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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2004-02-12, Page 1Out for a walk The weather held out long enough for the Grade 1 students from East Wawanosh Public School to -enjoy the day at the Wawanosh Nature Centre on Feb. 6. Students, teachers and parent volunteers slipped into snowshoes and took a chilly walk through the park in the deep snow. Instead of walking through, Dustin Pennington takes a little jump over the snow drift and continued on his walk. (Elyse DeBruyn photo) Firefighters battle blaze NORTH HURON PUBLISHING COMPANY INC Inside this week Pg Legion Auxiliary • " donates pg 3 New business • offers tasty treats Community pg • 6 honours publisher Nutrient Pg. 11 management bylaw passes 2 pages of financial Pg. 11 advice begins Citizen Volume 20 No. 6 Thursday, Feb. 12, 2004 $1 (93c + 7c GST) Huron E. recreation facilities run big deficits By Andrea Hruska Special to The Citizen Management staff from the Municipality of Huron East's three recreation facilities attended council Tuesday, Feb. 3 to present budget and operational reports. All three facilities are running at deficits, which prompted discussions over ways to bring each recreation centre "out of the red." Both Dale Lamont of the Seaforth Arena and Murray McArter of the BMG Community Centre said that cancellations for blocked ice times are creating substantial revenue losses. Lamont estimated that these cancellations, which also mean lost booth revenues, can amount to over a $25,000 loss within the last year. In Brussels, McArter comfortably estimated that the lost revenues for ice times missed during the couple weeks of winter storms reached approximately $17,000. Presently, neither facility has a policy requesting deposits for ice bookings. Vanastra Recreation Centre manager Lisa Berard explained some of the initiatives she will be working on to bring more programs to people in that area of the municipality. She said that the Vanastra .eentre has experienced some competition from the newly- opened Goderich YWCA, but feels their prices are still more in line with what families can afford and the programs offered cater to the lifestyle demands of the community. Huron East councillors expressed the need for the facilities in communities and will be looking into ways of managing the deficits. By Andrea Hruska Special to The Citizen Grey firefighters responded to a house "fully engulfed" in flames Saturday afternoon. Neighbouring property owner Nancy Adams was on her way to work around 2:30 p.m. when she saw "huge billows of black and grey smoke" and "flames shooting out the top of the root— of the house. Adams phoned 911 and recalls the firefighters arriving in just a few minutes. Dave Diehl, deputy fire chief explained that "the first two or three firefighters were on the scene within four minutes" of receiving the call, with 18 firefighters responding in total. Once on scene, there "wasn't a lot we could do," Diehl recalls. In a situation such as this, firefighters monitor the burning fire and attempt to protect other nearby structures. Huron East emergency response co-ordinator, Marty Bedard said, "Grey has always been good for the response time and the number of guys out." Huron E. launches chamber of commerce By Elyse DeBruyn Citizen staff A new chamber of commerce has been launched to provide all businesses in Huron East with equal access to a number of opportunities and a voice for municipal issues. The Huron East Chamber of Commerce was created after an information meeting held by the Business Growth and Economic Development Committee on Jan. 28. Economic Development officer, Ralph Laviolette said 40 businesses have applied to participate in the incorporation of the chamber. He said the meeting was a chance for businesses to come _together to listen to noted speakers who are inspirational to business owners, Also during the meeting, a presentation was made about businesses in rural and urban areas. "There seems be a great interest in rural areas. We will continue trying to build memberships through -businesses," he said. The chamber's first quarterly meeting will be similar to an introductory meeting, held at the end of March covering a general meeting of members, a quick review of the by-laws, amendments and adjustments, form specific committees and elect officers and a board of directors. The bylaw stated at a general meeting of the chamber, any member may propose •an eligible person or organization as a cadidate for joining the chamber. If the proposal is carried by councillors with a majority vote of two-thirds, that person or organization will become a member of the chamber. Any member of the chamber may be expelled by a two-thirds vote of the council. After the first introductory meeting, the chamber will be incorporated with a board composed of members' businesses including a president, a vice-president, a secretary-treasurer and eight other members that will be elected each year. Fees for membership will be $1 annually and any other projects undertaken will be funded separately. "We want to represent businesses in a broader context," said Laviolette. The Huron East Chamber of Commerce will be open to all farm businesses, manufacturing, retail and other businesses plus anyone interested in the municipality. It will also promote and improve trade, commerce and the economic welfare of the district. For more information contact Laviolette 519-527-0305 or 519- 887-8813 or visit the web site at www.huroneast.com.