Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times-Advocate, 1969-05-08, Page 1Ninety-fourth Year EXETER, ONTARIO, MAY 8, 1969 Price Per Copy 15 Cents Fire razes Crediton church; haul driver from burning cab Huron education to cost TRUCK TURNS OVER AND BURNS Shortly before noon on Thursday a stake truck owned by Stapleton Feed Mills of Dublin carrying a load of seed barley turned over and burned. Driver Richard Stapleton escaped with minor injuries. The truck and some of the bags of seed are shown above with members of the Exeter fire department. T-A photo Study shows most drivers speeding through Hensall over nine million this year • It will cost Huron taxpayers over $9 million to have their children educated this year. The Huron County Board of Education approved a budget of $9,028,107 brought in by Business Administrator R. B. Dunlop and the special budget • committee of the Board, Monday. The Board will requisition $4,739,992 for secondary schools; $4,248,115 for elementary schools and $40,000 for schools for retrainable retarded children. • Capital equipment expenditures of $2,000 or more are to require prior approval of the executive committee and the Board and capital equipment expenditures of $100 or more will require prior approval of the executive committee. • Clothing store changes owners Norm Walper announced this • week he has sold his men's clothing business to another Exeter resident, George Vriese. The change of ownership will take place on June 2. The present owner has been in the clothing business for 20 years in Exeter. He will be • associated with the business for some time after the transfer of ownership. Vriese, a member of Exeter council, is the area dealer for Imperial Esso and will continue to operate this business. • Gas coming this summer Exeter residents should have • the first of September — or natural gas available to them by earlier if possible. This was the prediction made by an official of Union Gas Company who met with Exeter council this week to request that the bylaw approving their franchise be given a third and V final reading. This was done by council later in their meeting. The company spokesman said the contract for construction of the line from Elginfield had not been awarded as yet, but this was expected to be done shortly • so work could commence around June 1, He said that the firm hoped to have gas to Huron Park by July 1. Union Gas has decided to extend the line to Hensall, it was • reported, due to interest expressed there from firms using grain drying equipment, Originally, the line was to stop at Exeter. The work in this area is part of a $25 million capital spending program approved by Union Gas for the 1969.70 fiscal year. What the budget will cost each municipality won't be known until the next meeting of the Board when it is expected a complete breakdown would be available. The Board did not consider Airpatrol nabs area speeders It won't be news to 37 area drivers that the OPP airpatrol made its first appearance in the area, Tuesday. Those 37 were persons caught speeding by the officers in the aircraft. One driver was charged with driving at a speed of 90 miles per hour. The airpatrol, which works in conjunction with local detachment officers, will be making periodic visits to the area from now on. JOHN MUSSER Local youth is page boy John Musser, a grade eight student at Exeter Public School, has been appointed a Page Boy for the upcoming sessions in the Ontario Legislature. The 13-year-old was named by House Speaker, Fred Cass, and will be one of 22 boys on duty when the Legislature opens on May 12. They will continue through to the end of June or the early part of July. John is the son of Mr. and Mrs, Bill Musser. Every second day the Page Boys attend classes at their own school facilities in the Parliament Buildings. The Exeter youth will be boarding at the home of Don Southcott, executive assistant to the Hon, C. S. 1VlacNaughtort, Huron MPP, It is believed that John is the first boy from Huron County to be appointed a Page Boy, this, its first budget, excessive. Board chairman John Lavis noted Lambton County board had estimated the costs of the new system there at $50,000 less than the old system, Mr. Lavis wondered if a similar comparison could be made available to the taxpayers in Huron County. Vice-chairman Robert Elliott, Clinton, said it should be pointed out the "Board is carrying a large load from the last Boards." "In June this county saw probably the biggest salary increase ever for elementary school teachers," said Mr. Elliott, "and we have to carry the full six months of it." Dan Murphy, member from Goderich, said the Board had a saving on trustees' salaries of $25,000 over the old system, due to less trustees being required. Grand Bend council is asking the Ontario Water Resources Commission to review the proposed water rates for commercial properties in the village. J. A. Ladbrooke of OWRC has completed the proposed water rate structure a few weeks ago and it was tentatively accepted by council. A large group of commercial property owners attended Monday's council meeting and questioned the original fee of $21 per month minimum for commercial users. Reeve Orval Wassmann said he received a list of the properties that are to be classed as commercial only Monday afternoon and although he didn't have time to study the report was amazed at the large amount on the list. Mr. Ladbrooke will be asked to do a complete re-survey of the potential commercial hook-ups and it is hoped a more reasonable rate will be arrived at. The domestic rate for year-round Grand Bend residents is expected to remain at; $36 per annum, In the last report of GB council this rate was incorrectly listed at $35. Summer residents will be paying a $26 per year fee. A total of 83 water hook-up permits have been issued with 50 having been completed and passed by plumbing inspector Colin Love. MUST GET PERMIT Clerk Murray A. DesJardins Was instructed to prepare a letter to go to all,construction firms in the area informing that building permits must be obtained before any construction may begin. Several cases were cited where Two fires caused considerable damage in the area over the past week. Early Sunday morning, the Crediton United Church was completely destroyed by a mysterious blaze and Thursday morning a truck owned by Stapleton Feed Mills of Dublin overturned on No, 4 highway near the Middlesex-Huron boundary and burned after flipping its load of seed barley into the east ditch. Cause of the Crediton fire that gutted the 47- year old red brick church building remains unknown despite investigations by the Ontario Fire Marshall's Office. After going through a portion of the ruins, Monday, investigators said the furnace combustion chamber was in Town taxes set Friday Members of Exeter council will meet in a special session Friday night to prepare this year's budget. Facing them is an anticipated increase of about 11.5 mills on residential and commercial properties. This was the figure which was presented by Clerk Eric Carscadden Monday night and it brought groans from most members around the table. "It's staggering," commented Reeve Derry Boyle. The proposed increase includes the local levy as well as a two mill increase for county purposes. However, it does not include the school rate which could push the mill rate up another five to eight mills. The Clerk pointed out that a debenture of $10,000 would cut the increase by over three mills and a $40,000 debenture would cut the increase to about the same level as last year's 79.3 county and general levy. Mayor Jack Delbridge questioned the advisability of a debenture issue for some of the work planned this year. An advocate for a "pay as you go" program, he said a debenture issue was "just sweeping the increase under the rug for a year." "It only prolongs the agony," he added. Council had planned a debenture issue last year to cover the cost of reconstruction of Main St., but when the work was spread over into this year, they decided to pay last year's costs out of current revenue. Reeve Boyle said the proposed budget would have to be cut some place. Council decided on the special meeting when it was noted discussion could take some time. permits were requested after buildings were well on the way to completion, STREET PAVING SOON Re-construction of the village's Main Street is proceeding on schedule and — Please turn to Page 3 good condition and further examination would be carried out, dispelling rumours the fire may have originated from a faulty furnace. The building destroyed was constructed late in 1922 after the previous structure was levelled in a similar disaster on New Year's morning of the same year. Veteran Crediton observers recall the 1922 fire also occurred on a Sunday morning at about the same time. The fire was discovered shortly before 5 a.m. by Mrs. Herb Fahner, who lives immediately north of the church and Mrs. Ruth Skinner and sons Ted and Clare, residents directly across the street. Both families were unable to contact the Crediton volunteer fire department by dialing the regular fire number that services the police village. Art Attfield in whose home one of the fire phones is located was contacted by his own phone and was able to sound the alarm. By the time the Crediton brigade reached the scene which was only minutes after the blaze was discovered the entire building was ablaze with part of the roof and some of the windows already fallen in. Mrs. Fahner was taken to safety to next door neighbors. The Crediton department confined their activities to keeping the heat and sparks from igniting the Fahner house while the Exeter department which also answered the call watched over the house and barn of Lawrence Hill to the south of the Church. The fire apparently spread quickly in the church building as several area residents were past the property less than an hour before the blaze was first seen and reported not seeing any trouble. The beautiful stained glass windows in the tower were the last to be destroyed and a part of one of the windows, one that was repaired in recent years still hangs to show some of its former beauty. Centennial celebrations had been planned for the church on May 25 and a meeting was held last night, Wednesday to decide what steps would be taken in that direction and where the congregation would be worshipping for the next couple of months. SLIGHT INJURIES In the Highway 4 crash, Thursday afternoon, the driver of the truck Richard E. Stapleton suffered head lacerations when a tire blew and the vehicle went out of control into the ditch and caught fire. Stapleton was pulled through the windshield by William Koning, 16041 Norman Road, Capac., Michigan and Gerald McCabe, 461 Eaton Park Drive, London who were the first on the scene. Some of the bags of seed barley were broken in the crash and loss of the seed that was being taken north on Highway 4 from A. M. Stewart and Sons Limited of Ailsa Craig was estimated at $200. The cab of the stake truck owned by Stapleton's of Dublin was completely gutted by the fire that was brought under control by the Exeter and Huron Park fire departments. Truck damage was $3,000. Traffic travelling Highway 4 through Hensall has been so consistent about exceeding the speed limit that posted speeds will be changed to please the driving public. Joe Gleason, regional traffic engineer for the Ontario Department of Highways and Jack Harris, traffic analyst, told Hensall Council Monday evening that speed studies during the year since reconstruction of the stretch of Highway 4 within Hensel] have shown that most drivers have been travelling 40 miles per hour although the speed was marked at 30 mph. Mr. Gleason told how the department arrives at the speed limit in certain areas. He said 15 percent of the public drives too fast and the remaining 85 percent of the drivers proceed at a comfortable speed suiting the condition of the road, weather, traffic etc. All traffic studies, said Mr. Harris, were done when weather conditions were good. Figures show that 85 percent of the motoring public was travelling about 40 mph. Since the area is not termed "built up" it would seem this is a reasonable speed. Further studies showed that accidents in this district were for the most part, a direct result of liquor or a serious misjudgement by the driver. The physical layout of the road was not a factor at all. When the new speed limits go into effect, the former buffer zone (45 mph) will disappear. Traffic will legally travel 60 mph to the approximate approaches to the wider road area within Hensall when the speed limit will be cut to 40 mph. Council later approved the new speed limits. Also attending the meeting was OPP Constable John Wright, Exeter. DUMP Village council will try once again to encourage the mill owners ill Hensall to police the mill dump provided by the village for their convenience. Councillor Hein Rooseboom expressed the feelings of the entire council when he said he was not in favor of bulldozing the mill dump at an estimated cost of $16 to $20 per hour because "it wouldn't be long before we'd have to do it all over again." " W e are getting no co-operation at all," said Rooseboom. "They're abusing it," added — Please turn to Page 3 Two crashes Investigated The Exeter OPP investigated only two accidents during the week and both were of a minor nature. On Thursday at 4:00 a.m., a car operated by Peter A. Bissett, Goderich, was proceeding north on Highway 4 and went into the ditch. Damage was listed at $100 by Constable W. G. Glassford. The other collision was on Saturday at 5:00 p.m. when a car operated by Grace K. Block, Zurich, backed onto Frederick St. from a driveway and was in collision with a car operated by Olive M. McBride, RR 1 Zurich. Constable D. A. Mason listed damage at $140. Approve permits for building jobs Fourteen building permits were approved by Exeter council, Monday, all subject to inspection by the building inspector. All permits were for repairs or additions to existing buildings. They were as follows: Walter Davis, to build a house addition at 224 Sanders East; Alex Cann, to shingle roof at 199 William; Ron Hern, to shingle roof at 102 James; Harold Wurm, to demolish part of barn at 156 William; Ernest Appleton, to reroof two small buildings on Huron; Robert Fletcher, to erect an addition at 318 Pryde; Arthur Rundle, to rebuild steps at 294 Senior. Hugh Love, to place a portable shed at 27 Wellington; Gordon Oke, to place tool shed at 262 Sanders; Tom Smith, to replace sidewalk at 122 Ann; Ed Gackstetter, to renovate garage at 89 Main; Gregus Construction, to renovate house at 417 Marlboro; Walter Hodge, to pave driveway on Pryde; Graham Arthur, to pave portion of service station property on Main, A request from Miss Larretta Siegner to erect a garage was turned over to the Planning Board for their opinion. • • a • CREDITON UNITED CHURCH DURING HEIGHT OF SUNDAY MORNING BLAZE Review water rates for GB businesses SPRING SING AT STEPHEN Students at Stephen Central School participated in a "Spring Sing" Wednesday night under the direction of music director Lawrence Wein. Part of the massed choir is shown A YOUTHFUL COOKIE BUYER — Members of the Exeter Girl Guides spent Saturday morning on a worthwhile cause selling cookies to Exeter residents. Above, Debi Wooden and Debbie Potter are making a sale to Gerald Hamilton and toddler Jeffrey Keeler above during one of their numbers with assistant principal Sharon Soldan at the piano. T-A photo •