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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2005-06-23, Page 1serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Volume 21 No. 25 Thursday, June 23, 2005 $1 (93c + 7c GST) Close to 1,500 on trial run By Jim Brown Citizen staff Between 1.400 and 1,500 people visited Brussels on Sunday during an unofficial Doors Open event. Ralph Laviolette. business growth and economic development officer for Huron East was contacting the sites on Monday and reported that from the 11 sites he had spoken too. over 1.000 people had registered. ‘It went really well.” he said. “There were 17 sites and three cemeteries participating in the event.” Laviolette explained that this was an unofficial Doors Open, meaning there was no advertising done except for that in the local newspapers. The most popular attraction was Logan's Mill, with about 200 visitors.' Close behind in second spot was Armstrong’s Aerodrome which had approximately 180 visitors. A number ot events were taking place at the aerodrome. According to Laviolette, people came from as far away as Waterloo and London, although half of the visitors were from Brussels itself. There were also visitors from other communities in Huron East as well as Stratford and other centres in Huron County. He indicated that about 310 brochures were handed out. They are optimistically looking ahead to Aug 20, which is the official Doors Open Brussels. This means there will be advertising done throughout the province. It is also the weekend of the Can-Am moto-cross races in Walton. The next event for Huron East is the Doors Open Seaforth set for July 31-Aug. 1. The big one It’s been 20 years of fishing at Radford’s Pond and Sunday was a perfect day for the annual derby, sponsored by the Blyth Legion and the Radford Group. Nicholas Aitken shows off his big catch of the day with help from Dad, Brad. (Vicky Bremner photo) AMDSB and support staff reach tentative agreement By Stew Slater Special to The Citizen Having just completed negotiations with its higher- profile elementary and secondary teachers, the Avon Maitland District School Board remained in “collective agreement” mode last week by reaching a tentative deal with lower-profile but equally important secondary school support staff and educational assistants. At a regular meeting Tuesday, June 14. trustees unanimously approved a tentative three-year deal with its union of Office. Clerical, Technical and Educational Assistants (OCTEA). The employee group, with about 400 members, is represented in Huron and Perth Counties by the Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation (OSSTF), which also recently agreed with the Avon Maitland on a four-year deal for secondary school teachers. The OCTEA deal was the third of three approved by trustees at the meeting. At that point, only the OSSTF teacher agreement became official, because it had already been ratified by Avon Maitland secondary school teachers. A four-year deal with the Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario (EFTO) was ratified by employees later last week, bringing those contentious negotiations to an official close, while the OCTEA deal isn’t expected to become official until union members vote this week. After the meeting, education director Geoff Williams responded to questions from reporters about the fact the board’s ETFO negotiating team failed to meet two deadlines imposed by the provincial government. An initial deadline required that boards settle with both elementary and secondary school teachers by June 1, or risk the withholding of extra funds for specialized teachers. Education minister Gerard Kennedy subsequently extended that deadline to June 7, but Avon Maitland was one of four boards which didn’t reach tentative deals until the next day. “We heard from the minister’s office that he was willing to have that money reinstated if the things that were being withheld under the (ETFO) work-to-rule were put back in place,” Williams said. Standoff ends without incident A Huron East man was taken for psychological evaluation following a stand-off on Cranbrook Line in the Grey ward on June 16. OPP were contacted about at 4 a.m. that day. According to police, the man, who had been distraught for personal reasons had started drinking and and begun talking about causing physical harm. When police arrived all family members had left the house. The man, 51-year-old Larry Rice, refused to speak with police and barricaded himself in the residence. Police say, he stated he was armed with weapons and might possibly, use them. Several shots were fired inside the house. Neighbours were moved to a safe area. Officers concerned about worsening the situation, backed off and continued negotations via telephone. Rice surrendered at 8:30 p.m. Blyth top citizen chosen There’s little doubt that the happiness and well-being of a community's youth are important to everyone. The choice for this year’s Blyth and Area Citizen of the Year is someone who has dedicated himself to activities for young people for more than two decades. Don “Barney” Stewart, said one nominator, “has a firm conviction that by involving youth in sports, it allows them to develop skills in that area, but also promotes growth in social and emotional development.” In addition to his 20 plus years with Blyth Minor Hockey, howev er, Stewart has also been involved with the Legion and the Lions Club. “He devotes a number of hours to help support the growth and well­ being of the community of Blyth.” Through his work with Lions, said his nominator, Stewart has been instrumental in a number of community projects. Stewart was selected from a number of nominations submitted to The Citizen which sponsors the award. A presentation will be made in the future. His brother, John, was a recipient in 1996.