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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2013-01-24, Page 1CitizenTh e $1.25 GST included Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, January 24, 2013 Volume 29 No. 4 OSPCA - Pg. 10 Landowners Associationholds OSPCA meeting PLAN - Pg. 19 North Huron approvesnew strategic planSPORTS- Pg. 8Ironmen beat MountForest, move into thirdPublications Mail Agreement No. 40050141 Return Undeliverable Items to North Huron Publishing Company Inc., P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, ON N0G 1H0INSIDE THIS WEEK: Streetscape Master Plan presented in Blyth County backs IPM bid They’re all smiles Despite the cutting wind, sub-zero temperatures and blast of January snow last week, students at Hullett Central Public School were all smiles during recess. Shown enjoying the cool weather and abundance of the white stuff are, from left, Morgan Howson, Jenna McDonald, Drew Van Wyk, Reid Button, Lucas Townsend, Samantha Kerr and Tanner Boven. (Denny Scott photo) North Huron Township Chief Administrative Officer Gary Long welcomed more than a dozen people to the Bainton Art Gallery on Jan. 16 to discuss the future of downtown Blyth and where major construction would fit into it. The meeting was held to review the Blyth Streetscape Master plan: four major projects designed to revitalize Blyth including revamping the downtown, reworking the municipal parking spaces behind the Blyth Inn and in front of Scrimgeour’s Food Market, revitalizing King Street to invite traffic to and from the campground and proposed reworking of the Greenway Trail. Long invited Rick Elliott and Stephen Sparling, two key members of the Blyth Idea Group, to discuss the project with the assembled stakeholders, many of whom were tied to the Blyth Festival. Sparling explained that the village of Blyth welcomes 100,000 people through the community on a nearly annual basis and said it is a safe and comfortable village to live in, but also said that the village needs to repurpose itself. He explained how the main idea of the project was to refresh Blyth’s image as well as connect the commercial core of Queen Street with the Blyth and District Community Centre, the campground and the ball parks. He also discussed the idea of bump outs, stating that, while they had become a popular target for people to disparage, the fact existed that they would be worthwhile to have in the community as they provided a means to slow down traffic visually and lessen the amount of space that people need to travel when crossing the street. “If we go ahead and invite 10,000 people to downtown Blyth, but then make no provisions whatsoever for their safety, it isn’t going to work,” he said. “We have no traffic management, no stop lights, no speed monitoring and no risk of enforcement but we still say, ‘Come on Down to Blyth’. The fact is, people won’t go where they feel their safety is in question.” The floor was opened to comments from the assembled stakeholders and, with the exception of some debate about the order of implementation of the plans, most of the comments were positive. North Huron Councillor Brock Vodden of said council was behind the project because it is an important issue. He said this project was one more example of a long line of reinventions the village has gone through since being settled in the 1850s. “There must be something in the drinking water that allows people to rise to the surface and help them re- adapt,” he said. Peter Smith, the recently appointed Interim Artistic Director at the Blyth Festival, said that while he is fairly new to modern Blyth, he was here 20 years ago and he said he has noticed a lot of changes in that time. “I think the village has taken great strides already,” he said. “The continuation of that is very exciting.” Dave Kelly, the Vice President of the Blyth Lions Club, said that the club was behind any idea that bettered Blyth. He also said the group was looking for some way to be involved. “The direction the Lions would like to take is a project, something visible, that Lions will be able to say they did,” he said. “It’s so easy to hand money over and five to 10 years down the road, it’s forgotten who handed over the cheques, but with a visible project, it will help us with recruitment.” He said that, since the group is young, he is 27 and the president of the club is 29, they will likely be around for awhile and that they were looking forward to helping with the project. Pat Newson, Director of Recreation and Facilities, suggested that accessibility be added as a primary focus for the project. She said that, while aiming for the minimum of accessibility is necessary, she felt that they should aim higher. “We want people to think they Huron County Council has thrown its moral and financial support behind the Huron County Plowmen’s Association’s bid to host the 2017 International Plowing Match. At the Jan. 16 Committee of the Whole meeting, council pledged $100,000 over the next four years to the organization’s bid. Brian McGavin, president of the Huron County Plowmen’s Association, assured councillors that the money would be paid back after the event. McGavin explained the loan would consist of $10,000 this year and $30,000 a year for 2014, 2015 and 2016. He also asked that council allow for donations of in-kind services from the county, including from the roads department, the public works department and the planning department. Council was also agreeable to that suggestion. Alongside McGavin was former Huron County and Ontario Queen of the Furrow Melissa Sparling and Seven Huron County-owned vehicles will have their fate decided as soon as Brenda Orchard, the county’s new chief administrative officer takes office later this month. The vehicles had been discussed late last year after several members of the Huron County senior management team were relieved of their duties with the county. Four vehicles, assigned to departed Chief Administrative Officer Larry Adams, Treasurer David Carey and Director of Human Resources Darcy Michaud and Clerk Barb Wilson, who resigned from her position, had been at the heart of the discussion. However, three other vehicles were brought in off the road in order for the county to take a new approach to By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Continued on page 9 By Denny Scott The Citizen County delays vehicle decision By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Continued on page 6 Continued on page 19