HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1998-04-15, Page 1Your Community Newspaper Since 1860 -r Seaforth, Ontario
oun. John Ball submitted his resignation to Seaforth
Heil last 'Iltesday night.
reeentlYiad their house on John Street in town.
pelt
Conn. " Bali's resignation states, I can no
se I will no longer own property in town.
asized how much he had enjoyed his 30
orth District High School for those three
was first elected to local municipal gov-;
h Council in March 994. lieWiWene of
put their Hanle$ forward as repfacernents
died.
ded to use a similar process, and advertisi
f 11 the seat that will become vacant when
VAS.
i, one candidate applies, council will hold an
council's term lasts until November 2(100.
Council okays grass cutting tender
Council okayed a parks'
maintenance proposal from
works superintendent John
Forrest last Tuesday night.
they figure will save $858
this summer, along with the
wear, tear and maintenance
on town equipment.
Instead of continuing to
job -share with the arena for
lawn care using town equip-
ment at a cost of about
$5,490 ( 20 hours per week x
15.25/hr x 18 weeks), the
town will now only job -share
with. the arena for eight hours
per week (on Monday and
Thursday mornings) at an
estimated cost of $2,196. In
addition it has hired individu-
als to cut the grass at the
Seaforth- Library and at
Victoria and Optimist parks.
Forrest told council six ten-
ders had hcen received for
the work, and costing has
been done on the basis of an
estimated 21 cuts.
Council approved hiring
Ray Cook to cut Victoria
Park and the library, at $27
and $14 per cut respectively,
and Harold Boyd at $75 per
cut for Optimist Park. He
used to cut the grass there
before the town took it over.
Student drives zamboni through door
Oops!
A local high school co-op
student "drove the floodcr
through the overhead door in
the floodcr room to the ice
surface during a work place-
ment," minutes of the
Seaforth and District
Community Centres manage-
ment hoard's March 30 meet-
ing note.
"The school will be paying
the $2,373.26 cost of replac-
ing the door," arena manager
Graham Nesbitt's report
states.
April 15, 1998 - $1.00 includes GST
LONG WINTER NIGHTS - The log cabin design occupied these women in the winter just past,GREGOR in a 1CAMPBELL PHTO
0 week quilting
course taught by Patti Spence (on extremeright) of London and put on for the first time in a long while in conjunction
with the local recreation department. Spence's mother, Marie Muegge, taught a similar course "20 odd years ago."
From left: Leanne MacDonald, Ruth Cam •bell Grace Corbett Mar Un • arian K
•
I -I- -1• •-• -
County considers purchase of landfill sites
BY BLAKE PATTERSON
SSP News Staff
Huron County may soon
need another landfill site to
hold all of its landfill reports.
At Huron County Council
April 2. the county decided to
spend up to $5.00( for a
report to consider the impact
of purchasing landfill sites in
Exeter and Morris Township.
In light of the millions of
Local taxes remain mystery
BY GREGOR CAMPBELI.
Expositor Staff
Precisely how much tax municipal ratepay-
ers will he on the hook for this year in
Seaforth remains a mystery.
Clerk/administrator Ji►n Crocker still main-
tains it could he is much as a 12 per cent
increase, with the figures he is working with
at the moment.
Applying the town's current surplus of
about $75,000 towards reducing this increase
would still work out to about a three per cent
hike, he said. •
Crocker told Seaforth Council last Tuesday
night the province has now delayed the
return of the tax rolls until May 29. Until
thcn and until this town finds out what the
county and education requisitions are for this
fiscal year, the budget process, usually dune
by the middle oi' April, "can't he finalized "
and in a word is - stalled.
"We've gone as far as we can and 1 don't
know where to go from here in terms of what
we tell ratepayers what their taxes will he this
year," the clerk/administrator reported.to
council.
"We- have no operating room left, unless
you cut employees or services."
Crocker said Seaforth appears to he out
roughly $92,000 this hudgct in provincial
transfers. For exainple, Ontario has taken
away $281,500 and turned around and grant-
ed Seaforth $162,000 in special assistance.
Local ratepayers paid an interim municipal
tax hill earlier this year based on last year's
assessments.
The clerk/administrator said he hopes the
town's final lax hill can he ready by July 1,
as usual.
He said he expects council will have to
have a special budget meeting to get it all
sorted out when all the final figures come in
from elsewhere.
('
BIRTHDAY GIRL - Sarah Finlayson turned nine last Thursday, so got to hold the tasty -
looking bunny students In the Grade 2/3 class at St. James School had been busy making
alt morning as a pre -Easter project. The others In the photo are, from left: Kelly Verbeme,
Travis Lane, Adam Blake, Keith McMahon, Juliet Veens, Brittney Hendriks, Samantha
DeVties.
dollars already spent search-
ing for a suitable county land-
fill site, $5,000 may seem a
pittance, but some of the
councillors at Thursday's
meeting felt any money spent
is too much.
Reeve Mason Bailey of
Blyth said the boundary
changes which may arise from
county restructuring make it
foolhardy for the county to
keep wasting money on waste
management.
"Stop throwing ratepayers
money at this issue," he said.
"We could well be throwing
money away for nothing."
Reeve Robin Dunbar of
Grey Township supported
Bailey in his opposition to
throwing more money "down
the drain." He admitted the
need for waste management is
real, but since the search for a
landfill has already taken 10
years, he asked the council to
let go of the issue for a while -
at least until thc questions
arising from county restruc-
turing have been answered.
"The county has a fixation
on this landfill thing," said
Dunbar.
The county has spent about
$1.8 million on landfill stud-
ies and reports. The need for
this new report comes in the
wake of a recent request from
Exctcr and Moms to have the
county purchase their dumps
before starting a `zone' waste
management system.
County -planners want the
Exeter and Morris sites to
accept waste from municipal
dumps which are nearing
capacity. Exeter and Morris,
however, have said they
.would rather sell their landfill
sites than take on the respon-
sibility of handling Huron's
garbage.
In a letter to thc county. the
municipalities said. "After
careful consideration, it is the
joint opinion of the Councils
of Exctcr and Morris that if
our landfill sites are to
CONTINUED on Page 16
Students will receive drug education
BY DAVE EMSLIE
SSP News Staff
With the help of businesses
and service clubs, Huron
County students will be able
to take home a drug educa-
tion book which they can
share with their parents.
The Huron County OPP,
with the assistance of
Gateway Safety Programs,
will be distributing the hook
Drug Safety to all Grade 6
students in Huron County
through thc Values,
Influences and Peers (VIP)
program, explained Constable
John Marshall, community
services officer with the OPP.
According to information
provided by Rosette Power,
the program coordinator for
the drug safety program, who
will be seeking sponsors for
the book, "This program pro-
vides the children with the
information they need to
make informed choices and to
protect themselves. The book
each child receives is spiral
bound and works as a
resource for the children and
their parents.
"The program teaches
young people about the prop-
erties of all the drugs that are
available to them on the
streets today, including tobac-
co, alcohol, marijuana,
cocaine, steroids and Ritalin."
Marshall noted that the OPP
fully supports the program,
. and stated that it is an excel-
lent resource for students and
parents. One reason this is a
great resource, he said, is the
fact thc children can take the
book home to their parents,
and then parents, "can get up
to speed on what their chil-
dren arc learning."
The book, Power pointed
out, has a 12 -page section for
parents to use as a resource.
Drug Safety will also help
children recognize drugs, as it
comes with a classroom
poster, "which gives the chil-
dren visual information on
what each drug looks like, so
they can't he fooled," the
information states.
Power also pointed out that
ti'ie book gives the students
important tips on how to say
"no" to drugs. She explained
that children involved with
the program arc encouraged
to give feedback, and in many
of the testimonials, thc stu-
dents said that they found the
methods for saying "no" to be
the most important informa-
tion provided.
Among the ideas shared in
the hook that the children
might use to say no, arc:
• I promised my family and
myself I wouldn't do that, and
I kccp my word.
• I'd rather save my brain for
other things.
• I'm trying to solve prob-
lems, not create them.
• I'd rather die of old age.
The circulation of the hooks
will he made possible through
sponsorship, and those who
offcr their sponsorship will he
recognized through menti:n
in•the hook. Power noted that
businesses and service clubs
from across the -county will he
approached for their support.
She noted that the hook is
something the children can
keep at home. and refer to at
different times as the need
arises. "It becomes a resource
in thc home for.thc child and
parent."
Shc also noted. ""The pro-
gram works. It is being used
across the country."
Those interested in learning
more about the program are
invited to contact Power at 1-
800-665-4878.
Council authorizes $9,500 study
Seaforth is trying to determine if it could save money by
running the town's sewage treatment plant, rather than the
Ontario Clean Water Association (OCWA).
Council authorized a study on that notion last Tuesday, at
an catithated cost of $9,50) from B. M. Ross and Associates
Ltd.
The consulting engineers, in general, will "develop a hudgct
for next year's sewage treatment plant operation, and then
cc m that budget to the OCWA,"
f�result appears favourable, we would then review the
tails with council," the engineers' proposal states.
After council has made a decision, we would assist in the
ration of an Action plan that would have Seaforth operat-
the plant by January 1. 1999."
town paid $150,0(x) to the OCWA last year to nm the
sewage trutment plant, just west of Seaforth, and south o