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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times-Advocate, 1966-05-12, Page 1The winning ticket SHDHS addition goes ahead Members of the South Huron District High School Board are proceeding with plans for their new addition despite the recent announcement that CFB Centralia may be leaving this area. Only two members opposed the final vote which called for proceeding with the original plans providing for a total school capacity of 1190. Mel Boyce, the Board's archi- tect told members he had man- aged to negotiate an 'upset' price with the contractor which will greatly reduce the cost. The con- tractor stipulated that he must have a letter of intent from the Board by May 13 if this agree- ment is to be valid. The negotiat- ed price brings the cost of the board chairman K, II, Johns as to whether the Inspector felt more students should be sent to Clinton Mr. Howey said his impression was that the inspector felt the board was building too large an addition. Speaking on the matter later in the evening Mr. Howey stated that the inspector would like to see the number of pupil spots provided for at 1,080 and added, "that was before he knew about C entralia." Principal L. D, Palmer told the board that he had spent ap- proximately four hours with the inspector on this occasion, He stated that the figures on pro- jected enrollment he had given the Board last November were addition to participating muni- cipalities down to close to the $600,000 figure which the Board has approval for, Members voted to proceed with this providing the cost to the Board did not exceed the $000,000 figure, Business Administrator Eu- gene Howey told members that area school inspector Scott had refused to sign the proposal for the addition since the last meet- ing. Mr. Howey stated that Mr. Scott had visited the school after receiving the proposal and ap- peared very disturbed with the projected enrollment figures. He added the inspector had first signed the proposal and then checked the figures and erased his signature. When queried by conservative b e c au s e he had thought about Centralia and what effect this could have, He told members that the work Mr. Boyce has been doing on the addition in reducing costs makes it unneces- sary to go back to the area in- spector for approval as there is no basic change in the original proposal which has already been approved. He told the board he had con- ducted a survey of students of civilian personnel who work at CFB Centralia and found this number to be very small. Mem- bers agreed that the majority of the workers at the base come from old established families and would not leave the area. One other factor for the small number of students from this area Is that Many of the civilian personnel are older people whose families have grown up. In holding the maximum cost down to $600,000 members a- greed that there would be no pos- sibility of getting additional ap- proval from participating muni- cipalities with the C tr a situation the way it is. "If we have to go back to the town, then we are scuttled", was the way. one board member expressed his views. And members feel they will have to take abuse if they pro- ceed, Board member John Boyne in proposing the motion asked, "is the board ready to go ahead? — Please turn to Page 3 Ninety-third Year EXETER, ONTARIO, MAY 12, 1966 Price Per Copy 10 Cents No decision yet: Hellyer agrees to meeting A..?,,,,,x:::4A,stamiNagramanczegua Facts and figures Fully contained village CFB Centralia and the residential area of Huron Park shown here is a fully contained village with many more facilities than others in the area. Its future will be determined, probably late next week after a delegation from Exeter has met with the Minister of Defence, The Honorable Paul Hellyer. Black Friday for Exeter as CFB proposal announced things will likely move quickly Air Force officials feel. Service personnel have been told they will be transferred by December of this year and the civilianperson- nel would be finished by March of 1967. In the Commons Monday De- fence Minister Hellyer admitted that the closing of the CFB Train- ing Base was being studied but stated no decision had been made. He said "one of the benefits to be derived from the integration of the armed forces is the reduction of forces and the elimination of duplication and triplication". He added there will be some base consolidation. "So far as CFB Centralia is concerned and other proposals, these are being stud- ied but no decision has been made as to whether this will close or not." He was replying to a question from the floor from R. E. Mc- Kinley who also asked a further question of Industry Minister Drury, The question which asked whether the minister would try to get alternative industry for the area was ruled out of order by the speaker. Mr. McKinley and the Honour- able Charles MacNaughton both attended the meeting in Exeter during the weekend to discuss the matter. The delegation which will meet with Mr. Hellyer is basically on a fact finding mission. Because of the concern in the area and the severe economic effect which could come from this proposal the group will attempt to find out final plans. They will probably request that a fully operational Canadian Forces Base of some kind be kept at Centralia and fail- ing this would investigate the possibility of having the area classed as a designated area which would give an inducement to industry to locate here through tax concessions. Most of those concerned seem to feel that the worst thing which could happen to the area would be to have the base phased out slowly or retained as a storage type of operation for a period of time. Work on the brief for presenta- tion in Ottawa is well under way and it is expected to be completed by this weekend. The Minister of Defence, The Honorable Paul Hellyer has a- greed to meet a delegation from Exeter Thursday, May 19 to dis- cuss the proposed closing of CFB Centralia. He has also given as- surance that no decision will be made in regards to this until after the delegation has presented their brief to him. The meeting was arranged by local private citizens and R. E. McKinely MP Huron, this week. The appointment climaxed a weekend of emergency meetings called to discuss the problem and prepare a brief for presentation in Ottawa. Friday evening the executive of the newly formed Board of Trade met with mem- bers of council and interested private citizens to discuss the proposal and the effect it would have on this area. The economic impact of clos- ing CFB Centralia has been es- timated at in excess of $5,000,000 and could result in a population loss for this area of up to 3,000 p e op 1 e. Population in Huron county has been declining for the past 10 years and officials fear that the closing of this base would seriously accelerate this popu- lation decline, CFB Centralia with an aver- age civilian and service person- nel of 1,200 people is by far the largest industrial employer in the area. The largest other industry in the area employes 135 and most others are much smaller than this. Although the effect of the clos- ing of this base would be felt over a fairly large area the major impact would be felt in an area with a population density of ap- proximately 14,000 people. The area includes Exeter (3,200); Hensall (900); Zurich (700); Us- borne Township (1,400); Hay Township (2,100) and Township of Stephen including CFB Centralia (5,415). The Town of Exeter does an annual business of over $5,000,- 000 per year and it is felt that up to 30 percent of this comes either directly or indirectly from CFB Centralia. The villages of Credi- ton and Centralia will also be hard hit. If the proposal is carried out There can be no doubt that CFB Centralia has a definite impact on the economy of this area. The follow- ing facts present a clear picture of part of the loss to the area if the base were closed or reduced in size by any appreciable degree. The base has a permanent service staff of approxi- mately 500 service personnel and employs an additional 275 civilians. Of these civilians between 50 and '75 are wives of service personnel and the remaining reside in the local area. There are another 400-800 service students or civilian candidates at the base at all times. Operation and maintenance costs of station facilities including coal, fuel oil, electricity, painting etc. is es- timated at between $800,000 and $1,000,000. This figure does not include the operation or maintenance cost of aircraft. The annual payroll for the regular staff and long term students is $2,699,000. The annual civilian payroll is $1,027.000. In addition to this, a further $145,000 is paid for teachers and civilian instructors. Mess institute purchases etc. account for a further $205,000 annually. Local petty government purchases and supply, annual cost $91,500. There are 350 service families living in the PMQ area and another 40 service families living off the base. Total personnel in PMQ area, 1,580 and in the area 205. There are 523 school children attending the DND elementary school, 113 attending South Huron District High School, 9 at Central Huron technical school and 5 at Catholic Central at London. In addition to this, base franchises include, gas sta- tion, dry cleaners and laundry, snack bar and barbershop. New officers Kinsmen Club Gilbert Dow is president of the Exeter Kinsmen Club follow- ing election of officers at their recent meeting. He replaces Claire Hoffman who has served in that capacity for the past year. First vice-president is Dave Cross and second vice-president is Edward Hearn. George Pratt is club secretary and Frank Hoyt treasurer. Registrar this year is Jim Newby and directors Claire Hoffman, Calvin Wein and Ross Dobson. During the past year the club has supported many community projects including the swimming pool and the annual Kin Camp held during August near God- erich. They are also actively participating in the Exeter Cen- tennial project and sponsor many recreational functions. expected in the next few weeks and will be the subject of an of- ficial announcement. Group Captain Ockenden re- turned from a conference in Win- nipeg last Thursday where this — Please turn to Page 3 It was black Friday for Exeter and area last week when Base Commander G. F. Ockenden an- nounced that Training Command Headquarters was studying a pro- posal which would leave CFB Centralia without a training role. In an official release the state- ment which caused the greatest anxiety was the sentence, "This could result in the base being closed". Exeter delegation at Centennial workshops New Directors Board of Trade Six directors have been added to the Exeter Board of Trade to give it a full slate of officers. John Burke, Ray Murley, Fred Dobbs, Harvey Pollen, William Smith and Don Webster have been appointed for the balance of the year. Plans are underway to hold a general meeting of the Board later in the spring and negotia- tions are underway to secure speakers and line up the program. New members who have join- ed the organization include W. H. Hodgson Ltd., Beth's Hair Styl- ing, Bob Chaffe, Graham Arthur Motors, Ted Chaffe, C. A. Mc- Dowell and Jack Fuller. 4VMSOM "Finding and implimenting a program which embraces the en- tire community" is the key to success for Canada's Centennial celebration delegates to a day long workshop in Goderich were told Thursday. G. W. Arthur, Executive Director of the Cen- tennial Planning Branch, Depart- ment of Tourism and Information, speaking to over 80 delegates from Huron County told mem- bers "there must be involve- ment before there is concern. He suggested towns should de- velop local events to draw more visitors and added, "imagination and enthusiasm will make these events even better". "There must be an expanded program for the centennial year" RAP Committee plans for Centennial events Officials at CFB Centralia in- dicated the announcement was made in order to clear up rum- ours which were circulating. The official statement read: As part of the integration of the Canadian Forces training fa- cilities within Training Command a degree of consolidation of the many Army, Navy and Air Force training schools and units is planned. The consolidation will result in savings of operating and main- tenance overhead and will relieve many service personnel for em- ployment on operational com- mands. Several consolidation propos- als (and that is the key word) have been determined by Train- ing Command headquarters at Winnipeg. One of these envisaged is the moving of the officer se- lection unit, the medical selec- tion unit, central officers school and primary flying school from CFB Centralia to other bases having similar training activi- ties. If this occurs it will leave CFB Centralia without a train- ing role and. the base will no longer be required by Training Command. This could result in the base being closed. A decision on training com- mand headquarters proposals is night swimmers". Ron Bogart was appointed to be the representative of RAP on the ball light committee. It was reported that approximately $950 has been raised towards paying for the installation of these and other donations are expected. Members reserved a decision as to the amount RAP would donate to this project until a later date but members indicated they would support this project. he said and stated that local fall fairs and similar events are built-in attractions that should be expanded. He also suggested a town beautification program es- pecially at the entrances. "The centennial year is not just July 1 but should go on for 12 months", he said. Mrs. Douglas Mooney, county chairman of women's activities for the centennial gave a general report of activities in the county. She urged that community im- provement and rural beautifica- tion should reach into every home and backyard in Huron County. Two films allowed delegates to see the imagination which was used in preparing for and carry- ing out a centennial celebration for the town of Dunnville and how other towns have used the Nor- wich plan to greatly improve the appearance of the downtown busi- ness section. The Centennial caravan which will visit Exeter has been do- - Please turn to Page 3 Liquor - liquor brings fines Lee Paul Dietrich, 18 of Cen- tralia was fined $25 and costs in magistrate's court on a charge of obtaining liquor while under age. The charge was lodged a- gainst the youth after police ob- served the car being driven in an erratic manner. Beer was found in the car and the accused stated the beer was unopened and he had dumped it out when he observed the police approaching. A Crediton youth was fined $55.00 and costs following his plea of guilty to a charge of ob- taining liquor while under age. James O'Neil 19, was warned by Magistrate Glen Hays to learn to live within the laws. He has had previous charges involving liquor. The Court was told that the accused had purchased a case of beer and had stated he was 21 when making the purchase. Three area men were fined following their plea of guilty to charges of having liquor in a place other than a residence, Jo- seph Robichaud of Centralia was stopped by constable Glassford of the Exeter Detachment of the OPP while driving slowly in Ste- phen Township. The court was told the accused had been drink- ing with other passengers in the car and a large quantity of beer was found. Harry Towle of Woodham was — Please turn to Page 3 Members of the RAP commit- tee have been asked to hold spe- cial events during the month of February, 1967 as part of the Centennial program. Members of the centennial committee have indicated they would like a dif- ferent organization to be respon- sible for one month during 1967 and hold as many special events as possible. Among suggestions given was that of holding an old fashion skating carnival. Exeter swimming pool is being prepared for the summer season. Recreation Director Alvin Wil- lert reported to RAP that the pool is in the same shape as it was last year. There are three hair- line cracks in the pool but they have not grown any worse during the past year. The pool has been pumped out and is being scrubbed. Mr. Willert noted that barbed wire is being added to the top of the fence this year as a security measure to keep out "the mid- OPP investigate area accidents An accident in Huron Park Fri- day evening caused damage to two cars estimated at $100. Ontario Provincial Police report a car driven by Richard G. Souchereau, 130 Algonquin Drive was backing into his driveway at about 10:30 pm when the accident occurred. Driver of the other car involved was Terrance M. Mustin, 160 Columbia. An accident Tuesday evening at the intersection of County Road Number 4 and the second con- cession of Stephen Township caused damage estimated at $800. Police reports indicate a truck driven by George Kadlecik Jr. 414 Forest Lawn Ave., London was proceeding east on the Cre- diton Read when the accident oc- curred, A car driven by Mrs. Patricia Joan Gibson, 195 Col- umbia Drive, Huron Park was crossing the intersection at the time. The front of the truck struck the rear of the ear. Even Smokey works Even Smokey the bear had to de a.little work at the annual Arbor Day held at Usborne Central School Mon- day. The event is sponsored by the Ausable River Conservation Authority and allows ,,twients to learn about conservation by participation. The students planted some 100 trees in the -,vinit ,!, V.1.'St side of the school. (r- A photo) J. M. Southcott was on hand at The Times-Advocate Saturday afternoon to make the first draw in the T-A subscription prize contest, Receptionist, Mrs. Eileen Harrison witnessed the drawing of the ticket as did photographer and advertising manager Val Baltkaths. The lucky winner of the $50 early bird draw was 0. Windsor of Clandeboye. A draw for $36 will be made this Saturday and another for $35' the follow- ing Saturday May 21. The $60 draw for renewal subscribers will also be held on that date. (T-A photo)