HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 2009-04-29, Page 19Goderich Signal -Star, Wednesday, April 29, 2009 - Page A19
Change is inevitable - except fa vending machine
Love it or hate it, at least try. Other and it's really no change at all, except in
communities have done the same and with attitude.
much success. Just do a Google search Should we all stand tiptoe in the centre
of `pedestrian only' or `pedestrian mall'. of the iceberg as it melts away around us?
You'll find lots. Or do we test the water and swim for it?
It raises the question: Who is keeping Chances are, if the ice is melting the water
business out of downtown? is warmer than you think.
We can blame council for selling our
highway corridors before •selling The
Square.
We can blame business itself for being
too inclusive and territorial (remember the
chip wagon?).
We can blame heritage for putting re-
striction upon restriction on downtown
buildings.
We can (and probably should) blame
ourselves for becoming too dependent on
automobiles and too used to getting things
our way instantly.
Point is - this is a perfect chance to
change how we do business in Goderich,
It's easy to be afraid of new things, yet business is getting
life seems to be full of them. From toilet tight. People have
training to getting a licence to switching to less money to spend.
a high -fibre breakfast cereal, our lives are Now is not the time
built on change and progression. for radical change.
The catch-22 is we're all creatures of Well, thank good -
habit and I don't know about you, but ness this isn't a
routine and predictability go a long way radical change. It's
to keeping me sane. I keep my socks inprobably less than
the sock drawer and my vegetables in the 9 24 hours total out of
crisper just like everyone else. If the two any given year that
got mixed up,I'd end upwith squash in �� vehicles would be
q
my shoes and food that tastes like sweaty prohibited on The
feet. Square. That's three
However, there are times when risk has business days potentially affected.
to be taken, when stagnancy must be over- That leaves (let me get my calculator
come with some new twist. out) 8,376 hours to park freely and do
Such is the case with The Square and ringers to your heart's content.
this whole no vehicles upset. Divide that by three for an eight-hour
Business is afraid things will get hurt. business day and that's 2,912 business
Politicians think it is a step in the right hours in a year one has the opportunity to
direction (pun intended). drive The Square.
Pedestrians might find it a welcome re- So, for the equivalent of 24 hours with -
lief. out vehicles on The Square there are 121
Morotists might go into ringer with- days' worth of business hours to shop 'til
drawal and take to driving in circles on you drop... or park `tii you stop.
.their lawns to make up for lost time. Many My point is lost time is almost insig-
different people have many differing opin- nificant as far as shopping goes. We don't
ions on the subject. need cars to shop, we need money.
Here is the unsatisfying part - they could And if you do need a car to shop, you
all be right and they could all just as easily have a 121:1 ratio of days you can do
be wrong. so and park in front of the store of your
The thing is nobody has tried it. . choice.
If a child turns up his nose at brussel But it's not necessarily about all of that.
spouts, you make him eat at least a couple When things are tight, it's easy to cling
before he lays a valid claim. to a security blanket and in this case, it's
Same should apply here. tradition. But even that has changed.
Regardless of what we can speculate, Take a trip to the Sallctws gallery and
the bottom line is we don't know what ef- see for yourself just how busy The Square
fect no vehicles will have until after it's used to be back in the days when oide was
been tested. . . still newe.
If we immediately condemn the concept People not only got along without auto -
of no cars on The Square during our main mobiles but actually thrived.
downtown events, we'll never know ex- You see a lot of bikes in those photos.
actly what boom or bust would come of You also see people (gasp!) walking.
it. We could do that here. We've got the
- Though I don't own a business (and if I space, the setting and of course, the won -
did, I'd probably just sell fireworks out of derful weather to make it more enjoyable.
a van... off The Square), I do understand But, sometimes it takes a grand gesture
the setting we are in. to get the bike tires rolling. Pedestrian -
All across the county and the country only festivals could be it.
Seeking Community Volunteer Membership
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Avon Maitland DSB Audit Committee
The Avon Maitland District School Board welcomes volunteers who have a passion
for public education to express an interest in becoming one of three community
representatives on the Board's Audit Committee. We are looking for volunteers to serve
a two-year term beginning in June 2009. Interested individuals should have financial
training and expertise and will be selected through an interview process.
The Audit Committee is responsible for overseeing the Board's audit process. It meets
in the spring to review audit planning and in the fall once the audit has been completed.
The Audit Committee may make recommendations to the Board's Finance Committee
regarding the audited statements, the financial processes of the Board, and the Board's
internal controls.
Community member are an important part of this Committee providing the Board with
independent advice on the audit and its functions.
Expressions of interest to serve on this committee are to be sent
no later than Friday, May 15, 2009 to:
Barb Crawford - Administrative Assistant
Avon Maitland District School Board
62 Chalk St. N Seaforth, ON NOK 1WO
Fax: 519-527-0222 Email: info@fc.amdsb.ca
Avon ICHOOL
Maitland
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