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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2013-07-25, Page 24PAGE 24. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, JULY 25, 2013. Seaforth Foodland plans praised by council Keeping cool the wet way Sierra Hertlein wasn’t minding the water spilling on her during a game of ‘Over Under’ during the Blyth Community Churches’ summer Vacation Bible School last week at the Blyth Christian Reformed Church. (Denny Scott photo) Plans for the reconstruction of Seaforth Foodland, which was destroyed by a fire on April 27, were embraced and complimented by Huron East councillors at their July 16 meeting. Huron County Planner Sandra Weber presented the plans to council alongside Foodland’s Christine Yee, who was also at the meeting. The presentation of the plans to council came after the matter had been discussed by Huron East’s administration committee and the committee wanted the new incarnation of the store to better fit into the heritage district of Seaforth. The proposed building will have three vertical stripes along the side of the building facing Seaforth’s main street. Originally planned to be metal, it was suggested that the stripes, which are part of Foodland’s branding, be made of something that would look more at home in a heritage district, such as brick. The parking lot will remain approximately the same size as the original parking lot with 65 regular parking spots and two handicapped parking spots. One change will be two defined entrances and exits from the parking lot, which were not there before. Weber said these changes should greatly increase the flow of traffic in and out of the store onto the town’s main street. Huron East Mayor Bernie MacLellan said he felt the compromise between those at Foodland and community members was a good one because no one got everything they wanted out of the deal. The building will also feature several murals of historic downtown Seaforth. Yee also spoke to council, saying that it was no secret that the situation came up quite suddenly, as a result of the fire, but to have the application filed by the middle of June, with hopes of construction starting early next month, she felt the process was moving along quite nicely. “We’re really proud of the new design for Foodland [in Seaforth],” Yee said. “We like to emphasize our brand, we’re proud of our brand.” She added that those at Foodland are hoping that the new store will be ready to open in mid- December. Deputy-Mayor Joe Steffler said he was happy that things were moving along so quickly and that council shouldn’t stand in the way of progress. He urged council to “get on with life” and pass the new design so owner Steve Delchairo and Foodland can begin rebuilding, both for the good of the company and for the good of Seaforth. “Let’s put this to rest once and for all,” he said. Councillor David Blaney said that, with no offense to the store’s previous design, the proposed plans were a huge improvement. “This is going to look good,” he said. Later in the meeting, council passed a bylaw to authorize a site plan control agreement with Seaforth Foodland, allowing the company to go ahead with reconstruction.Continued from page 20 flat roof replacement, going instead with repairing the existing roof. Knight also expressed his disappointment in council, saying that there was a slight “over- reaction” to the town hall costs by council, and that he found comments made by councillors in the local media about holding off on the Victoria Street reconstruction “disappointing”. He said that the costs incurred by the town hall project were properly budgetted for and did not impact anything else in the municipal budget. Treasurer Paula Michiels said that the miscommunication could also be chalked up to her “misunderstanding” the situation when she prepared the initial report on the project’s costs for the July 2 meeting. Councillor Nathan Marshall, even after Knight’s presentation, said he was confused and said it sounded like “spin” to him. Councillor David Blaney, however, said that while he was confused by the situation too, perhaps the onus is on council to ask more questions, rather than staff having to inform councillors every step of the way. Dripless Oil Undercoating • Can extend the life of your vehicle with preventative rust protection for vehicle body and underbody • VOC compliant products ensure less pollutants are released into the atmosphere providing cleaner air and a healthier environment. All products applied meet new and lower VOC regulations 2010. 519-523-9308 2 miles south of Blyth corner of London Rd. & Hullett McKillop Rd., Central Huron Have a Break on Us! 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