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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuron Expositor, 2007-01-10, Page 10Page 10 January 10, 2007 • The Huron Expositor News County gives Ball's Bridges to host communities Huron East Deputy -Reeve speaks against commitment of $250,000 towards bridge Cheryl Heath Huron County is prepared to bid bon voyage to the Ball's Bridge, and send it on its way with a quarter -million dollar parting gift. In a recorded 14-5 vote, county council agreed to a resolution that will see ownership of the his- toric double -truss metal bridge change from the county to the host municipalities of Central Huron and Ashfield-Colborne-Wawanosh. That news was delivered in front of a few dozen Friends of Ball's Bridge members and sup- porters, including beloved author Alice Munro, in county council chambers on Wednesday. Council first passed a motion, giving the floor to Rebecca Garrett, co-chair of the Friends of Ball's Bridge. She spoke in favour of the plan to devolve the bridge to the lower -tier municipalities so the Friends group could have hands-on involvement in fundraising for the circa 1885 structure, with the hope of bringing it to a standard where it can accommodate light vehicular traffic. Garrett called Ball's Bridge a "valuable cultur- al resource," and noted historic bridges, like the Westmount Rose in Elmira, can be major tourist draws. She added the $250,000 request is not an over- ly large commitment given other communities, including New Hamburg, have spent more than $1 million to rehabilitate similar structures. Garrett also noted a preeminent expert on bridges said, "this is the Ontario pin -connected truss bridge that should be renovated." Though most councillors spoke in favour of devolving the bridge to the lower -tier municipali- ties, there were more than a few concerned about the one-time $250,000 grant allocation, though it is being taken from the county's $1.6 -million Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund and will not effect the county levy. Coun. Bernie MacLellan (Huron East) spoke out against both the grant, and the notion the bridge holds intrinsic value. "It hasn't had maintenance on it for 20 years for a reason," said MacLellan. "I don't know why the county would put any money towards it." MacLellan added though he doesn't necessarily support the demolition of the bridge, he cannot support a $250,000 commitment to it. Coun. John Bezaire (Central Huron) ques- tioned MacLellan's opposition to a one-time grant being lumped in with the devolution of the boundary bridge, given Huron East is home to 16 of the 31 such structures in the county. Other councillors jumped to the bridge's defence, including the reeves of both Central Huron and ACW. "It's more than just a bridge," said Coun. Bert Dykstra (Central Huron), adding his contention that both municipalities are taking a significant risk by standing up to take possession of it. "It's still on the books as a county bridge so the county has a responsibility," said Coun. Ben Van Diepenbeek (ACW) of the grant allocation. "It's a step in the right direction." Van Diepenbeek JANUARY 1 2Th - 13T` 1* 2 DAYS ONLY! Large Selection of Instock Mm IEBS' OUIiMS, WER G iLS, PROM & L & FORMAL St., Goderich 5 75 echoed Dykstra's senti- ment that the host municipalities are tak- ing a risk, but added, "we're willing to do that." Warden Deb Shewfelt (Goderich) said while the $250,000 grant might seem hefty, the county would have spent more than $100,000 in mainte- nance if it had followed the engineering consul- tant's original recom- mendation of allocating funds towards maintenance in the yearly roads budget. Coun. Dorothy Kelly (Morris-Turnberry) said the Ball's Bridge is more than a boundary bridge. "My feeling, Mr. Warden, is that this is a her- itage matter," she said. Ken Oke (South Huron) said while he'd like to see the bridge saved, $250,000 is too large a grant allocation. He added the county has often bucked at the notion of paying large sums to rehabilitate or repair heritage sites. Coun. Bill Dowson (Bluewater) said while the $250,000 is steep, it seems like a reasonable cost in order to remove the county's liability from the site. MacLellan reiterated the cost was too high, and he contended that the Friends' argument that the bridge was protected via its placement on the Ontario heritage site list was not valid because the county could apply to have it removed. "There are still too many unanswered ques- tions at this point," he said. The warden contended that it doesn't make sense for the county to commission an expensive study on how much it would cost to rehabilitate the bridge, or research possibilities for it. Instead, he said, devolving it to Central Huron and ACW makes the most sense. The warden said approving the resolution sets things in motion for the bridge and he added there is a chance the lower -tier municipalities will be able to add to their cache via a newly - introduced Infrastructure Ontario -led Rural Infrastructure Fund. In the recorded vote, councillors Bill Dowson (Bluewater), Bert Dykstra (Central Huron), James Fergusson (Bluewater), Dave Johnston (Bluewater), Dorothy Kelly (Morris Turnberry), John Bezaire (Central Huron), Tim .Collyer (Central Huron), Bill Siemon (Huron East), Neil Vincent (North Huron), Ben Van Diepenbeek (ACW), Deb Shewfelt (Goderich), Neil Rintoul (ACW), Murray Scott (North Huron) and John Grace (Goderich) favoured the resolution. Councillors Bernie MacLellan (Huron East), Ken Oke (South Huron), George Robertson (South Huron), Max Demaray (Howick) and Jim Deichert (South Huron) were opposed to it. Municipal leaders can get involved in water protection committee Scott Tousaw, director of planning and development for the county, reported the county is still waiting to review the regulation the province is seeking under the newly introduced Source Water Protection Act. He noted at last week's county council meeting that there will be spots available on the water protec- tion steering committee for munici- pal leaders who are interested in getting involved. Unfair tax practices Coun. Bernie MacLellan (Huron East) is among those wondering if the county can further come to the aid of residents of municipally - owned retirement residences that are currently not entitled to claim the Ontario property tax credit. MacLellan said it seems unfair that the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency (CCRA) allows res- idents of private homes to claim the credit while others cannot. "This seems like kind of a traves- ty of what is going on," he said. Coun. Tim Collyer (Central Huron), a retired homes employee, said the' issue is a complicated one as whether or not a break is grant- ed depends on one's taxable income.