HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1969-03-06, Page 1010 Clinton News4R.Gord, Thursday,. March.t 1909
Action in County Council
By :Shirley .J Keller
_Assessing cost higher than expected
A budget of $797,425 was
.adopted by Huron County
Council Frida*, for the
assessment department. The
report submitted by A, D,
Smith, reeve of Turnberry, said
cost was "considerably higher
than the Ontario Department of
Municipal Affairs led us to
believe."
Speaking on behalf of the
budget, assessment
commissioner E. F. Hall said
there was from $40,000 to
$50,000 which the department
of municipal affairs "somehow
forgot about,"
He said council was not
deliberately .misled by the
department but that the
department obviously had no
idea of what it would cost
because the department had "no.
personal experience" in
assessment matters.
' Deputy Reeve
Anson
McKinley ref :Stanley asked if
next year's •budget would be
somewhat lower,
shocked," he said, "to
learn this will cost over $7,000
for every municipality in the
county," "If this will be the ease
from now on, we were a Hanan
sight better off the way we were
be fore.„
"The 'job has not been done
in the past, sir," retorted Hail
who estimated that about
$31,000 would be deleted from
next year's budget if salaries
remain static. "The Act states
that every home will be visited
annually and this 'has not been
done. The records are wholly
inadequate,"
"It depends on the individual
who is ' building a set of
cupboards whether he hires a
carpenter or a nail puller;" said
Hall.
Reeve Roy Pattison,
Start, regional government talks
Frank McFadden, reeve of
Bayfield who chairs the special
committee to study regional
government, reported on a
meeting with J, O. E. Pearson,
co-ordinator of the Regional
Studies Program and S. J.
Clasky, director of the Municipal
Research Branch, Department of
Municipal Affairs.
Although the committee has
accepted an invitation from
Perth County to discuss the
subject of regional government,
no other commitments have
been made, Mr. McFadden said.
To date, discussion has been
general, with the provincial
representatives Pearson and
Clasky both indicating the
province is quite willing to listen
to any proposals on the subject.
Any future legislation would, it
is hoped, be flexible to
incorporate local situations.
McFadden did ask all reeves
and deputy reeves for their
co-operation in a "very
comprehensive study of the
administrative structure both at
the county and the local level."
"The committee believes quite,
sincerely if such a study is
carried out, this information will
form ' the .basis for any
recommendations pertaining to
regional government as it would
Wawanosh, asked Hall if there
was as much "hidden.
assessment;' in the county as
council had been led to believe.
Hall said that, after working
in Huron County for only about
two months, he was convinced
that there has been a great deal
of business assessment
overlooked.
He told Reeve James
Armstrong, Clinton, that a
businessman pays strictly on the
property he occupies and not
the volume of business he
conducts.
Hall told council his
department would assess
properties according to the Act
and 1 assure you, you will hear
about it," said Hall.
Newly appointed directors of
the Children's Aid Hoard are
Jack Alexander, reeve of
Wingham, and Lloyd Hendrick,
deputy reeve of Hay,
apply to the county of Huron,"
McFadden said.
Council approved a budget of
$20,000 for the planning board,
Mervyn Cudmore, Exeter, as
chairman and Anson McKinley,
Stanley, vice chairman.
Municipal Planning
Consultants Co, Ltd. has been
invited to submit an estimate of
the cost of an appraisal of the
county, which would be the first
step to an official plan. One such
appraisal was made in 1967 by
Dryden and Smith Planning
Consultants and the committee
hopes to compare the thoughts
of both consultant firms before
engaging any consultant.
Library. spending to total $145,000
Huron County's share in the
library budget for 1969 will be
$77,500, reported Clarence
`Berry' Boyle, reeve of Exeter
and chairman of the library
committee, at county council's
meeting last Friday.
Total budget is $145,000,
with the province paying the
greatest share of the remaining
Money although a small, qmount
will be received in fines.
A library has been established
once more in Gorrie in the home
of William Strong.
The committee reported
discussion on whether or not .to
continue library service in the
schools since most schools have
excellent libraries of their own.
County Librarian Carolyn Croke
will review the subject and
report to the committee before
the next meeting.
Some library services will be
rendered to Canadian Forces
Base Clinton in the future, the
committee said,
In answer to a question from
Reeve A. D. Smith, Turnberry,
regarding remunerations for
librarians in the smaller centres,
Miss Croke said librarians are
paid according to the size of the
municipality in which the library
is situated, the number of hours
the library is open, the number
Of people served and; in general,
the amount of responsibility the
librarian takes.
Clinton is site of fly control program
Huron County Council last
week endorsed a resolution to
encourage all farm organizations
to promote the need for a
provincially co-ordinated
educational, program to control
the warble fly foster proper use
of systemic insecticides.
A seminar on systemics will
be held in Clinton Legion Hall
March 19 at 1:30 p.m. and
council members were urged to
attend.
The resolution also requests
strict enforcement of regulations
controlling the entry into
Ontario of cattle not treated for
warble fly. A copy of this
resolution will be forwarded to
the proper government agencies.
The reforestation budget has
been approved at $4,500. A
bylaw will be prepared to permit
municipalities in Huron to be
reimbursed for the loss of taxes
in connection with reforestation
plantations. Weed control
budget was set at $13,500.
Grants totalling $4,525 were
approved for various agricultural
associations in the county.
Grants to the various spring and
fall fairs will be based on a
formula of eight percent of the
prize money, with a minimum of
$150. Exceptions are Lucknow,
where the grant is $75, and
Kirkton where the grant is $100.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
To the Editor:
I would appreciate some
space in your newspaper in
which to ask persons who are
alarmed and concerned about
the two bills recently presented
in the Ontario Government, bills
No. 73 and 74, to write to the
local M.Y.P. and protest.
If these two bilis should pass
and become legislation, it will
mean virtually the end of the
humane movement in Ontario as
it now exists. Some 50 years of
work from dedicated people
giving of their time and money
to build a good society to
protect animals from cruelty will
be for naught.
The one bill will compel
shelters to deliver up unclaimed
and unsold animals to be used in
laboratory experiment and the
other bill makes it necessary for
a humane inspector to have a
warrant before investigating
complaints of abuse and cruelty.
At the present time many
animals are saved from further
abuse by the timely
investigations of qualified
inspectors.
A short note to the Hon,
Charles MacNaughton to say ou
oppose the passage of these two
bilis would be greatly
appreciated by the people
working to keep the excellent
humane operation now present
in Ontario,
Mrs. G. Graham
Bayfield, March 1
TO the Editor
The Government of Ontario
has introduced legislation which
will have the effect of destroying
the huntane movetnet t rtt
Ontario as we now know it.
At present, the Ontario
tigai l ne s` Otiety ' has the
authority to investigate
complaints of cruelty and
neglect of animals. The society
employs inspectors throughout
the province to carry out this
task.
The government intends to
limit the authority of these
inspectors in such a way that for
all practical purposes, they will
be helpless. Apart from requiring
all inspectors to obtain special
warrants before making any
investigation, the government is
also proposing to set up a board
to review these officers' actions
"on complaint from the public."
There is no doubt that this
will so intimidate inspectors that
they will be unable to carry out
their job. In addition, the
legislation will force all humane
societies to surrender all
unclaimed animals, not only to
research institutes but to dealers
in animals for research. In other
words, any private animal dealer
operating for profit will have the
tight to enter any shelter and
demand any unclaimed animal.
Even worse, the government
legislation specifically protects
dealers' establishments against
any investigation or inspectioh
by inspectors of the Ontario
Humane Society. Remember,
these are the premises that have
led to so many prosecutions and
convictions for neglect in past
years.
There are over 700 farms in
Ontario where pregnant mares
are kept under inadequate
conditions, deprived of exercise,
deprived of an adequate diet,
and which producecountless
thousands of foals every year,
the majority of which are
weaned at a very tender age and
transported long distances
before being sold. The legislation
will classify these premises as
"research premises" and protect
them against any inspection by
the society.
The Ontario Humane Society
does not release animals alive for
research. Our constitution and
bylaws prohibit this. This clause
of our constitution has been
ratified from time to time, only
as recently as 1967. There seems
little doubt, therefore, that the
Ontario Humane Society will
refuse to comply with the
government legislation requiring
them to surrender these animals.
The only alternative left
would appear to be for the
society to close down its animal
shelters or turn them over to
municipalities for operation as
dog pounds. There are 28
modern shelters in the province
today and a competent force of
uniformed inspectors. This
organization has been built up
over the last 50 years by the
dedicated efforts of countless
thousands of voluntary workers.
It would be a tragedy if the
government by this thoughtless,
ill considered action were to
destroy this organisation.
The research procurement
legislation is a drastic invasion of
civil rights and should be
rejected on these grounds alone.
Everybody who is concerned
with the prevention of cruelty to
animals, who is concerned with
civil right, should protest these
two bilis, 73 and 74, by writing
to their Provincial Member Of
Parliament in Queens Park, or by
registering a protest hi any other
Way.
T. J. Hughes
`Potonto, March 1
wspapers Cres
Ain shone
308 OCT'67
M.P. 55
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