HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1994-06-08, Page 6PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JUNE 8,1994.
A student’s thoughts on D-Day
By Jason Gropp
As a student of history, I am able to
have greater exposure than most people to
many historical events. While one might
think this may allow more questions to be
answered, it seems at times to create even
more questions without answers. This
makes it difficult for me to ascertain the
significance of an event such as the D-Day
invasion of France.
Revisited
Men of the 3rd Canadian Division carrying their own transport disembark at Courselles on
"Juno" beach.
Though the planning and size of the
invasion was unparalleled (it was the
largest military operation ever
undertaken), the odds were in the favour
of the defending Germans. Operation
Overlord was an all-or-
nothing offensive.
During the First
World War, invasions,
such as the one at the
Somme, hoped to
achieve the same
breakthrough that D-
Day yearned for, and
with very disastrous
results.
Even before the
invasion began, a
number of things
occurred that, had they
unfolded differently,
may have changed the
face of the battle. For
example, the Germans
had seen the large
floating harbours being
constructed in
Scotland, but ignored
them because they were
unable to figure out
what they were. The
harbours were being constructed for
purposes of landing in Normandy, where
there were no natural harbours.
The Germans were also fooled by the
inflatable tanks of General Patton's
imaginary invasion force. And, would the
Allies have won if the bad weather of June
5 had not prompted Marshall Rommel, the
supreme commander of the German
forces, to take a brief vacation? Personally
I believe these factors would not have
been enough to win the battle. The margin
of victory lies within the troops
themselves.
It seems clear that the troops realized the
magnitude of the invasion in which they
were taking part.
In addition to this, they felt strongly
about the ideals they were fighting for.
The invasion was a team effort of all those
involved.
In remembering this invasion, and the
unfolding of events after it, I prefer to
emphasize the efforts and feelings of the
invasion forces, not the fact that they won.
Victory is only secondary; it is too subject
to blind luck.
Hard work and dedication to a cause are
what winners are made of. The various
celebrations on June 6 are a tribute to
these winners.
Municipalities renew fight over planning
Two municipalities, Clinton and
Exeter, have refused to adopt a new
fee structure for planning fees, set
ting up a showdown with the coun
ty-
Gary Davidson, director of plan
ing and development, told council
Thursday that the two towns have
indicated they will refuse to charge
the new fees which allow for a split
of revenues from the fees with
some going to the county and some
to the local municipality, depend
ing on which level of government
does the work. Two other munici
palities have not implemented the
fee structure but haven’t indicated
they are opposed.
The information caused friction
in the council chamber. "Every
body else is paying," noted Jack
Coleman, deputy reeve of Stanley
Township. "Why should we pay
when two don't?"
But Bill Mickle, reeve of Exeter,
challenged the county's right to
charge for planning services. The
Planning Act, he argued, says that
it is the local municipality, not the
county, that has the authority to set
fees for planning application. "If
the County doesn't have the right to
set fees, it doesn't have the right to
charge us fees. Every municipality
has the right to do its own plan
ning."
Exeter hires a private planning
firm to do its planning and had
gone to court at one time claiming
it shouldn’t have to help support the
county planning office. It lost the
case and eventually reached a set
tlement with the county that said it
would continue to pay for the coun
ty office and make use of it as it
felt necessary.
Reeve Mickle reminded the
council of the 1990-91 agreement,
saying he felt Exeter was living up
to its end of the agreement but the
county wasn't. "We don't need to
use the county because we haven't
been using it."
The current controversy arises
from a decision last year, when the
county was faced with a declining
number of severance applications
and zoning change applications, to
increase the charge for such appli
cations (which are paid for by the
applicants) with a portion of the fee
going to the county even if the
county department does not do a lot
of the work.
The county terms this a user-pay
system but Reeve Mickle disputed
the terminology. When it was
pointed out that Exeter's deputy
reeve Lossie Fuller and Chief
Administrative Officer, Randy
Hundey, has taken part in the com
mittee that had set the new fee
structure, Reeve Mickle said Exeter
had participated because "We were
talking about user fees. This is not
a user fee. This is an application
fee." If Exeter is not using the sys
tem it shouldn't be paying for it, he
argued.
Dr. Davidson explained that the
county department provides a dif
ferent level of services for different
municipalities. He reminded Reeve
Mickle that the Planning Act also
states that the municipal plans must
conform with the county's official
plan.
The two dissenting municipalities
got little sympathy from other
councillors. "I think it's totally
unfair," Bill Clifford, deputy reeve
of Goderich, told council. He
hoped that interest charges are
being levied on the municipalities
that aren't paying their share of the. -
costs. Goderich, too, had ques
tioned the new fees but had adopted
them in helping pay for their share
of the county's costs. "Instead of all
of us working together we're into
confrontation," he said.
Asked what the county could do
if the two municipalities continued
their opposition, Dr. Davidson said
the county had the right to remove
the consent-granting functions that
had been given to the municipali
ties, thereby forcing all planning
activity to take place at the county
level. "We can require all amend
ments of the five towns to be pro
cessed as amendments of the
county plan."
BLYTH LEGION
DECORATION
SERVICE
Blyth Cemetery
Sunday, June 12/94
2 p.m.
Everyone WelcomeAlternate times set for site tour
An alternative time for a trip to
view the Oxford County Landfill
site will be set up for those
landowners who were too busy
planting crops to go on the original
bus trip last Saturday, Huron Coun
ty Council decided last week.
Jack Coleman, deputy reeve of
Stanley Township, pointed out that
with the cold, wet spring weather,
many farmers were bejynd in plant
ing and would not be able to afford
the time for a bus trip which was
set up to allow those involved in
any of the 11 sites (four in col-
borne, three each in West
Wawanosh and Ashfield, and one
in McKillop), to see what a site
similar to that planned for Huron
looked like.
Craig Metzger, project co-ordina
tor for the Waste Management
Master Plan acknowledged that the
original date had turned out to be
inconvenient but he was worried
about giving as many people as
possible a chance to view the
Oxford site before they signed their
agreements allowing the county to
enter the property to view it, and if
necessary drill test holes, to assess
the viability as a landfill si(e. j jj
After Pat Down, reeve ofJ 1
Usbome, also expressed her con
cern over the timing of the trip,
Lionel Wilder, chair of the plan-
ning and development committee,
suggested another date could be
arranged with the Oxford landfill
people to accommodate those who
couldn't make the original visit.
Meanwhile, Mr. Metzger sard,
agreements allowing inspection and
testing have been signed with about
one third or the site owners, most in
the Ashfield locations (which
includes three farms owned by
County Warden Allan J. Gibson).
Testing will proceed on those
properties to see if they have prob
lems which would eliminate them
from further consideration, Mr.
Metzger said.
John Doherty, reeve of Goderich,
asked what happened if other
landowners refuse to sign agree
ments allowing their properties to
be examined. Mr. Metzger said that
under the system set up to meet
environmental hearing standards,
no property can be eliminated from
consideration unless it has been
inspected and found to be ineligible
for environmental or other reasons.
"At some point we have to compare
all the properties. It will be council
to decide what action to take (if
properly owners refuse access)." Al
last month's meeting he had indi
cated the county can expropriate
access to the properties if landown
ers refuse to sign agreements.
On behalf of the people
of Morris Township,
we would like to
remember the
50th Anniversary of D Day
June 6th, and honour
those of our municipality
who took part in it, and
those who paid the
supreme sacrifice to keep
our Country free.
Morris Council