Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2011-08-18, Page 1CitizenTh e $1.25 GST included Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, August 18, 2011 Volume 27 No. 32 RESEARCH - Pg. 10Goderich man beginsWorld War I book ELECTION - Pg. 11PC candidate opensoffice in BlythSPORTS- Pg. 8Brussels teen named MVPon national champion teamPublications Mail Agreement No. 40050141 Return Undeliverable Items to North Huron Publishing Company Inc., P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, ON N0G 1H0INSIDE THIS WEEK: Motocross returns to Walton Auburn playground approved by council Brussels Build holds first meeting Breaking ground Ground was finally broken on the Habitat for Humanity project on Sports Drive in Brussels last Saturday morning with the family of the late Henry Exel doing the honours. It had long been a dream of Exel for Habitat for Humanity to come to Brussels and due to his untimely death last year, he was not able to see his dream come to fruition, but the project has been dedicated to him by several of those involved. The project also received several donations on Saturday, including $5,000 from the Brussels Optimists, $10,000 from the Brussels Community Trust and an amount that has yet to be determined from the Brussels Lions. Exel’s family and friends were asked to break ground on the project. From left: Nancy Lammers, Eileen Exel, Marg Exel, Gerry Exel, Malinda Exel and Sharon Good. (Aislinn Bremner photo) Central Huron Council officially accepted the tender of Little Tykes Equipment from Playpower LT Canada Inc. for the new playground equipment in Auburn. After receiving a $25,000 Trillium grant earlier this year, Councillor Marg Anderson reported to the rest of council that at the time of the August 8 meeting, the fundraising committee was just short of its goal of $41,000. Anderson said after taking the $25,000 into account the final fundraising figure was sitting around $39,000 leaving the committee under $2,000 short of its ultimate goal. Council received three playground equipment tenders and while the accepted tender was not the lowest one, Anderson said the three tenders were all very different, with each providing a different amount of For the second year in a row the line for the Walton Parts Canada TransCan may be a little shorter on sign-in day, but racers have been waiting for days at the Blyth Campground. As a means of cutting down on lines and wait times on Tuesday, August 14, when the campground at Walton opens, Walton Raceway owner Chris Lee started a camping weekend at the Blyth Campgrounds to limit the congestion caused by the thousands of people lining up to get into the event. “It worked very well last year,” he said. “We’re making some changes and tweaks to the system, but we’re sticking with the same idea.” Riders at the campgrounds pre- registered for their ‘staging’ numbers on Monday which determined the order in which they left the Blyth Campground and made their way down Blyth Road to Walton for their camping spot there. Following the meetings and distribution of rider passes that happened on Tuesday, riders began preparing for their races which, depending on age, may have started as early as Wednesday afternoon after a Wednesday morning practice. One of the best classes according to Lee, the intermediate class, took place Wednesday afternoon. “In this case, one of the first races can be the best,” Lee said, stating that this class has many riders who may turn professional soon. Races will happen through the week and weekend until Sunday, August 21 when the King of Walton will be crowned. Lee said that this year’s competition is particularly exciting as Julien Bill, who clinched the world title nearly two weeks ago, will be competing for top honours at the tournament. Events run from as early as 7:20 a.m. through 7 p.m. depending on the day with the Amateur awards being presented on Saturday, August 20 and the final awards ceremony being held at 4:40 p.m. on Sunday. For more information and a full schedule of events, visit waltontranscan.ca A group of motivated citizens and local business people are hoping to revitalize Brussels businesses and the village’s main street. The Brussels Build Group made a presentation to more than 20 stakeholders on Monday, Aug. 15 at Cinnamon Jim’s restaurant. The group cited several reasons that Brussels is facing economic problems including the fact that the village is smaller now than it was a century ago and has a higher business vacancy rate than it did 50 years ago. The primary cause for these problems, according to Kathy Nichol, a business owner and one of the leaders of the group, is a form of wanderlust. With the advent of automobiles and the internet, Nichol said, people have been doing their shopping and business away from towns. The major problems the group hopes to address is the fact that residents have lower income, few trained tradespeople, the deterioration of their building stock and a lack of entrepreneurs. Through the tasks they set, including rebranding the village, refreshing the streetscape and recruiting entrepreneurs, the group hopes to breathe life into both the downtown Brussels core and businesses in and surrounding the village. Their first jobs are getting rebranding initiatives up and running and, through a program at the Heritage Resource Centre at the University of Waterloo, the group hopes to begin addressing their problems. “First we need a plan, a vision to present to the program so we can get the University’s involvement,” Huron East Economic Development Officer Jan Hawley said. Nichol said that one of the next steps would to be work with Huron East and the Huron County Planning Department to create a community improvement incentive plan. “We would be looking at allowances and tax breaks for redevelopment of the downtown and for business development and creation,” she said. “There would be financial support for improving façades of storefronts and for building and business expansions,” Hawley said. Bob Richmond, a member of the group and Brussels business owner, said that there were several major issues that needed to be addressed before Brussels can begin reviving its downtown, the biggest of which is the negative attitude people address it with. “I’m guilty of this myself, but for 10 years, people have been talking negatively about the main street,” he said. “We need to start thinking about main street in a positive light.” Richmond also said the community needs the support of the local bank if they are going to proceed. Brussels will also be celebrating its 140th anniversary in 2012 and, according to Richmond, that could be a good catalyst or focal point for the changes. Suggestions that came from the floor included creating some kind of tourist attraction in Brussels and creating better connections amongBrussels community groups. The end of the presentation asked the group and the community of Brussels one final question; “Does Brussels have the gumption to re- invent itself?” The group plans on first creating awareness through a barbecue to be hosted in Brussels on September 25. Through the barbecue and similar initiatives, the group wants to know what Brussels residents want as far as their downtown is concerned and begin trying to address those needs. By Denny Scott The Citizen By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Continued on page 23 The Blyth Festival explores the world of fringe theatre with two works that garnered rave reviews at last year’s SummerWorks. The Hanging of Francoise Laurent a drama written by Kate Cayley, opens Aug. 23 and runs until Aug. 27 and Miss Caledonia, a light-hearted comedy written by Melody A. Johnson, opens Sept. 1 and runs until Sept. 3. Both productions play in the matinee Phillips Studio – the Blyth Festival black-box space – located at 209 Dinsley Street in Blyth. The Hanging of Francoise Laurent, A Stranger Theatre Company production is set in Montreal in 1751. Francoise Laurent is sentenced to death for stealing a Studio series starts Continued on page 23