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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 2009-09-16, Page 10Page 10 - Goderich Signal -Star, Wednesday, September 16, 2009 Ve4eek's Landscaping and Design �- ill time to Book Your "Fall Landscaping Projects" Retaining walls, locking brick, tree & shrub planting. Don 't Forget.... Landscaping is included in Home Renovation Tax Credit! Call Today ... 519-482-9333 Bokhout stepping into liberal ring A Clinton doctor is seeing red. Dr. Maarten Bokhout, a long -serving family phy- sician and member of the Clinton Family Health Team, is tossing his hat into the federal Liberal nomination ring for the sei;ond time. Bokhout, who served as the Medical Officer of Health for Huron County between 1987 and 1995, lives near Blyth, and is active in the local united church, the Optimist Club, and the Blyth Festival Orchestra. He is along -time member of the Blyth Festival. Bokhout is married to Helena McShane. The cou- ple has six children. County eyeing transport grant If you have an electricity, guzzling fridge that's fifteep years old or more, you + get rid of it the easy way. siE rrMme, take it away for free* and recycle it in an ronmentally friendly manner. You'll save between $150 per year in electricity Book online today at everykilowattcounts.ca or call 1-877-797-9473 4$Prid wid freezers must be at least 15 years old. in working condition and between 10-27 euhic fleet. Funded by the Ontario Power Authority and offered by OODERICH HYDRO. OM Official n of tits Unwrio Power Authority. tTrademarit MnorgiRICU 11YiMo. Cheryl Heath sun media The County of Huron is seeking out 50,000 reasons to unveil new program- ming. in making a pitch to Huron County's committee -of -the -whole session Sept. 9, planning director Scott Tousaw reports the county is eager to apply for up to $50,000 in funding under the province's newly unveiled Transportation Demand Man, gement Grant. While noting the county is not as pub- lic transportation rich as its urban coun- terparts, Tousaw says the grant could help fund special projects like a bike lane in Clinton through to Huronview. "It would look at a whole range of op- tions," says Tousaw. In supporting the request, Councillor John Bezaire (Central Huron) notes he has been a approached by a number of groups and individuals in past months that are eager to get moving on proj- ects designed to promote and boost eco - friendly tourism. "I think there will be a lot of people happy to see us do this," he says. Let's review It is time for the official unveiling. That was the news delivered to the Sept. 9 committee -of -the -whole session care of planning director Scott Tousaw. In reporting county staff has been con- ducting a five-year review of the Official Plan, Tousaw says it is time to officially unveil the report to the public. And, he notes, the process has revealed two areas of concerns, both of which fo- cus on the populace and fall into the two areas including growth allocation and af- fordable housing since statistics suggest the county's population could grow up to 68,000 by the year 2031. Surplus dwellings on farm properties are another area of interest since there is a desire to protect farmland and prevent developers from speculating in agricul- tural areas. "We've taken a fair bit of time drafting those policies," he says. Indeed, county planners Craig Metzger and Sandra Weber took some to unveil surplus -dwelling proposals in an attempt to create uniform county -wide criteria to deal with surplus -dwelling severance ap- plications. After some debate, councillors agreed to recommend a draft policy that would require the homes on any proposed farm severance to be at least 10 years of age. Other areas in need of attention in the draft policy include proposals to cre- ate a natural environment heritage plan, encouraging accessibility, dealing with population -growth allocations in settle- ment areas and undertaking an aggregate study. Thanks to a motion by COW, the coun- ty's draft policy changes to the Official Plan will be unveiled at public -informa- tion session at 7: 30 p.m., Oct. 8, at the Holm esville hall. Good news Some late summer sunshine is just what the farmer ordered. In making her monthly report to Huron County's committee -of -the -whole ses- sion, Jane Muegge, regional information coordinator for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, re- ports late summer heat and sunshine is making a noticeable difference in corn and bean quality this summer. And, she notes, it has also slowed down mold growth. "That's fabulous," she says. Severance approved Four Central Huron property owners were given the green light to sever a farm dwelling on their Auburn -area land fol- lowing some debate. County councillors entertained the pro- posal after a neighbour expressed some concern with the plan. After hearing the neighbour would prefer for farm buildings not to be de- molished and that the severance include less farmland, the COW opted to approve the sale. It's here e borer is here. That was the word delivered to COW by the county's forest conservation of- ficer, Erica Garfat, following Coun. Bill Siemon's (Huron East) inquiry as to why the amount of tree cutting on county property is on the rise. While questioning whether the price of wood is up, Garfat notes it is not but companies are convincing landowners to harvest now due to emerald ash borer concerns. The scoop? County council is awaiting a report on the possibility of the county of Huron branching out into the maple -syrup pro- duction business on county -owned land. Though Coun. Bill Siemon (Huron East) notes he doesn't support the no- tion, Coun. Bernie MacLellan (Huron East) says councillors should review the county's report before making a final de- cision. "We should find out what the scoop is," says MacLellan.