HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2012-01-12, Page 20Chief Administrative Officer
Larry Adams informed Huron
County Council at the Jan. 4
meeting that the county’s claim to
the Ontario Disaster Relief
Assistance Program (ODRAP) had
been denied.
Adams couldn’t offer many details
of the decision, but said the county
may have another source of funding
through the Minister of Municipal
Affairs and Housing.
While much of the damage as a
result of the Aug. 21 tornado will be
covered by the county’s insurance,
there are some aspects of the
damage that will go uncovered.
Among the main costs not being
covered is the removal of asbestos
from the courthouse.
Adams said he is in the process of
arranging several delegations at
upcoming conferences coming up in
the near future in order to appeal the
decision.
The application was initially made
late last year.
PAGE 20. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012.
After a lengthy closed-to-the-
public session on Jan. 3, Huron East
Council has decided the
municipality will express an interest
in purchasing the Brussels Public
School building and property.
While councillors could not
provide any details, a motion was
passed after the closed session
stating that the municipality would
pursue the property from the Avon
Maitland District School Board at
the end of the current school year.
Because he is employed with the
board, Brussels Ward Councillor
Frank Stretton declared a conflict of
interest with the decision.
In an interview after the meeting,
Huron East Mayor Bernie
MacLellan said that specific plans
for the building and the property
have yet to be formally discussed,
but that some preliminary ideas have
been thrown out.
“We had to get our names in
there,” MacLellan said. “We’ll still
have to have a meeting or a planning
day and hear suggestions from
councillors as to what they think we
should do with the building.”
MacLellan says that while no
official discussions have taken
place, it is no secret that council had
been considering a new library in the
school building over a year ago.
However, with the decision
officially made to renovate the
existing Carnegie library, that option
is no longer there, he said.
“There have been thoughts that it
could act as a small business
incubator,” MacLellan said, “or it
could be just a spot to rent out for
meetings and events.”
Those comments, however, are
just preliminary thoughts,
MacLellan said, and no formal
council discussions have taken
place.
MacLellan says the board is not
able to officially release the
appraised value of the property until
the end of the school year, so
negotiations will not begin at least
until that time.
County denied ODRAP
Continued from page 1
decision to be reviewed by a judge
are the same ones now asking for a
judge’s review.
“We were not given an
opportunity to discuss it at that
point,” MacLellan said. “It was
already finalized.”
Goderich’s John Grace said he
found the ongoing discussion
“puzzling” saying that at the time
the decision was made, both sides
agreed and understood the decision
the way it was written, only to have
an appeal launched a few weeks
down the road.
Bluewater’s Bill Dowson agreed,
saying he was blindsided by the flip-
flop. He said he had heard reports of
the reduction in the number of
councillors in the media, only to
have it reversed after a legal opinion
had been received.
Central Huron Mayor Jim Ginn
said that whether or not Huron
County Council decided to “oppose”
the appeal, it didn’t change anything
as far as the courts are concerned.
“The appeal’s going to go ahead,”
Ginn told council. “The wheels are
in motion and will not be turning
back. It’s out of county council’s
hands and in the hands of the courts
now.”
Ginn said that the time for Huron
County Council to discuss the issue
has come and gone and that it should
have been dealt with before the 2010
election.
“We’ve lost the ability to make
that decision,” Ginn said. “I don’t
care if the resolution passes or not,
it’s not going to change anything.”
Shewfelt, however, disagreed,
saying that getting the interpretation
of the bylaw right was paramount in
his books and where the appeal
stands is crucial.
“If it means anything or if it
doesn’t, it means a lot to me,”
Shewfelt said.
A second motion was then
proposed by Grace, which passed,
but essentially wasn’t necessary,
stating that Huron County would
cover the costs of defending its
bylaw against the current appeal of
Central Huron and Huron East.
Councillor Paul Klopp said that
under the normal process Huron
County would defend its bylaw
against a lawsuit, to which Adams
said that Huron County would.
Vincent said he was disheartened
by the amount of money being spent
on the appeal process, but realized
there was nothing he could do about
it.
“I’m dismayed that we’re paying
all of these legal bills,” Vincent said.
County Council
could see changes
Huron Eastexpresses interest
in school property
Taking aim
Several members of the Brussels Cadets gathered at the Brussels Legion on Saturday for
zone shoot team practice. Greg Ward, front, Murray Tate, centre, and Mitchell Ward, back,
were all on the ground taking aim, as well as direction from Lieutenant Richard Miller to
master their shooting skills. (Vicky Bremner photo)
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen