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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2006-01-26, Page 1Ei.c -7 6 mE0 • FIL,YT F1' ESTA13.1JSI.1E' 1) 1877 •..•-• Inside this week Pg. 2 Pg. 7 Pg. 8 Pg. 9 Pg. 20 Ag Society presents awards Walton girl gets nomination Broomball teams perform well Wheeler named goalie of the week St, Anne's students do good work School yards not for fun By Bonnie Gropp Citizen editor e Citizen Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Volume 22 No. 4 Thursday, Jan. 26, 2006 $1 (93c + 7c GST) MVCA needs poir;ct more se- funds A victory kiss Incumbent MP Paul Steckle celebrated his re-election Monday night with his wife Cathy by his side. "Over the last 12 and a half years I have never swerved in my commitment to serve you and I am going forward this night to do that again," he said to his supporters. (Heather Crawford photo) You don't have to be dreadfully observant to know that it's been a less than perfect winter for snowmobilers. A mild January took care of most of the snow dumped in December with the result that trails this sea-son have been closed More than-open. As a' result the open fields are tempting. Unforunately they may also be off limits. Anyone snowmobiling on school property is in breach of the Trespass to Property Act, according to OPP Const. Jeff Walraven. "If you don't have the approval of the owner to be on the land, it's trespassing." If caught the person could face a fine of $110. Communications manager for the Avon Maitland District School Board Steve Howe, said that indeed one must seek permission to ride a snowmobile on school property. This is generally given for special purposes such as at the secondary schools where a student may bring a snowmobile to school. "Otherwise, just for anyone to use the property to motor around on, yes, it's trespassing," said Howe. Snowmobiles aren't the only concern either, Jennifer Cochrane, secretary of Grey Central Public School said there are more ATV tracks on the grounds than snowmobile tracks. Brussels Public School principal Heather Beattie has informed parents through the school newsletter that unauthorized persons and vehicles are prohibited on school property. "I have noticed a lot of snowmobile tracks on the school property. It's a safety and insurance issue. I think that most didn't realize, so people should be made aware?' Beattie is hoping that posting more signs warning people that they are on private property will also be a deterrent. By Heather Crawford & Bonnie Gropp Citizen staff A desire for change to Tory resulted in a number of Liberal incumbents being unseated in Monday's federal election. Huron-Bruce Liberal Paul Steckle was- not among them however, though the race was much tighter than he has experienced in his previous three elections. "I didn't expect it to be this close," he said to a group of supporters gathered at Scared Heart Church in Wingham. "It was a dog fight. I didn't expect it to last until 12:30 a.m. but we'll take it whatever time it comes." The popular politician, who has served 12 years in federal government, ran neck and neck with newcomer Conservative candidate Ben Lobb of Clinton. The 28-year- old was in a dead heat with the veteran right to the end, with only 800 votes separating them at the end. • "Who says politics isn't exciting," Steckle joked. "I clipped my nails before it started so I didn't chew them off." It was a rollercoaster of emotions from beginning to end as supporters for Steckle viewed results, counting the votes between the two front runners on their fingers. The people in the room, mostly friends and family, expressed confidence in the early goings, but soon realized that this was going to be a different election than usual for the incumbent. The MP had never been behind an opponent before and actually won the last election by 10,000 votes. "I was surprised he wasn't elected by more votes," Colleen McNichol, a Blyth resident and a Steckle supporter said. "He has always worked for his constituents. They've been his main concern." Steckle was announced the winner at 12:25 a.m. and arrived at the church at 12:35 a.m. to thunderous applause from his supporters. "Certainly we have come to a time when the people want change," he said. "The Canadian people have shown that in the polls." Steckle said that his commitments to the farming community and to the other communities in his riding will continue to go forward despite the Conservative minority government. "I have made it clear that when issues come to the house, I will be there to represent you as I have done in the past," Glen Thiel, a neighbour of the Steckle family in Zurich, said he thought Steckle deserved to win. "He's a hard worker and is always on the beat," he said. "If he gets called, he's there. He's a voice and whatever he says he means." Chera Jelley, who worked on Steckle's campaign said she was surprised by the tight race. "I knew it would be closer than the last election but I didn't think it would be this close," she said. While victory would, of course, have been sweet, Lobb's camp was anything but downhearted at the result. "Maybe we didn't win the war but we definitely won the battle," Lobb said. "Paul knows who Ben Lobb is. He knows who the Lobb family is." "[Ben Lobb] was an honourable candidate. I look forward to continuing our friendship," Steckle said, adding that it is not easy to run a campaign and all candidates should be commended for putting their name forward. NDP candidate Grant Robertson of Paisley also showed solid ground gains taking 8,797, about 2,000 more than in the last election. By Bonnie Gropp Citizen editor Phil Beard of Maitland Valley Conservation Authority attended the Jan. 16 meeting of North Huron council to discuss the township's investment in conservation and the fact that it's going to increase. - Beard explained that MVCA is looking at $14,250 more from North Huron this year to stabilize the, budget and do capital upgrades. However, Beard said he was also asking council to pressure the province to meet its own funding critera for conservation authorities. MVCA has been frugal for over nine years in increasing its levy, said Beard, and has used project funding to limit costs. However, regulations have become more restrictive as to how project funds can be used. "We have been frugal in terms of raising the levy and this has probably been to our detriment now." However, the situation has not been helped by the reduction in provincial funding. Where once they received $346,000 assistance, the amount has held at $70,000 over the past six years. Also, Beard said MVCA should be receiving $125,000 for flood allocation. Beard listed the many benefits of the conservation authority to watershed municipalities. Flooding Continued on page 20 The preliminary results from Election Canada as of early Tuesday morning showed Steckle with 21,178 votes, while Lobb had 20,289. Robertson was followed by Victoria Serda of the Green Party with 1,829, Dave Joslin of the Christian Heritage Party with 1,019 and Independent Dennis Valenta with 270. Voter turnout in Huron-Bruce was 70.1 per cent, with 53,282 of 76,011 voting. In Canada, the Liberals did not fare as badly as predictions had indicated. They held on to many of their east coast ridings and finished with approximately 20 seats less than the Conservatives. • To claim a majority a Party would need 155 seats. The Tuesday morning results showed the Conservatives with a minority government of 124 seats, while the Liberals held 103 ridings. The Bloc Quebecois was next with 51 while the NDP were voted in in 29 ridings. One Independent candidate won a seat. Results may alter somewhat over the course of the next few days as they are updated. "I have never been on this side of Continued on page 6 C ,T Steckle returned as MP after tight race