The Citizen, 1985-10-23, Page 7Charts explaining the cost breakdown of supporting a new swimming pool for Brussels were on display at a
public meeting held October 10 at the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre.
Meeting airs swimming pool issue
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TILE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 23, 1985. PAGE 7.
Continued from page 6
budget of $19,000, of which a
grant of $6000 has been budget-
ed for operation of the pool.
Brussels will contribute $8000 to
the overall budget but a provin-
cial grant of $6000 will bring the
net cost down to only $2000. Grey
will contribute $7000 but will
receive a grant of $3500 for a net
cost of $3500. Morris will pay
$4000 and after a $2000 grant
will have a net cost of $2000.
However, he pointed out, the
cost of the pool is less than one
third of this amount.
Mr. Mutterpointed out that
the actual cost of operating the
pool to Brussels would amount to
$631 per year and on a $500 tax
bill this would mean residents
would pay only $1.50 per year
extra for pool maintenance. Mr.
Mutter said that before the Lions
Club went ahead with the project
it had done a sampling of public
opinion in all three municipali-
ties to see how many people were
in favour of paying the operating
deficit on their taxes.
In Morris, 165 people were
surveyed with 130 in favour. All
26 people surveyed in Belgrave
were in favour and 32 of 33
surveyed in Walton were in
favour. Of 200 people surveyed
in Grey township, 195 said they
were in favour while the poorest
result came in Brussels itself
where of 187 people polled, 160
were in favour. In total, he said,
88.9 per cent of the people polled
were in favour of paying the
operating costs of the pool out of
their taxes.
This survey became a target of
opponents when they finally
presented their case at the
meeting. Sue Gowing made a
short presentation for the "Con-
cerned Citizens" hitting on the
basic complaints that arose
again and again later in the
question period. She questioned
the accuracy of the survey, citing
examples of people who were not
contacted by the surveyors who
were opposed to the idea of pool
costs being added to the tax bill.
She said she had heard Mr.
Mutter's argument, that the pool
would help bring more business
to the village, before: when the
sewers were put in, when the
main street was painted and
when the new dam was proposed
and sofar she hadn't seen any
new business. In fact, she said,
there was fewer businesses on
main street than before. "Busi-
ness will improve when farmers
get money," she said.
She wondered, if the Lions had
been living up to their motto "w(
serve" why it had taken this
long, until the pool was half
finished, for there to be a public
meeting on the issue. People
would have liked to have had
input, not only on the tax issue
remained quiet throughout).
Delores Wheeler said that the
catering group, which has contri-
buted $51,500 between 1981 and
1985 to prevent the tax payers
from having to pick up a deficit on
operation of the Brussels Morris
and Grey Community Centre,
would not let its money be used to
go toward pool expenses. She
claimed that the wives of many of
the men on the pool committee
did not contribute pies to helping
the catering group raise its
money. Mr. Pettapiece said that
under the recreation agreement
the catering group could direct
its money wherever it saw fit.
She too attacked the validity of
the survey saying that a quickly
conducted survey by opponents _
of being taxed for the pool deficit
showed just the opposite results.
Considerable time was spent
discussing the validity of each of
the surveys during the rest of the
long meeting.
Herb Stretton worried that the
estimated cost of running the
pool might be just the thin edge
of the wedge which would mean
much higher expenditures in the
future. When he had been
involved in building the medical
clinic, he said, the group had
paid off the entire cost and raised
a surplus before turning the
clinic over.
Max Demaray said that the
figures per tax bill looked
attractive for Brussels (a total
recreation cost of $4.50 per year
on a $500 tax bill) but taxes were
generally higlier in the town-
ships so a Grey taxpayer with a
$1000 tax bill would pay six
dollars and one with a $2000 tax
bill would pay more again.
Dave Boynton pointed out that
under the new recreation plan
taxes will rise anyway, even if '
there wasn't a pool since two
thirds of the bill is for other
recreation.
Mr. Pettapiece said his big-
gest concern over the whole
controversy is what it has done to
the community, setting people
against each other. Betty
Graber, Brussels councillor said
that although council had receiv-
ed a lot of flack at the meeting, "I
had nobody come and see me and
say this pool was a screwy idea".
The general agreement seem-
ed to be that nobody disagreed
with the idea of having apool,
they were just angry with the
idea of picking up the operating
costs and angry at the lack of
communications earlier in the
planning process.
The meeting ambled on for
hours letting people get anger off
their chests but with little chance
of resolving anything since, as
Councillor Wheeler said, the
pool is already well in progress
Continued on page 32
but on the location of the pool and
other decisions, she said.
"The Lions don't want to pay
the deficit but neither do the
taxpayers," she concluded. "If
the Lions want to have a baby
then have a baby but don't leave
it for us to raise."
Question period showed the
vehemence of the opposition in
some parts of the audience of
150-200 present (most of whom