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The Citizen, 2009-06-11, Page 18A delegation of Wingham land- lords was back at North Huron coun- cil June 1, with information they believed would help their case. At issue is the change to a bylaw for water and sewer rates, which council believes is similar to the one adopted by municipalities around them. The bylaw proposes that land- lords would be responsible for cov- ering the costs of vacant units, and for collecting the cost for sewer and water from tenants. North Huron council passed all but one of the portions of the bylaw at the May 19 meeting. The final por- tion was regarding the adoption of a policy whereby vacant units would be billed the minimum, which is the current practice. Speaking for the delegation Carl Mowbray said that they had visited a number of other municipalities to see how they handled the billing. “The only common thing we found was that costs have skyrocketed. Wingham is in the ballpark with oth- ers on this.” However, other issues are “all over the plate,” said Mowbray. Regarding collection, he said, some municipal- ities bill the tenants, some the land- lords. “So we believed that the only way to (get an answer) was to find out what the Municipal Act states and if others have settled. And we found one.” Mowbray explained that legal action had been taken against a deci- sion in Penetanguishene to change the billing for tenants to the land- lords. “The justice ruled that the town is responsible for utilities and service and the tenant is the con- sumer. So if there’s no consumer, there’s no charge. The bylaws were quashed and the costs were paid by the town.” Mowbray said with this informa- tion the group then felt the question to be answered was whether North Huron council had the right to do what they were proposing. “We believe you don’t, but if you have information stating otherwise we’d like to see it.” He then presented the landlords’ recommendations to council. The first was that after 30 days from writ- ten notice of a unit’s vacancy the township suspend charges until the unit is occupied. Second, they sug- gested that the township continue to collect sewer and water from the ten- ant. And finally, the landlords agreed to pay the $20 per month per build- ing water and sewer capital charge. “Understand that this information is not in any way a threat. We just want to tell you want’s going on out there.” Council however questioned how old the ruling was. Mowbray said it was done in 1998. Clerk-administrator Kriss Snell said that it was made under the Public Utilities Act and that there have been changes to the Municipal Act since. “The section was added as a result of the Penetanguishene rul- ing as far as I know,” said Snell. “There have been a tremendous amount of changes in both the Public Utilities and the Municipal Act.” Council agreed to look over all the information. It was noted that there had been no comment from Blyth landlords. PAGE 18. THE CITIZEN,THURSDAY, JUNE 11, 2009. Wingham landords make return visit to council Ministry raises issue over drain clean outMorris-Turnberry councillorsdelayed accepting the engineer’s report for clean out of the McCutcheon drain near Belgrave, after a last-minute objection from Fisheries and Oceans Canada. The letter was faxed to council late on June 2, the day of the meeting, and was so late that engineer Bill Dietrich of Dietrich Engineering Limited had not see it when he arrived at the meeting to make his presentation to council and several landowners who are involved. “This never ends,” said an exas- perated Dietrich, explaining that he’s held several meetings with officials from Fisheries and Oceans and thought he had dealt with all of their concerns in his report. “This is what puts the engineering costs (on drains) way up,” said mayor Dorothy Kelly. In his letter Dave Balint, senior habitat biologist said that species-at- risk mapping indicated the wavy- rayed lampmussel and the rainbow mussel “are believed to inhabit the watershed in proximity to the site”. He warned that the wavy-rayed lampmussel is listed as an endan- gered species and it’s unlawful toharm or kill individual mussels or todestroy their critical habitat. Balint called for a staged cleanoutof the drain, with one area to be left alone for a year to see if natural water currents would clean it out. Dietrich took some time to study the letter while council went ahead with other business and when he rejoined the meeting said “Everything he’s talking about is already in the report.” However he agreed that it mightbe wise to postpone acceptance ofthe report until he could work outacceptable wording with Balint toassure him that the work he requested was going to be carried out. “The concern is if we approve it (the drainage report) and Fisheries and Oceans gets involved and drives up the costs,” said deputy-mayor Jim Nelemans, pointing to the problem of the Gregory Municipal Drain in Turnberry ward where changes required to meet the ministry’srequirements drove up engineeringcosts and left landowners fumingwhen they got a higher-than-expect-ed bill.Council hopes to be able to acceptthe revised report at its June 16meeting. Stretching Lesley Walker-Fitzpatrick, right, was at Grey Central Public School on behalf of the Foundation for Education Perth- Huron, to lead the Grade 3/4s in an Artitudes workshop, Introduction to Dance. From left: Claire Hoover, Emily Brubacher, Sarah Strome and Alexandria Martin. (Shawn Loughlin photo) 404 Queen St., Blyth 519-523-4792 541 Turnberry St., Brussels 519-887-9114 We have lots of books & DVDs available at... The Citizen Spring Fix-Up Time STEP-BY-STEP OUTDOOR STONEWORK More than 20 easy-to-build projects for walls, arches, patios, paths, steps, rock- eries, fountains, seats and stables, sundials and bird baths. Tips on estimating costs, selecting tools and more. $21.95 STONE PRIMER This large-format book, filled with colour photographs, provides ideas and tech- niques for incorporating stone in and around your home. 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Tips on how to clean the kitchen, bath, laundry, walls and carpets. $14.95 ATTICS, DORMERS AND SKYLIGHTS From the editors of Fine Homebuilding comes this book on how to expand your attic to make it usable space. Information on everything from adding a second story to adding a skylight to creating a bath- room in the attic. $25.95 DECKSCAPING Suggestions for trellises, arbours, planters,plants, vines and furniture to enhance your outdoor liv- ingroom. 160 pages of ideas. $29.95 By Keith RoulstonThe Citizen County wants bridge solution County council at its June 3 meet- ing is going to try once more to get the railway to co-operate on a solu- tion to the bridge problem on County Road 13 south of Clinton. Referring to it as “the truck-eating bridge”, Central Huron’s Bert Dykstra, said the recent fire on the railroad bridge crossing at the Bayfield River might be a good opportunity to contact the railroad and express concerns. In January an issue was raised about changing the height restric- tion on the bridge created by the overpass. Information from public works indicated that the first official correspondence regarding the bridge, occurred in October 1991. At that time the OPP had investi- gated six incidents where a tractor/trailer had become lodged under the bridge. The OPP requested signage be considered with advance notifica- tion being given at Hwy. 21. However, despite these steps being taken, trucks continued to hit the bridge. In 2001 the county applied for funding to remove the bridge and create a level crossing but was turned down. By Bonnie Gropp The Citizen By Bonnie Gropp The Citizen 1. Eat well. 2. Stairwell. Just two things you can do to reduce your risk of cancer. Learn more about healthy lifestyle choices. Call the Canadian Cancer Society Cancer Information Service at 1 888 939-3333 or visit www.cancer.ca.