Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2005-11-24, Page 1NH | NORTH HURON PUBUSHING COMPANY INC~ Inside this week 8 Pg-15 Pg- 20 Peters nets for OHL ail-stars Future of Giris band in jeopardy Help to chase away the gloom 22 Blyth entrepreneur wins award p 21 Celebrate a Huron County Christmas N. Huron insurance up 14% By Bonnie Gropp Citizen editor The bad news is that North Huron’s insurance costs are going up 14 per cent. The good news is that that’s not as bad as some. Bill Keil and Jeff Coleman attended the Monday night meeting to update council on the changes in the policy. In announcing the increase Coleman stated that it was a result of “society’s expectations.” Stating that the township’s risk management seminars had paid off, Coleman stated that many municipalities were facing increases of 50, 60 or even 100 per cent. “This is the good side of a bad story.” “It’s a reflection of what’s going on in the industry and society’s willingness to sue at the drop of a hat,” added Coleman. Keil also noted that as North Huron had the foresight to increase their deductible earlier it had helped. “Deductibles in this industry are creeping up,” said Coleman. In stating that a group of Blyth people are interested in a skateboard park, councillor Murray Nesbitt questioned what effect this might have on insurance. Coleman explained that when the first park began in Ingersoll, the insurance people had said it was a bad idea. However, he said, the park there has been going a long time now and there have been no claims. “We view it as an extension of parks and recreation. We do have policies and procedures to follow but from the claims perspective, so far so good.” He did underline, though, that it is an added risk to the township and that there would probably be a charge associated. Reeve Doug Layton asked Coleman to investigate how sustantial that charge would be the township. Wireless may soon be here By Heather Crawford Citizen staff Wireless internet is expected to be coming to the Brussels area because of the new cell phone tower. “They can add more to [the tower],” Jim Oldfield, a retailer of computers and cell phones said. “More is coming but we don’t have [wireless internet] yet.” Cell phone service has been available in Brussels for several weeks thanks to the new tower from Roger’s located at Cranbrook Road. Grey ward councillor Mark Beaven said he contacted Roger's inquiring about cell phone service around November of 2004 and received word shortly after to begin plans for a tower. “They asked that we send a letter from council requesting service. It took one letter and a phone call and we got the tower,” he said. Beaven is currently working on persuading Bell Canada to take off the long-distance charges for someone in Brussels to call Seaforth. “It makes sense to me that two bordering towns should be able to 'call each other. You should be able to call across the street and not get charged long distance,” he said. Currently the request is on the waiting list. Beaven said Bell is dealing with reworking boundaries for Ottawa first and then there is a list of other rural and urban centres next in line, including Brussels. Talk about kindness The world can be a harsh place. As a result we often forget that it’s also home to some pretty amazing people. There is no better time of year than Christmas to pay tribute to those who are good, who help others in selfless ways, who have done a kind deed for a stranger or extended the hand of friendship when it was sorely needed. We are inviting our readers to please tell us about someone who made a difference in their life through a random act of kindness. Write a brief paragraph explaining what happened and submit it to The Citizen by Dec. 9. You don’t have to be an English major; Citizen staff will re-write submissions if necessary. Just give us the details. While we would like you to include your name exceptions may be made. The.random acts of kindness will be published in our Season’s Greetings issue, the last of 2005, as a reminder to all that Peace on Earth, Goodwill to Man truly does exist. Festive tunes Bundled up against the cold and damp, the Blyth United Church choir sang in the season of festive warmth outside Memorial Hall during the annual Lighting of the Lights ceremony on Friday night. The evening included children’s entertainment and a carol competition held in the courtyard of Memorial Hall. (Vicky Bremner photo) No answer on library’s future By Heather Crawford Citizen staff There was no solution after several people at a public meeting regarding the future of the library in Brussels held at the Brussels, Morris, Grey Community Centre, Wednesday, Nov. 16 voiced concerns both with keeping the library at its present location and moving somewhere new. “Well, I’m about as clear as mud,” Huron East mayor Joe Seili joked. The need for a change came about when the province required libraries to become more accessible. The Huron County Library developed a strategic plan in 2002 that would require a branch two library such as Brussels, to have a mandatory 2,500 square feet of net usable space. Currently, the library in Brussels is “about 700-900 feet short,” Trudy Koskamp-Groothuis branch services co-ordinator for the Huron County Library said. “Really we have three options,” Grey ward councillor Mark Beaven said.“We can either leave the library where it is and make the renovations; move the library downtown owned by a private investor and the municipality or owned by [the community]; or we could do nothing and lose the library.” Seili said the cost to renovate the Carnegie building would be $750,000-$ 1,000,000. This cost includes renovating the existing main floor and basement, adding onto the main floor and basement as well as the installation of an elevator. “There is enough space in back (of the current building) to add on,” Clerk-administrator Jack McLachlan said. “But [the addition and the current building] are not on the same level so we would still need a lift.” Seili noted the more cost-efficient option of building ramps rather than an elevator because “accessibility means accessible for everyone [including] people in walkers, strollers, and people with canes. A ramp can be [bad for] the back and knees,” he said. Librarian Susan Nichol said there have been several people who have stopped coming to the library altogether because of its inaccessibility. “We had a caregiver who took a girl in a wheelchair [to the library], I didn’t realize how heavy a wheelchair is,” she said referring to having to lift the wheelchair up and down the stairs. Unfortunately, the caregiver had to stop bringing the girl to the library. Nichol said she has also seen young couples with strollers look at the building, count the number of stairs to climb with the stroller and decide to keep walking by. Brussels councillor David Blaney has been pursuing the option of having a private owner of a building further downtown lease out a section for the library to the municipality. Blaney said he has been in contact with someone who has expressed interest into entering negotiations with the municipality. If the municipality entered into business with a private owner, “it would give them clout,” Blaney said referring to the incentive for someone to buy property in Brussels. “[They may begin] to redevelop other parts of downtown...it gives two uses for every dollar.” Blaney also added that this option would allow the municipality not to have to spend all of the money at once. There would be psychological benefits to sprucing up the downtown core also, he said. “If it looks like it’s going places then that brings people in.” “When you drive through [Brussels] what you see is that it looks like it’s dying,” he added. Seili said if the library was put in a new location in the centre of town, it would act like the cornerstone of the community. “It’s like when you put Zellers or WalMart in an area, then all of these other businesses come.” The other side of the argument presented was that it would be difficult to find anyone willing to make a commitment for a new business in the Carnegie building to preserve it if the library left. “If you want to keep the library in the Camegie building that’s fine but it may be the only thing you keep,” deputy-mayor Bernie McLellan said. The purpose of the public meeting was for council to get feedback from the community on whether or not they should keep the library in the Camegie building. When asked what the people who regularly use the library think, Nichol said their main concern is with the content and not the building. The decision is ultimately up to council although the councillors present expressed that they would like to make a decision that represents what the people want. “I’ve been out talking to people about it more and more,” Beaven said. The idea of taking a survey of public opinion was suggested. “The problem with a poll is that it depends on the question,” Blaney said. “[The concern] is that the results wouldn’t really be the majority and council has to carry the can for the decision.” Huron County Library is asking the municipality for some direction on this issue before the end of the year. “They have given us a lot of time before we have to have the changes made,” Seili said. The only opinion that was unanimous was to keep the library. Where it will be located is still unclear.