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$1.25 GST included Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, June 7, 2012
Volume 28 No. 23
COUNCIL - Pg. 13MacGowan returns toreplace Conn THEATRE - Pg. 23 Wingham HeritageTheatre closes its doorsSPORTS- Pg. 8Brewers lose to Winghamin rain-shortened gamePublications Mail Agreement No. 40050141 Return Undeliverable Items to North Huron Publishing Company Inc., P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, ON N0G 1H0INSIDE THIS WEEK:
Central Huron wants a seat at fire negotiation table
No, we will not let you go
Sure it looks like enprisonment, but it was all in good fun as Landyn, left, and Ayden Hallahan shared a few bounces in the
inflatable castle erected at East Wawanosh Public School on Saturday. The school held its celebration of education to honour the
history of the school and to show its students a good time in its final year. (Vicky Bremner photo)
Fire
meeting
proposed
Central Huron Mayor Jim Ginn
feels his municipality could face
rising costs as a result of Morris-
Turnberry starting its own fire
department, so he thinks Central
Huron deserves a spot at the
negotiating table.
Speaking in response to a letter to
council on behalf of the residents of
Auburn from Jacqui Laporte and Jim
Schneider, Ginn said he had heard
North Huron Reeve Neil Vincent on
the radio saying that if Morris-
Turnberry was to pull out of the
current fire agreement, costs would
rise for Central Huron and Ashfield-
Colborne-Wawanosh (ACW).
“We need a new approach to this,”
Ginn said. “Perhaps Central Huron
and ACW should join with North
Huron and Morris-Turnberry to get a
comprehensive, long-term
agreement hammered out by
everyone.”
Ginn suggested writing a letter to
North Huron saying that Central
Huron would like to be included in
further meetings where the fire
coverage issue is being discussed.
“We should just see what kind of a
response we get,” Ginn said. “We
have to take a different approach to
this.”
Councillor Brian Barnim agreed,
saying that talks should begin as
soon as possible to avoid what
happened two years ago with fire
negotiations, which included a
protest on the town hall steps in
Clinton.
“I think it’s a real good idea to
start it now,” Barnim said. “Last time
it went down to the 13th hour and I
don’t think we want to see that
situation again.
“It will be a long, grueling
process, I can guarantee you that and
I think it should be started sooner
rather than later.”
Councillors consulted Central
Huron Fire Chief Steve Cooke, who
was at the meeting, about the
potential benefits of setting up a
county-wide fire service.
Cooke said the concept had been
nixed by Huron County Council
already, but even if it wasn’t, it
would be a much more expensive
service to provide, he said, with over
a dozen full-time employees.
“It would be very cost-
prohibitive,” said Cooke. “There
would be 12 to 15 full-time staff to
hire and that would be just the start.”
In Laporte and Schneider’s letter,
disappointment was expressed that
the county couldn’t come to an
agreement on county-wide fire
coverage. It was important to the
residents that emergency medical
response be provided to all residents
of the former police village.
“It is important that the emergency
medical response to the village of
Auburn remain consistent,
regardless of which side of Goderich
Street a person is in need,” the letter
stated.
Barnim, who is the council’s
Huron County’s two highest
administrators were relegated to
“non-disciplinary administrative
leave” after a special council
meeting at 4 p.m. on May 29.
Chief Administrative Officer
Larry Adams and Treasurer David
Carey are now on leave after an e-
mail was sent to those in
administration throughout Huron
County and its lower tier
municipalities.
Huron County Warden Bernie
MacLellan, in a call from a
conference in Saskatoon,
Saskatchewan, said the decision was
a personnel matter and so it was
dealt with in closed session, as all
personnel matters are.
Huron County Director of
Planning and Development Scott
Tousaw has been named interim
acting CAO in Adams’ absence.
When both Tousaw and Huron
County Clerk Barb Wilson were
reached for comment, both declined
to comment on the situation.
MacLellan said he couldn’t
comment as to the county’s next
steps in the situation, just that any
personnel matter would be dealt
with in closed session.
The special meeting of Huron
County Council was the first
meeting since council received
consultant George Cuff’s report on
governance late last month.
Cuff’s report was comprised of
three separate reports, one of
which was a private personnel
report for only council members to
see.
North Huron Township Council,
through Chief Administrative
Officer Gary Long, is seeking a
meeting with Morris-Turnberry
Council regarding fire protection
services.
“I contacted my counterpart in
Morris-Turnberry, Nancy Michie
to talk about the possibility of our
two councils getting together to
discuss fire services,” Long said.
“We’re looking at dates late in June.
Councillors decided they would
propose a June 28 meeting to
Morris-Turnberry and debated what
form the meeting should take.
Despite some concerns that the
issues existing between the
municipalities are too complex to
be separated, council declared the
meeting would be only in regards to
fire protection. Another meeting
would then be considered for other
issues.
Deputy-Reeve David Riach said
he was concerned that other issues
would just naturally come up while
discussing fire, but Councillor
Brock Vodden wasn’t convinced.
“I disagree,” he said. “Other facts
are related to it but I don’t think
there are any that are inextricably
related to it. I think fire is enough to
take on during the meeting.”
Councillor Bernie Bailey
By Denny Scott
The Citizen
Continued on page 18
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
CAO, treasurer placed on leave
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
Continued on page 20