HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuron Expositor, 2007-01-03, Page 8Page 8 January 3, 2007 • The Huron Expositor
Year in Review
Donations help Roden family celebrate Christmas
January, 2006
'Representatives of several farm
grroupsLthanked Huron East for its
plan td defer property tax on farm-
land until fall at a press conference
in Seaforth last Wednesday. The
press conference was held by Huron
East in the hopes that daily news-
papers in the area would spread the
word that at least one rural munici-
pality is trying to help the strug-
gling farmers in its area by allowing
farmers, for the second year, to
defer their property tax on farmland
until the fall. The move is hoped to
leave more than $900,000 in Huron
East farm economy while farmers
plant their crops this spring.
What could have been the worst
Christmas ever after a fire gutted
their RR 2 Seaforth home became a
super celebration for the Roden
family. Donations from the commu-
nity of everything from clothing to
furniture and household goods to
toys and a visit from Santa riding
on a Seaforth firetruck added up to
a great Christmas, says Anne
Roden.
Some area farmers are starting off
the New Year in a bad way as banks
are calling in loans and lines of
credit. Marilyn Broadfoot, a
Brucefield-area farmer and farm
activist, says though farmers are
reluctant to step forward about
mounting financial problems, the
reality is the country's largest
banks are beginning to call in loans
and lines of credit when farmers can
least deal with the problem.
Tired of paying $50,000 to $70,000
a year in repairs and maintenance
for the Vanastra Recreation Centre,
Huron East Deputy -Mayor Bernie
MacLellan asked village residents if
they want to work towards a 10 -
year plan to build a new facility.
"Every year we sink a lot of money
into the building. What we should
be doing is looking at a 10 -year plan
for a new facility," he told the close
to 100 people that packed the rec
centre gymnasium during a public
meeting last Wednesday.
In a nail -biter of a race, the four -
time Liberal incumbent hung onto
the Huron -Bruce seat by a narrow
margin of 889 votes. However, for
the first time since he was elected
in 1993, MP Paul Steckle will not
sit with the ruling party as a
Conservative minority was declared
Canada's new government after the
Monday, Jan. 23 election. Steckle
took 21,178 votes, or 39.7 per cent of
the popular vote, in Huron -Bruce
while Conservative candidate Ben
Lobb captured 20,289 ballots, or
38.1 per cent.
After 20 years on the Seaforth
Fire Department, Doug Anstett says
he's not as keen as he once was to
run into burning buildings. But, as
a pumper, operator, he's still one of
Marty Bedard photo
Christine Roden holds her daughter Cailey, 15 months, while her son Cody, 7.
stands beside Santa when members of the Seaforth Fire Department visited
them Christmas Day with two Targe bags of toys last Christmas. The three,
along with grandparents Anne and Paul Roden, narrowly escaped their burning
home with just the clothes on their backs.
the first at the firehall during every
fire call.
His fellow 20 -year award recipi-
ent, Paul Hildebrand, says he's just
as keen as he was when he joined
the Seaforth fire department's aux-
iliary 25 years ago. Anstett and
Hildebrand were recognized recent-
ly for their 20 years of service as
Seaforth firefighters with a ring and
a medal from the federal govern-
ment.
February, 2006
The recladding of Seaforth
Community Hospital is "well under-
way," members of the Seaforth Local
Advisory Committee were told at
their Jan. 30 meeting. A $350,000
facelift, which will cover the hospi-
tal's brickwork with an exterior
insulation system that will have a
stucco -like appearance, is going
according to plan, said Chuck
Meyer, manager of building services
for the Huron Perth Healthcare
Alliance.
As one of the youngest food banks
in Huron County, the Seaforth and
District Food Bank is celebrating its
10th year serving the needs of the
hungry in the Seaforth area. The
Seaforth Food Bank, a joint project
of seven area churches, began after
a meeting at Northside United
Church 10 years ago.
While it's outlived its life
expectancy by 10 to 15 years, the
50 -year-old Seaforth Lions pool is in
desperate need of a major overhaul.
And, the Seaforth Lions Club is
hoping the community will help to
raise the $225,000 necessary to
keep the pool open this summer.
"We've made it to 50 but we've got
major problems now. The pool has to
be fixed up or closed - it's gotten to
that point," says Lions member Bob
_Beuttenmiller, who's been maintain-
ing the pool for 20 years.
Seaforth and Brussels will again
be opening its doors to tourists this
summer when it joins Goderich and
Zurich in the 2006 Doors Open
Huron project.
Huron East council heard an
impassioned request for a zero per
cent budget increase by Grey Coun.
Mark Beaven during council's first
look at its 2006 budget. Beaven said
council has raised its budget "a con-
siderable amount beyond two per
cent" during the past two years and
"year three is the time to make up
for those two increases."
While many Ontario farmers face
the harsh reality that they will lose
more money this year than last,
hundreds gathered at two rallies
recently in Guelph and Ottawa,
hoping to make their combined voic-
es heard. Around 125 farmers from
Huron County attended the rally in
Guelph, while close to 65 from the
county were expected to attend the
rally in Ottawa. They rallied to
show support and continue pressur-
ing the federal and provincial levels
of government over the necessity for
risk management (RMP) and
income support programs for
Canadian farmers.
March, 2006
Close to 250 people packing the
hall at the Seaforth Agriplex lasts,
Tuesday were urged to call their
MPP to protest the quick passage of
legislation implementing Local
Health Integration Networks
(LHINs). Despite the fact that Bill
36 was being introduced for third
reading to the provincial legislature
that night, meeting organizers
asked anyone concerned about local
access and control over healthcare
services to make their voices heard.
Rural hospitals will have greater
opportunities under the new Local
Healthcare Integration Networks
(LHINs), says Huron -Bruce MPP
Carol Mitchell. Mitchell says con-
cern about LHINs is expected but
unnecessary.
The local snowmobile season came
to a screeching halt on Friday, as
trails in the Clintbn, Blyth,
Seaforth, Goderich and St. Helen's
areas closed unexpectedly. Despite a
nice covering of snow, signs
announcing the closures were post-
ed over the weekend in support of
an ongoing farmer -led protest.
The signing of the final develop-
ment agreement for the Bridges of
Seaforth is the culmination of a long
12 -year process towards a 248 -home
adult lifestyle community at the
Seaforth golf course. Bill MacLean,
his partner Iry Teper and Huron
East Mayor Joe Seili signed the
final agreement Monday at town
hall which will allow the developers
to bring in the water and hydro ser-
vices and begin to build the 20
homes that have been sold already
in the Bridges subdivision.
Seaforth is getting ready to bloom
this summer. As a spin-off from last
year's First Impressions community
exchange program that partnered
Seaforth with Petrolia, Seaforth has
been invited to enter the
Communities in Bloom competition
with Petrolia, last year's national
champion in the 3,001 to 5,000 pop-
ulation category.
If a family health team (FHT) is
to remain in Huron East, municipal
councillors need to "get to the table
to fight" for it, Huron East council
heard at its meeting last Tuesday.
Physician recruiter Gwen
Devereaux and Dr. Dan
Rooyakkers, site chief for Seaforth
Community Hospital, attended
council to ask for help with the FHT
announced for Seaforth a year ago
by the province.
Huron East ratepayers should be
writing a cheque for the same
amount as last year for their prop-
erty taxes. Grey Coun. Mark
Beaven made that observation as he
congratulated council for passing a
"flatline budget" at its Mar. 21
meeting.