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HomeMy WebLinkAboutLakeshore Advance, 2011-02-16, Page 10• • • , • • 10 Lakeshore Advance • Wednesday, February 16, 2011 Council spares residents a water hike Vanessa Brown OMI Agency Residents of the Municipality of Bluewater can temporarily breathe a sigh of relief as increased water rates have been postponed. Ilensall s water usage has almost doubled since last summer, from an average of 18,000 cubic metres up to 29,000 cubic metres per month. The municipality has yet to determine whether the increase is due to a leak or faulty meter readings. Council motioned last Monday, to get answers before moving ahead with an inevita- ble water -rate Increase. "If we don't determine the cause in I lensall, that could put a heavy burden on the ratepayer," said Coun. Geordie Palmer (Bayfield). Water rates are consolidated across the municipality, meaning residents in Clay, Stanley, Zurich and Bayfield are currently paying for the lost water draining out of Hensall. Mayor Bill Dowson said the municipality, "can't have a fair budget with this kind of a leak." Deputy Mayor Paul Klopp echoed Dowson's argument, adding that Hen - sail's rapid increase in usage skews the whole system. "With that amount of water being somewhere, it really does throw these numbers off," he said. "It's almost like having a population not paying for water." Either way, a rate increase is inevita- ble this year. Bluewater will face a pro- jected $189,312 deficit in its water operating budget, which comprises day-to-day operation of the system. Kittmer therefore advised council to increase rates by 25 per cent in 2011, or $65 per customer. "It's a chicken -and -egg scenario where you need to understand your budget to set rates, but you need to understand your rates to set your Ovi*--s8 41tit kaThi11 Monday, February 21, 2011 The Lakeshore Advance will be CLOSED on Family Day Monday February 21st, 2011 Deadlines for the Wednesday, February 23rd edition will be ADVERTISING & EDITORIAL DEADLINES: Thursday, February 17th @ 2:00 pm 58 Ontario St. N. Grand Bend 519-238-5383 ladvance@bowesnet.com i budget," Kintner said. The municipality expects to receive $743,000 in 2011 for water from its customers. Based on increased operat- ing costs, however, the required revenue to offset a deficit is $932,312. Each non -metered house- hold currently pays $260 per year to cover the cost of operating the system. If the proposed rate increase passes, that number would jump to $325 per year. Metered buildings would see about the same increase. Bluewater currently has one of the lowest water rates compared to neighbouring municipalities. Only Sau- geen Shores, Stratford and Huron -Kinloss charge less. If the 25 per cent increase passes, most likely during budget deliberations in March, the municipality would rise to the middle of the pack, surpassing North Huron and Goderich. The last water -rate hike was in 2008, Committees a no-go For the second time this term, councillors vetoed Mayor Bill Dowson's com- mittee recommendations. Bluewater councillors sit on the municipality's vari- ous committees and bring necessary information back to council for deliberation. Councillors agreed last Monday, that 80 per cent of Dowson's recommendations would pass, but the motion was defeated in a 5-5 recorded vote, Those who voted in favour of Dowson's recommenda- tions were Deputy Mayor Paul Klopp and Councillors John Becker (Hay East), Dave Roy (Stanley East), Janisse Zimmerman (Zurich) and Dowson. Councillor -at -large Tyler Ilessel and Councillors Kay Wise (Hensall), George Irvin (Stanley West), Geordie Palmer (Bayfield) and John Gillespie (flay West) opposed the recommenda- tion as presented. "Seven years I've sat at this table, and never have 1 seen Tackling the coyote population CONTINUED FROM > PAGE 9 Warden's Notes A chance to chat with pro- vincial Environment Minis- ter iohn Wilkinson during a recent Western Wardens' Caucus proved to be among the highlights of the month for Iluron County Warden Neil Vincent (North Huron). Other highlights of the month include ongoing dis- cussions with neighboring counties on how best to trickle the exploding coyote population. Council as the page wel- comed a I luron Centennial Public School student with family ties to politics for February. In introducing (rade 7 student Kyle Schroeder, Goan. Bill Rowson (Bluewa- ter) reports the student has relatives who have served in county politics, including his great -great grandpa. Dow - son notes Kyle is an avid "sportsperson" and hockey player whose team is vying for the All Ontario Wee Pee championship Need Mortgage Money? F,mn ,S Residenthal 1 & 2 Mottgage S 3.25 Interest or Less • No upfront fees • Personal loans/mortgages • Consolidate your debts • Problem mortgage specialist Head Moe Ph: 519.744.6251 Llc, 010163 ASTRAL FUNDING INC. 11 you qualify, payments: Amt. Approx. Mo. Payment ' 5,000 ' 13.55 '10,000 ' 27.08 '50,000 '135.42 '100,000 '270.83 1-800-387-1932 0.1 10th Street. H;lnover a council debate on something like this," Coun. Becker said. Dowson's committee recommenda- tions were first struck down in January. Coun. Hessel argued last Monday that all members of council should sit on certain committees. "I feel that libraries area a commu- nity thing and I believe they're for all councillors," he said. He added that every councillor should be appointed to the environ- ment and landfill committees. "We need to get on with this now because we're starting to fall by the wayside," he said. OPP BRIEFS impaired driver neatly four times above legal NM On February 13, at approximately 2:30 am, Hixon OPP offers were sent to a sin- gle motor vehicle collision on Cameron Street in Bayfield. A witness remained at the scene of the collision until police arrived as it appeared that the driver may have been Impaired by alcohol. Upon arrival, police found the drtwer who was trying to hook up his vehicle in order to get it out of the snow bank. The driver showed obvious signs of impairment and was arrested. He was then transported to the Huron OPP Detachment where he met with a qualified Intoxilizer Technician to provide two samples of his breath. The results of the two tests indicated that the driver had a blood alcohol level approach- ing FOUR times above the legal limit of 80 milligrams. A 40 year old Bluewater man is now fac- ing one count of Impaired Driving and one count of Drive With Over 80 Milligrams of Alcohol. He will answer to his charges In the Ontario Court of Justice — Goderich on April 4, 2011. His licence has been sus- pended for 90 days.and his vehicle has been impounded for seven days as per statute. Break and enter to Exeter Legion hall At approximately 10:30 pm on Febru- ary 13,unknown suspect(s) broke into the Legion Hall building located on William Street In Exeter. The alarm was activated at the time of the break in. A significant cash float was taken during the crime. Any person with information regard- ing this incident or suspects in that area at the time of the break in should Immediately contact the Huron OPP at 1-888-310-1122 or (519) 524-8314. Should you wish to remain anonymous, you may call Crime Stoppers at 1 -800 -222 - TIPS (8477), where you may be eligible to receive a cash reward of up to $2,000.