The Citizen, 2013-11-28, Page 1CitizenTh
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$1.25 GST included Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, November 28, 2013
Volume 29 No. 47
REACH - Pg. 10Council concerned withcentre’s costs CULTURE - Pg. 30 Blyth plays host tocultural symposiumSPORTS- Pg. 8Blyth, Wingham hostSilver Stick tournamentPublications Mail Agreement No. 40050141 Return Undeliverable Items to North Huron Publishing Company Inc., P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, ON N0G 1H0INSIDE THIS WEEK:
Over 100 turn out for Blyth rail trail meeting
14/19
website
launched
undoubtedly to prepare for this year’s snowmageddon or
snowpocalypse. Shown enjoying their snow creation are, from
left: Braden Radford, Brody Nesbitt, Reid Button and Jeylin Riley.
(Denny Scott photo)
Building it higher and higher
It’s official, winter is here, and on Monday, students were
out in full force to take advantage of the white stuff that had
befallen them. Students at Hullett Central Public School
could be found building forts and walls made of snow,
Concerns of adjacent landowners
dominated an information meeting,
Nov. 21, to explore the possibility of
turning the right-of-way of the old
Canadian Pacific Railway through
Blyth into a recreational trail.
Though a show of hands of the
100 people present at the beginning
of the meeting, hosted by the County
of Huron, showed more people in
favour than opposed to the proposal
for a Guelph-to-Goderich Trail
(G2G), when it came to question
period it was those who worried
about what the trail would mean to
their nearby properties who were the
most vocal.
The meeting started with an
introduction by Huron County
Warden George Robertson and an
overview by Scott Tousaw, director
of planning and development, who
emphasized no decision has been
made about the project. The idea had
been brought to the council by the
G2G Rail Trail Advisory Committee
and council asked staff to explore
the concept further including
holding a public meeting. It will
probably not be the last such
meeting unless council decided
immediately not to continue with the
project, Tousaw said.
Cindy Fisher, tourism co-ordinator
for the County of Huron said the key
phrase is “looking at the
opportunity” offered by the trail. The
province has offered the county the
opportunity to take over the lease on
the railway right-of-way which was
abandoned by CP Rail in 1988 and
taken over by the province in 1994.
The former rail line runs 127
kilometres, of which 53 are in
Huron.
Under the province’s offer, use
would be restricted to current uses
such as leases with adjoining
farmers for crossings, and passive
recreational use: hiking and
bicycling in summer, cross-country
skiing and snowmobiling in winter.
There would be no use of motorized
vehicles such as all-terrain vehicles
or dirt bikes.
Portions of the railbed have
already been developed for
recreational trail use including the
Greenway Trail in Blyth, the 13.6-
kilometre, Goderich-Auburn Rail
Trail (GART) and the Kissing
Bridge Trailway, a 45-kilometre
stretch from Guelph to Millbank.
The advantages offered include a
safe place for people to enjoy an
active lifestyle and an opportunity
for people to appreciate the natural
environment and agriculture, Fisher
said. Trails attract tourists and
tourists create jobs and put money
into local economies through people
staying in accommodation and
buying meals.
The concerns, include the
possibility of trail users trespassing
on neighbouring property, property
damage caused by trespassers, the
use of ATVs which go off the trail,
and policing of the trail.
Rebecca Rathwell, a county
project manager, outlined the
Campaign 14/19 had the first of
what organizer hope will be many
public consultation meetings,
according to Project Director Peter
Smith, at the former Blyth Public
School on Nov. 21.
The meeting, which featured an
update on the project, a break-out
session to help generate new ideas
for the project and the launch of the
Campaign 14/19 website, was held
in the gymnasium of the former
school.
Smith started the meeting by
explaining how other art centres or
hubs got their starts, including Fogo
Island Arts and The Banff Centre.
“Banff started in 1933 with one
drama class,” he explained. “They
got money from the Carnegie
foundation in the United States and
moved to their location soon after.”
For the next 60 years the centre
was a success, according to Smith,
however in the 1990s, the Banff
Centre ran into financial difficulties
and created a campaign to support it.
Since then it has grown thanks to
the contributions of businesses.
Fogo Island Arts started in 2008
“A recent Ontario Arts Council study confirms
that for every dollar invested in culture tourism,
there is an $11 return. Just imagine the impact
of this $6-million campaign.”
RICK ELLIOTT, CHAIR
BLYTH BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT ASSOCIATION
By Denny Scott
The Citizen
Continued on page 11
By Keith Roulston
The Citizen
Continued on page 23