaps their year-
over-year performance would be
better and the costs wouldn’t add up
as they have.
Blaney agreed, saying that perhaps
it’s council’s expectations of the
centres that need to be re-examined,
rather than the centres’ performance.
He said that for both of the
municipality’s arenas, prime-time
ice rentals are booked across the
board. So for that to be happening
and for community centres to still be
losing money, perhaps it’s the
auditorium side of the equation that
needs to be generating more
revenue.
If revenue can be generated in
non-prime hours, Blaney said, like
from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., then perhaps
things will be able to turn around.
The centres cost the municipality
approximately $425,000 per year
and Chartrand suggested making the
service user-pay.
As he made his way through the
municipality, he said, all he heard
was how important recreation is to
residents. If that’s true, he said,
The Ontario Hockey League
(OHL) team, the Flint Firebirds,
captained by Blyth native, were the
centre of controversy earlier this
week.
The team, currently in its first year
of play after moving to Flint and
rebranding from the Plymouth
Whalers, faced off against the
Oshawa Generals on Sunday night
in Flint, Michigan and fought back
from a 3-1 deficit to win the game 4-
3 after a shootout. The win brought
the team to a record of 7-9-0-1 in the
season.
Following the game, head coach
John Gruden and his entire staff
were fired. According to reports,
minutes later, the players entered the
organization’s management offices,
threw down their jerseys and quit in
reaction to the news.
OHL Insiders, which broke the
story, suggested that the reason
for the firing could be that team
owner Rolf Nilson’s son,
who participated in the mass
exodus of the team’s roster,
wasn’t getting enough ice time.
Meetings were set by the team and
by OHL officials on Monday to sort
out the situation. Shortly after 1
p.m., it was announced that Gruden,
as well as other coaching members,
have been reinstated with three-year
contracts, meaning the team will be
able to play on Friday night versus
the Sarnia Sting.
The move has been heralded by
many hockey analysts who praised
the young players for taking control
of their own fate and using their
bargaining power to affect their
situation – realizing the power they
have as players, even at the junior
level.
Peters, who is the captain of the
squad, was reached by The Citizen
regarding the situation, but was
unable to comment, as the situation
was ongoing.
This season, Peters has managed a
goal and two assists for three points,
and an overall plus/minus of 2 while
chalking up 18 penalty minutes and
a single fight.
Last year, Peters was drafted by
the Dallas Stars 75th overall.
Peters is the son of Jeff and Janice
Peters of Blyth and he is one of the
couple’s three sons currently in
organized hockey.
Justin Peters is currently a goalie
in the Washington Capitals system
with a number of National Hockey
League games under his belt, while
Anthony is playing for the Florida
Everblades of the East Coast
Hockey League, which is one tier
below the American Hockey
League.
Ask A Financial Advisor
When can I retire?
If you’re still in the work force, eventually, you’re going to ask yourself: “When can I retire?”
To answer this question, you’ll need to take three steps.
First, you’ll have to identify your potential sources of retirement income, such as the
Canada Pension Plan, Old Age Security and other government programs, as well as a
workplace pension if you have one. You’ll also need to consider your personal savings,
such as your RRSP or TFSA.
Your second step is to determine if a gap exists between the income you can count on
during retirement and the money you’ll need to support your retirement lifestyle. A
professional financial advisor can help you make this calculation.
Your final step is to decide how to close any retirement gap. Unless you want to delay your
retirement, or scale down your retirement lifestyle, you may need to contribute more to your
RRSP and other investment accounts. You also should consider working with a financial
advisor to choose the appropriate mix of investments to help your money grow over time.
But in any case, don’t wait too long before you tackle the “When can I retire?” question —
because the sooner you start working on it, the better the answer you’ll get.
Have a question you want answered here? Ask Brian by phone or email.
Brian Hilt - Financial Advisor
79 Ontario Road, P.O. Box 1450
Mitchell, ON N0K 1N0
(519) 348-9873
brian.hilt@edwardjones.com
Member - Canadian
Investor Protection Fund
Corporation of the
Municipality of
Morris-Turnberry
Notice of a Public Meeting to consider amendments to the
Building Permit fees:
Notice is hereby given pursuant to the 2006 Building Code Article,
Division C, 1.9.1.2, that the Council of the Corporation of the
Municipality of Morris-Turnberry will be considering the following at a
Public Meeting, which will be held on:
Tuesday, December 1, 2015 at 8:00 p.m.
1. Building Permit fees: a review of a proposal to amend the Building
Permit fees for the years 2016, 2017 and 2018.
The meeting will be held at the Council Chambers located at 41342
Morris Rd., RR 4, Brussels, ON.
Everyone is welcome to attend.
A copy of the proposed fees can be obtained at the municipal office
or on the municipal website.
Nancy Michie- Administrator Clerk-Treasurer
Telephone: 519-887-6137 Ext. 21
Email: nmichie@morristurnberry.ca
Website: www.morristurnberry.ca
Broken Washer?
Blyth Laundromat
191 Westmoreland St., Blyth
519-523-9687
Sports
By Denny Scott
The Citizen
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