HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2010-05-20, Page 18I’ve been a little behind in inform-
ing the village residents of our newer
neighbours. It has been several
months now since newlyweds,
Aaron and Emily Dykstra took pos-
session of the small farm at the
northwest edge of the village, for-
merly owned by Doug and Shirley
Bell. Next door to them in Murray
Lyon’s former home, Michael Neeb
now resides. Michael farms with his
father, Gerald. The elder Neebs live
on Allboro Line, northeast of the vil-
lage, making it a short drive for
Michael to work.
Tom and Diane Codyre’s little
house next to the former general
store now owned by Raleigh and Pat
Glazier. Raleigh is the son of Bill
and Myrtle Glazier and was raised in
Clinton. Pat hails from the Lucknow
area. The couple, who have two chil-
dren, have lived in Kitchener since
their marriage.
I trust you will take the opportuni-
ty to make these newcomers com-
fortable in our midst. They will soon
come to appreciate our little piece of
Eden.
Going out for afternoon tea was
something our mothers and grand-
mothers did regularly. For about a
generation these social affairs lapsed
in popularity. Lives changed and
perhaps we thought we were too
busy for what may have been viewed
as a quaint old tradition. However in
just the last few years, one hears
again about afternoon teas.
I was invited to tea one afternoon
last week and realized we can all
benefit from taking part of an after-
noon to socialize and leave the world
behind. That afternoon those gath-
ered in the Brussels United Church
basement were entertained by The
Country Notes, a barbershop quartet
from London.
PAGE 18. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, MAY 20, 2010.
Fire coverage meeting draws 350 people
In a democratic society, every citi-
zen or taxpayer has the right to sit in
on meetings of their local council.
Not many ever exercise that right.
However on Monday, May 8 some
350 persons turned out at the
Londesborough Community Hall
where the council for the
Municipality of Central Huron held
its meeting. Citizens also had the
right to question those politicians
regarding matters that council is
dealing with that affected them per-
sonally.
Council members may have been
surprised to see such a large crowd
assembled to learn about changes
being considered to fire and first-
response coverage to areas of the
former Hullett Township. Many folk
never made it into the hall, being
forced to sit in stairways or wait out-
side.
It was ironic to think we were
there to discuss fire coverage in a
hall where the fire code only allowed
88 persons legally.
When the time of a public meeting
is posted, can it properly be started
early as was the case that evening?
During presentations, Reeve Dykstra
seemed more interested in the length
of time being taken for each presen-
tation than in listening to the con-
cerns expressed.
In an early comment, Dykstra
remarked that this public meeting
had been called to address the issue
which had been making the rounds
in the coffee shops and to put some
misconceptions to rest.
Seemingly, the Municipality of
North Huron has requested an
increase in money from the
Municipality of Central Huron to
allow the Blyth Fire Department,
which is in their municipality, to
respond to fire and medical emer-
gencies in Hullett Township. The
Central Huron Council is question-
ing this increase. They seem to be
putting lives at risk when Blyth can
respond to the affected area in short-
er time than can the Clinton volun-
teers. This response time is a big
issue for the residents.
Nine persons had requested time
on the agenda that evening to voice
the concerns of all affected taxpay-
ers. Jacqui LaPorte spoke on behalf
of the Auburn area, Keith Allen rep-
resented Londesborough, Ken Scott
offered a petition from residents
along the Hullett-McKillop Line and
Rick Elliott addressed the insurance
aspect of the changes.
Business persons explained their
concerns as well. Wayne
McClinchey, Heather VanDorp,
Franklin Snell and Steven Sparling,
whose firm, by reason of its product,
stresses safety and emergency
response. Wayne Black from the
Huron County Federation of
Agriculture spoke on behalf of the
farmers of the affected area, the
northern section of Hullett
Township.
It was noted by Heather that, in
spite of amalgamation, residents of
this area tend to have more ties to
Blyth than to Clinton. Yet they are
paying for a new fire hall, a pro-
posed new arena and REACH in
Clinton that they may never use. So
it seems that dollars should be found
for fire protection in Hullett
Township. Steve Sparling reiterated
that the solution should be about the
residents and their safety. Wayne
Black was only one of the speakers
who stressed that a common sense
attitude should prevail. The farmers
he represented asked that the closest
fire department respond to a call.
Three larger businesses from the
affected area are paying taxes to
Central Huron and now risk losing
timely fire and first response med-
ical service and paying more fire
insurance as a result. One wonder if
these businesses might consider
closing their locations; each of them
has a branch (or several) in other
areas.
Few dollar figures were mentioned
by the public speakers for, as they
stated, figures can be skewed to any-
one’s benefit.
All council members responded to
the presentations, briefly. Only one
of them felt comfortable enough to
step down to the microphone to offer
a more length reply. Steve Cooke,
Fire Chief for the Clinton Fire
Department was also in attendance
and offered comments. All recog-
nized that the Hullett residents
deserve the best coverage available
but were noncommittal in how they
will vote.
Moreover, Central Huron Council
gave the impression that the North
Huron council is not being co-opera-
tive. They stated that because they
have been unsuccessful in reaching a
mutual agreement a consultant has
been hired to offer mediation.
They claim a number of meetings
have been held and yet North Huron
has not clarified the reason for the
large increase. They say they refuse
to hand over a cheque to North
Huron without questioning why. The
monetary report offered by CAO
Kevin McIlwain clarified little that
evening for it could be seen by only
a handful of people in the front rows
and he could not be heard by many
more.
One wonders if council is passing
the buck, so to speak. More than
once, council members stated that no
decision has been made. They gave
the impression the decision is a long
and grueling process. It was obvious
that those who attended the meeting
intend to talk more about this issue
to them and amongst themselves to
make council accountable.
Colour your world
Hullett Central Public School’s spring operetta, entitled Colours, was in training on Monday,
with students holding the dress rehearsal on Monday morning. In the foreground, with a back-
ground full of soon-to-be crayons, are, from left: Brittney-Lee Lowey, Raquel Ormeno, Emily
Bergsma, Valerie Westerhout, Rebecca-Lynn Lowey and Rebecca Airdrie-Forrest. (Aislinn Bremner
photo)
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