HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 2009-07-29, Page 3w
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Municipal fees may take a hike
DaveSykes
signal -star publisher
A bylaw outlining a new schedule
of charges for municipal services and
fees will be considered by town coun-
cil during its next meeting scheduled
for Monday, Aug. 10 at 1:30 p.m.
Council agreed to move a draft fees
bylaw forward to the next meeting
for approval, calling for increases in
certain fees to cover cost of living al-
lowance.
If approved, the bylaw would in-
crease fees charged for childcare
services and cemetery fees would in-
crease by the Consumer Price Index
rate of 2.375 per cent.
The bylaw means that infant care
would be charged at a rate of $46 for
a full day and $36 fora half day. Tod-
dler fees would move to $41 fora full
day, $28 for a half day and $25 for a
half day without lunch.
Pre-school care would be charged
out at $36 fora full day, $24 fora half
day and $21 for a half day without
lunch.
Nursery school fees for three half
days per week will rise to $162 per
month and $112 for two half days.
Summer school care will be charged
out at $27 per day, perchild and before
and after school care will be charged
out at $5.75 an hour per child.
The rates will increase Sept. 1 and
increases are based on the average
CPI rates for the previous 12 months.
All fees for interment rights, care
and maintenance and other charges
will increase by 2.375 per cent on
Sept. 1.
Storm and sanitary sewer rates will
remain the same as the 2008 schedule
of fees as per a motion of council at its
budget session.
The waterworks utilities rates will
also remain as the 2008 charges and
each household will pay $32.13 per
month for water supplied by the town
and each occupant user in a home will
pay an additional $16.47 per month.
Industrial and commercial users will
pay the same amount if not on a me-
tered system.
The town is now required to pass a
consolidated bylaw outlining its fees
and changes before any fees can be
changed. Town treasurer Judy Kay
said the process allows for a period of
public scrutiny.
Also, beginning Aug. 1, 2009, resi-
dents who make payments to the town
with credit cards, will have to include
processing fees.
Payments made with credit cards
for town services, fees or property
taxes will be subject to charges of 3.75
per cent for VISA (no card present at
time of purchase) or 2.75 per cent if
the card is swiped at the counter.
The charges for use of Mastercard
are 4.85 per cent (no card present at
time of purchase) and 3.85 percent for
use of card swiped at the counter.
Bruce Power pulls plug on build
Maria Canton
sun media
Bruce Power has withdrawn its ap-
plications to build two new nuclear
stations, citing the recession and a
plummeting demand for electricity as
its reasons.
The company announced last week
it had notified the Canadian Nuclear
Safety Commission and the Canadian
Environmental Assessment Agency
that it is withdrawing its site licence
applications and suspending its envi-
ronmental assessments for both the
Bruce County site and the Nanticoke
site on Lake Erie.
"It is driven by the economic down-
turn. The demand for electricity has
dropped precipitously and, as a result
of that, the activities around adding
new nuclear build to the electricity grid
at this stage is not a good prospect,"
said Murray Elston, vice-president of
corporate affairs for Bruce Power.
"This is a big decision for us. We've
been extremely positive about the ini-
tial assessments for both sites and we
thought the prospects were good for
moving ahead with the new build proj-
ects, but we had to take stock of the
work we had done, look at the work
that was to be done and look at the cur-
rent business climate, and we decided
to stop until the economy is provid-
ing us with better details about energy
consumption rebound?'
The unexpected announcement —
Bruce Power has long had ambitious
plans to build new reactors in Ontario
— comes on the heels of a request the
week before from the Independent
Electricity Market Operator for the
energy provider to shut down a reactor
because of low demand.
Unit 8 remains offline and marks
only the second time in the company's
history — the first was in June — that
it has shut down a reactor because of
low demand.
Furthermore, the cancellations
come only a month after the Ontario
government halted plans to build new
reactors at Darlington, where it cited
high costs and an uncertain future as
GODERkH
Canada's prettiest town
Notice of Council Meeting Date Changes
Please be advised that the September 14th and September 28th
Council meetings have been cancelled. The new meeting dates
for September are September 8th at 4:00 p.m. in the Sky Harbour
Lounge at the YMCA and September 21st at 4:00 p.m. in the Huron
County Council Chambers at 1 Courthouse Square.
Also be advised that there will be a special Council meeting held on
July 31st at 1:15 p.m. in the Hydro Boardroom at 64 West Street.
Any previous advertisements for the same, are hereby amended.
Larry J. McCabe, Clerk -Administrator
Town of Goderich
57 West St. Goderich ON N7A 2K5
(519) 524-8344
4
two of the reasons. While the bulk of
energy use has dried up along with the
loss of dozens of manufacturing plants
in Ontario, a cool, wet summer is also
factoring in to poor demand as fewer
people are running air conditioning
units, Elston added.
The plan now is to focus instead on
refurbishing units 3-8 at Bruce Power.
Units 1 and 2 are now being refur-
bished and are slated to be back online
in earlier 2010 at a cost of upwards of
$3 billion.
"We'll develop the business cases
for each of the units ... and we have to
make sure we stage the work on those
units in a way that ensures the prov-
ince has enough electricity provided,"
said Elston.
The decision to pull the plug on tie
new reactors, says the company, will
have no impact on its plans to bring
nuclear energy to either Alberta or
Saskatchewan. Both of those govern-
ments are expected to release policy
statements on the potential role of
nuclear energy there later this year.
Goderich Signal -Star, Wednesday, July 29, 2009 - Page A3
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