Village Squire, 1975-02, Page 13The
SmaII Town
what is it's future?
BY R. SPENCE CUMMINGS
The Provincial Government seems to
indicate that they want all urban development
to take place east of Toronto. They are
supplementing the industrial development in
Northern Ontarin .and in Eastern Ontario.
For instance, an industrial development in
Northern Ontario can receive ninety percent
of approved costs of construction up to one
million dollars, and again to Eastern Ontario
their loan limits are 75 percent of approved
costs to $1 million. In the rest of the province
the government has said we will restrict
development by only offering loan assistance
for 50 percent of the approved costs of a
maximum of half a million dollars. Our small
town is in the same category as Toronto. This
policy of the Government of Ontario has,
therefore, put a restriction on the growth of
the small town in Southwestern Ontario.
The small town has not been consulted.
What are their feelings? Do they wish to
wither and die because they cannot generate
growth or even maintain their present good
life? Everyone knows that the best place to
live is in a small town but can the small town
survive.
The farming community around the small
town depends on the suppliers in that town to
provide for their requirements. The stores,
automobile dealers, service industry in
general in a small town cannot provide the
service the farmer requires if he does not
have a reasonable amount of small industry to
supplement this trade from the farming
community. The government is insisting that
our community -supplied services, such as
water and sewage be modern but to pay for
the modern services, the small town is going
further in debt. What they need is to
supplement their taxes by the acquiring of
small industries. Sure, this increases the
population but it also increases the amount of
taxes received by the town.
CONCERNED ABOUT FUTURE
We, in this area, are not the only people
who are concerned about the future. Our
planning is taking into consideration, growth
in the small towns and villages. Our
agricultural community is concerned that
town growth does not encompass and use
farm land. Has anyone asked the small town
and village people what they need? We want
the good life to continue as it is. Will it, if
taxes for services such as sewage, education
and recreation continue to. climb with the
spiral of inflation.
Mr. Bruce Whitestone an economist and
writer examined the problems of small towns
in the Toronto Star on January 11, 1975:
"While some towns are in trouble,
particularly on the Prairies and in the Atlantic
provinces, the problem is exaggerated and in
fact worsened by government planners. Also,
small town officials and businessmen may
believe that their town is dying, and thus are
afraid to take risks, or they may fail to realize
that aid should made available. With - or
perhaps in spite of - government programs,
towns that try to survive generally do.
GOVERNMENT PLANNERS HURT
"Government planners have tried to fight
the desires of a significant part of the
population. In the 1960's, the federal
government's regional planners were clamor-
ing for "Growth centres" which could serve
as the focal points for government grants.
"The outports of Newfoundland were to be
replaced by new population points that were,
perhaps, more convenient for the bureau-
cratic mind, but tended to ign6 a human
considerations.
"In the Prairies, railroad lines were
abandoned with government approval and
grain elevators were then forced to close. The
governments involved were able to proclaim,
with defiant, self-fulfilling wisdom, that the
small town was finished.
"In Ontario, regional governments are
even now replacing some of the functions of
historic, small towns, all too frequently in
clear opposition to the wishes of the
population involved. In each case the
rationalization is based on the "best
interests" of the population involved.
"The crux of the small towns' dilemma is
an economic one. How can they retain their
essential character and at the same time
generate sufficient funds? Economic re-
sources are needed to provide a standard of
living not only for their present population
but for the young people who are flocking to
the job market in unprecedented numbers.
"It is necessary to understand rural
economics in order to help them. Rural
production is literally the creation of city
consumption. That is, city economies invent
the things that lead to imports from the rural
world and, in turn, reinforce the existence of
rural areas.
"For example, long ago so-called country
weaving was developed in medieval cities,
but as medieval cities became centres of trade
and other commerce, country weaving
became a cottage industry, which provided a
livelihood in many small towns.
"The process by which city economies
leads to rural survival goes on today.
"In Quebec, apple coolers stand at
numerous crossroads; apples are brought
together from many farms and stand in
carbon dioxide atmosphere in local ware-
houses until it is marketing time. Also, the
development of abrasives and sanding
VILLAGE SQUIRE/FEBRUARY 1975, 11