HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1967-06-29, Page 10Page 10—Clinton News-Record—Thurs., June 29, 19671 At Former Centralia Air Base
CanadaCentralia's Fly-In Industrial Park First of Its Kind in
Fly Right To The Door Quiet, Comfortable Residential Area
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Centralia Air Base, where
thousands of fledgling Cana
dian and NATO airmen once
earned their wings, will soon
assume a new role as Can
ada’s only “fly-in” industrial
park, where Ontario .workers
will earn weekly pay checks.
Deserted hangars will hum
to the wheels of industry and
abandoned homes will echo to
the voices pf thousands of
employees, executives, stu
dents, and their families -who
will soon populate the former
RCAF station.
The 767-acre Centralia In
dustrial Park is an economic
opportunity created for busi
ness by changing military re
quirements. It was purchased
by the Ontario government
for $600,000 and will be man
aged by the /Ontario Develop
ment Corporation, a Crown
agency.
The industrial park, located
25 miles north of London on
the fringe of Ontario’s main
industrial corridor, comprises
80 buildings of various sizes,
ranging from seven major
buildings of some 40,000
square feet each to indus
trial- and office areas of
10,000 square feet or less,
The land and buildings will be
leased at competitive prices.
The industrial park also has
a large residential area, with
363 housing units available to
industry for their employees
on a rental basis.
The nucleus of a mainten
ance staff has already been
hired and rehabilitation work
is under way on several of
the buildings, preparing them
for industry.
The first industry in Cen
tralia Industrial park is ex
pected to be announced short
ly-
A school and another large
building is now being sur-
veyed qs .a possible site for
an educational facility to., bl?
used by the Department of
Agriculture and. Food,
Some 3,QQ0 brochures, pro
moting the property as an
industrial site, have been sent
to businessmen across Can
ada.
The Ontario Development
Corporation in its promotion
is stressing the park’s three
hard surfaced runways, where
the “fly-in” executive can
taxi to the door of any ope
of the major industrial build
ings.
Added inducements are the
numerous recreational facili
ties on the site, including
a hockey arena, curling rink,
swimming pool, gymnasium,
bowling alleys, arid, several
playing fields.
It is estimated that Cen
tralia Industrial Park will ul
timately proyide 2,000 jobs,
with an $11,000,000 arinual
payroll when if is fully op
erational.
a
No longer in use, Centralia’s three hard sur-
' face runways are being promoted as ideal for the
“fly-in” executive, who can taxi /to the door of any
one of the major industrial buildings in the park.
Pictured here is the station’s observation tower and
one of the adjacent'hangars to be revamped for in
dustry.
Only a few Canadian Forces families are left at
Centralia and streets are quiet under the summer
sun. The residential area comprises 363 housing
(By R. S. ATKEY)
Through County Engineer
James W, Britnell, Huron
County Road Committee (Del
bert Geiger, Hay Township,
chairman), presented a progress
report of road construction to
Huron County Council in Gode
rich last week.
’ Work is now well underway
on the 1967 program. Tenders
were called and the following
contracts have been awarded:
half-ton truck, Baird Motors,
Goderich, $1,984.50; calcium
chloride, Miller Paving, $49.55
per ton; ready-mix concrete,
Huron Concrete Supply $14.90
per cubic yard; pavement
marking, Domtrec Sales Ltd.,
$7,450; weed spray chemicals,
Niagara Brand Chemicals,,var
ious prices; corrugated metal
pipe, Hearn Wholesale Ltd.,
Clinton, $16,190.28; 87,000 tons
granular “B” . gravel, George
Radford/Blyth, $37,410; 37,000
tons granular “A” gravel,
George Radford, $25,160; 45,-
000 tons granular “B” gravel,
George Radford, $36,000; 22,500
tons granular “A” gravel,
George Radford, $29,250; 9;400
^tons hot mix paving, Lavis Con
tracting, Clinton, $60,678; pre
stressed concrete beams, Schell
Industries, $14,551; 34,000 cubic
yards maintenance gravel, Sau-
geen Spraying, $31,960; 33,000
cubic yards maintenance gravel,
.Lavis Contracting, $29,700;-.21,-
000 cubic yards maintenance
gravel, George Radford, $20,370.
The report continued:- “The
maintenance gravel operation
is now completed and we are
presently applying , calcium
chloride as fast as oui* supplier
can provide the material. The
cost of maintenance gravel, cal-
cium chloride, and, in fact, all
other items, is continuing to in
crease arid your committee
found difficulty in holding the
mill rate the same as 1966, yet
provide the same or even higher
service to the road system.
“Work is proceeding on sche
dule on the grading of Huron
County Road 27 from conces
sion 8-9, Township of Ashfield,
to Lucknow; and paving is un
derway on County Road 27
between Nile and concession
8-9.
The concrete culvert on Hur
on County Road 31 south of
Hillsgreen is now complete and
work is well under way on the
replacement of the ( Kinburn
bridge on County Road 15 in
the Township of Hullett.
“The tptal cost of winter
control for the 1966-67 winter
is now complete and we find
that it is ten percent higher
than estimated mainly duetto
the necessity to pay higher'
hourly rate to rented equip
ment .and to pay stand-by time.
It may be necessary to cur
tail slightly some maintenance
operations in order to overcome
this increased cost.
“Pre-engineering and design
are progressing on schedule on
our three 'Development Road
designations, and it is hoped
that the Ontario Department of
Highways will be able to desig
nate one of these projects for
construction late in 1967.
“A by-law to authorize the
newly-formed Maitland Tele
services Limited (formed by the
amalgamation of the Brussels
and Blyth Municipal Systems)
to erect and maintain poles, etc.
on County Roads, has been re
viewed by the committee. Cer-
tain changes from, its original
as submitted have been made.
We recommend that the by-law
be approved in its amended
form.”
The report recalled a news
story' that a tractor and hop
per owned by Donald Gooding,
Parkhill, working on a con
tract of R. H. Jerinison Limited,
Grand Bend, for the Township
of Stanley, had completely de
molished the 106-tfoot span
county bridge bn the township
road between Jots 44 and 45,
Bayfield concession, Township
of Goderich. v
“The township road over
which the truck was travelling,
was a class ‘B’ highway, and
therefore limited to a total
gross weight of 22,000 pounds
under the provisions of the
Highway Traffic Act. We .are
led to believe that the total
gross1 weight of the vehicle
which demolished the bridge
was in excess of 50,000 pounds.
“The .Ontario Department of
Highways has erected a temp
orary, bailey bridge at this lo
cation, since our budget would
not permit the replacement of
the structure this year.We had
originally proposed to replace
the structure in 1968 and will
Huron County Road Department
Stressing More Safely Precautions
(By R. S. ATKEY)
County Engineer James W.
Britnell informed Huron County
Council in Goderich last week
that additional safety precau
tions and methods have been
and are being adopted by the
carry out with this program.
“We have instructed our sol
icitors, Donnelly and Murphy,
Goderich, to take action against
the truck owner to recover our
allowable share of the cost in
this work. (It is understood that
a counter claim has been filed
by the truck owner.)”
County Roads organization to
minimize the danger qf another
fatal accident on the County
Roads System similar to the
one that occurred on County
Road 27 on May 15 when John
Taylor Creighton, 65-year-old
flagman, Blyth, was fatally in
jured.
Mr. Britnell described the
difficulties involved in select
ing personnel for' such a job
as flagman, but stated that ac
tion had been taken to pre
vent a recurrence by distribut
ing safety memoranda to all
employees and urging them to
units on 135 acres. Houses have two,, three, or four
bedrooms and are available to industry for their
employees on a rental basis.
z wear proper safety equipment
at all times. The human factor
was important, he pointed out.
“The Huron County High
ways Department has always
attempted to provide such safe
ty equipment and instructions
required to protect the employ
ees and is continuing this prac
tice,” Mr. Britnell stated. “We
have initiated a
tures sponsored
struction Safety
The Engineer
would appear from information
gathered by all investigations
(Ontario Department of Lab
our, Construction Safety As
sociation, Workmen’s Compen
sation Board, and Ontario Pro
vincial Police) that the flag
man did not heed the instruc
tions of his foreman and in
series of lec-
by the Con-
Association.”
reported: “It
stead of remaining 300 feet
away from the side of the
actual work, he moved down
closer to the project and step
ped backwards into the path
of the motor grader which was
backing up at the time.”
Mr. Britnell read to Council
the verdict of the coroner’s
jury at an inquest held in the
Court House, Goderich, June 16:
“Road grader driven by Mr.
G. Miller passing over the body
causing multiple injuries to ab
domen. We, the jury, attach
no blame to the grader opera
tor, Mr. Gordon Miller. We, the
jury, recommend that the flag
men be fully-trained in this
type of work and also be re
quired to have1' a physical ex
amination before they are em
ployed.”
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NOXIOUS
WEEDS
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN to
all Property Owners in Huron County An original watercolor by William Roberts. Milton, Ont.
■I
In accordance with the Weed. Control Act, R.S.O.
1960, Sec. 3, 13, *19, and amendments thereto; that unless
noxious weeds growing on their lands are destroyed by
June 30th and throughout the season, the Municipality
may enter upon the said lands and have the weeds des
troyed, charging the costs against the land in taxes, as
feet out in the Act.
X
The oo-operation of all citizens is solicited,
ALEX CHESNEY, Weed Inspector*
County of Huron.
A resourceful land: a resourceful people.
The Canada that Erikson and Cabot found
seamed too big to encompass. A rich and.
teaming land* to be sure; but what to
do with it? "Explore it/' said Radisson
and Hudson and .Mackenzie. "Settle it/*
said Cartier ahd Champlain and Selkirk.
"Unite it," Said Macdonald and Van HOrne
and Tupper. "Populate it/* said the
Frenchmen and Englishmen, Scotsmen
and Irishmen, German and Norwegian
and Ukrainian and Japanese and Polish
and Italian and Dutchmen/
And we diet
And the land responded with Wheat
and lumber* fur and fislx gas and oil*
Copper and silver and gold. ( ,
And the land responded with space and
sunrise and northern lights; and pearly
dusks and wild geese flying; And the land
was laughing with hunters' moons
and crackling midnights
and soft stray snowfalls floating down ■
dn the pussywillows.
Ahd gradually we took the riotous fancy
Of the maple leaf ahd the Sober industry
of the beaver and said to the world*
"Here's what we do With it/*
"We make it Canada/*
Happy birthday, Us.
t
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25*6b UNION GAS
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