Loading...
The Citizen, 2001-05-23, Page 6Committee meetings begin The accommodation reviews by the Avon Maitland District School Board begin this week. The first meeting of the committee for Central West, which will consist of one school council member, a representative of council and a community representative, will take place at Central Huron Secondary School, Clinton, Wednesday, May 23, (tonight) at 7 p.m. Schools included in the Central West district are Blyth,Hullett,Seaforth, Victoria, Clinton, Colborne, Holmesville, Huron Centen- nial and Robertson Memorial Public School and Central Huron Secondary School, Seaforth District High School and Goderich District Collegiate Institute. Superintendent of Education Geoff Williams will be chairing this meeting. The North study area, con- sisting of Brussels, Grey Central, East Wawanosh, Turnberry, Wingham, Brookside, Elma, Howick Central, Listowel Central, Listowel Eastdale, Milverton, Mornington Central and Wallace Public Schools and F.E. Madill and Listowel . District Secondary Schools, will meet Monday, May 28 at 7 p.m., at Listowel District Secondary School. Superintendent of Educa- tion Bill Gerth will chair the meeting. After a summer of consul- tation, each committee will present a written report to the school board by Sept. 30. Your Best Insurance PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, MAY 23, 2001. County council briefs Report to show who does what to keep water clean A report will be prepared for Huron County council outlin- ing who does what in keeping the county's drinking water clean. Central Huron Councillor Carol Mitchell asked for details on the relationship between the medical officer of health, the Ministry of Environment and the local municipalities. The related issue of the Ministry of Environment's 24- hour hotline was raised by Rob Morley, South Huron council- lor who said ministry officials forwarded hotline calls to his municipality's staff during a holiday weekend when min- istry staff were on holiday. Warden Norm Fairies agreed there, are issues with this new service. Though the ministry has more work to do it doesn't have more staff to do it with. "They seem to be try- ing to find someone else to do their work," Fairies said. *** It will be up to county coun- cil to look at the value of sell- ing public housing units once the county has fully taken over the authority from the province on March I, next year, Lynn Murray, county clerk administrator told coun- cil. Currently the province is studying the process of turning housing over to the county, Murray said. Goderich Councillor Deb Shewfelt, said he hoped the ,county would involve the local municipalities which are involved it housing in any dis- cussions and that it would be open minded. "I'd like to see us step outside the box and look at all options to have it (public housing) at a reason- able cost," he said. Letter to the editor Portrayal of pig farmers frustrates Ont. Pork chair THE EDITOR, Ontario's pork producers are being unjustly portrayed as uncaring towards the envi- ronment. While we recog- nize that negative outsells positive in the news, farmers are getting tired of the finger pointing. It must be so easy to pick a visible barn, paint a tar- Huron County council has voted not to pay.e, the lane to the temporary siteVor the Clinton/Seaforth ambulance station but the owner of the property says he was prom- ised the work would be done. Dave Jervis, who rented part of his building for the temporary site for the ambu- lance station, complained about the council's decision not to pave the lane. Jervis said he couldn't get the rental get on it, and pass blame on it for environmental problems. Large hog barns are men- tioned in almost every story covering Walkerton's tragedy, even though pigs don't even carry that strain of E.coli. Odour complaints on new barns that don't have pigs in them yet add to our frustra- he felt he deserved for the property so he agreed to have the lane paved as an added benefit. He received a letter from the county saying it planned to pave the lane. "We went for $2,000 a month (rent) and were prom- ised in writing the lane would be paved," Jervis said 'during public question period. "Though it wasn't in the lease, I still feel it was prom- ised." tion. To clarify the obvious, farmers are subject to 'envi- ronmental laws and if there's a problem it needs to be fixed. However, legitimate concerns are getting mixed up with "not in my backyard!' attitudes. Farmers who are going the extra mile to meet local build- Staff had recommended the lane be paved to prevent dust becoming a problem for the cleanliness of ambulances and equipment but councillors worried about a major expense for a temporary site. The proposal to pave the lane had become controversial in recent months with some councillors upset the improvements had been promised without council approval. ing and nutrient management requirements to prove they are responsible stewards are still facing opposition. It begs the question, how much is enough? Responsible environmental management and preserving water quality is in everyone's best -interest. We can work together towards that common goal. Ontario Pork has been working diligently with other farm groups for a number of years urging the provincial government to enact responsi- ble nutrient management leg- islation, the Agricultural Operations Act. We are asking the govern- ment for a clear outline of requirements for farmers to meet so we can continue to produce our food in an envi- ronmentally sound manner, without fear of opposition and harassment. Leaving a legacy of produc- tive, healthy land and water for the next generation of. farmers is our mandate, 365 days a year. Yours truly, Clare Schlegel Chair, Ontario Pork RR I, Tavistock. Landlord feels cheated by county's decision Gerth co-ordinates review Continued from page 1 The person who is co-ordi- nating the accommodation review process, Education Superintendent Bill Gerth, however, cautioned that it's very likely recommendations for school closure will even- tually have to be made. Gerth's recent staff report about the effects of declining enrolment was included as information for the meeting, and early discussion centred around the degree to which recent changes to the board's school closure policy will protect it from legal action similar to the successful 2000 challenge of a board decision to close Seaforth District High School. The municipal representa- tive from St. Marys, a town which was hit hard by the Urban Analysis Group's clo- sure recommendations, said it's common knowledge the board is seeking to close schools. And St. Marys coun- cillor Kerry Campbell even praised the release of the entire consultant's report, say- ing it showed a level of open- ness that was absent during the I999-2000 round of school closures. "I respect the fact that you've got an outside party and I think that's a good move because it shows that you're trying to operate based on the facts," Campbell said. "If that continues throughout the process, at some point in time, I think, the public will accept it as a good or a bad deci- sion." Such praise, however, com- prised a tiny proportion of what Campbell contributed during the discussion. The St. Marys- - councillor clearly dominated the entire two-hour meeting, asking questions and making statements early and often. He wondered why St. Marys and area schools are included in a CASC along with schools in Zurich and Hensall, even though the con- sultant's report — and all log- ical scenarios — would see St. Marys secondary school students bused to Stratford. He suggested the CASCs might be unwieldy, since their voting membership could include half a dozen munici- pal representatives and approximately 15 school council members. At one point, he praised Wagler for participating in 1999 as community-based chair of an earlier version of the CASCs, before prodding the new trustee into admitting he's now on the other side of the fence and that the consul- tant's report "is not good or bad. It's simply informa- tion." And he suggested the' CASCs should be directly involved in the decision-mak- ing process until the very end, instead of under the current accommodation review poli- cy, which asks them only to deliver a report to the board by Sept. 30, 2001. "I know full well, from what went on at Downie (Central Public School), that it's going to create a lot of heartburn," Campbell said, referring to the board's 1999 reversal of a decision to study the St. Marys-area elementary school for potential closure. "And if this committee is going to be strictly lip service, I don't want to be involved with it." Finally, near the end of the meeting, after a Stratford city councillor initiated discussion about the disposal of closed school buildings, Campbell both successfully fought to regain control of the agenda and successfully betrayed his desire to tight any and all clo- sures. "In this short two hours, we, as municipal representatives, have slid into this ditch - of saying, `yes, there will be clo- sures'," Campbell stressed. "And I'm saying there should not be closures. And we need a full investigation." Following the meeting, Gerth explained that the first CASC meeting will be Wednesday, May 23 at Central Huron Secondary School in Clinton, for the Central West study area. May 24, the Stratford group will meet, followed by meet- ings May 28 in the North study area and May 30 in the South. Municipal representa- tives at last week's meeting were told that, if their coun- cils weren't able to select a representative in time for the first meeting, an alternate could attend then give way to the official representa- tive for subsequent CASC meetings. ... is an Insurance Broker Your Best Insurance is an Insurance Broker There's an independent insurance broker close to you. Use our online Broker Locator Service at www.ibao.org or call 1 888 ASK IBAO (275-4226) We are IBAO, the Insurance Brokers Association of Ontario.