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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1981-06-03, Page 1Even if no one else does... We'll get February holiday Exeter residents will have a holiday in February, regardless of whether or not the federal government follows a suggestion from Kingston to make it a national holiday. Council this week endorsed the Kingston resolution 'calling for a national holiday to commemorate Sir John A. MacDonald, Canada's first prime minister. They then went one step further in agreeing to proclaim the third Monday in February of each and every year as a civic holiday in Exeter for the purpose of celebrating Canada's heritage and the first prune minister. Ironically, the question of whether some employees of ADULTS TRY, TOO — Sharon Miller was one of the parents taking port in the sponge game at Wednesday's closing picnic for the Dashwood Beavers. T -A photo the town will get the holiday in 1982 remains unanswered. The recommendation from the executive committee included a suggestion that in the future, the February date would be negotiated as a holiday in place of Easter Monday. However, the town currently has a contract covering 1982 with its em- ployees and it calls for the Easter Monday holiday and not one in February. Kingston decided to demonstrate some initiative in the lengthly debate over a February holiday because Sir John A. MacDonald was a resident of that city and is buried on the periphery of Kingston. ' Bed and breakfast promoted Mayor Bruce Shaw said Exeter would be the first municipality in Canada to take some action on the long - discussed Heritage Day holi- day. The resolution from Kingston indicated that city would also declare the third Monday in February as a civic holiday, regardless of what the federal govern- ment may do. Councillors Bill Mickle and Gaylan Josephson voic- ed opposition to the proposal of the civic holiday declara- tion. Mickle suggested it may be a case of jumping the gun a little and felt it Should be considered only on a national or provincial level. He also noted the town's own employees may prefer to stick with the Easter Monday holiday rather than a February holiday as the former gives them a longer weekend period in conjun- cion with the Good Friday holiday. "Your eloquence hasn't swayed my opinion," Josephson told Mayor Shaw as he and Mickle voted against approval of declar- ing the holiday. in Exeter. Other recommendations from the executive com- mittee that were approved included: A $20 per week increase to H. Wolfe Cleaning Service, effective June 1. The firm cleans the municipal building, library and police station. Notice that Mayor Bruce Shaw planned to attend this year's A.M.O. ' convention. Jay Campbell indicated Monday he wduld like to at- tend the event. CUBS CAMPING WEEKEND — Members of the Exeter Cubs participated in a camporee at the Falls Reserve Conservation area at Benmiller over the weekend. Shown around o campfire are Lori Chalmers, Mark McDonald, Chris Eccles, Mark Mothers and Robbie McLelland. T -A photo Dogs up, tags aren't Councillor Morley Hall thinks there's something strange regarding the fact Exeter's dog population appears to be increasing and yet the number of dog tags sold at the clerk's office is decreasing. He said this week, that in fairness to owners who do buy tags. some action should be taken against those who do not. At his suggestion, council agreed to run an advertise- ment indicating action would be taken against those who fail to comply with the laws regarding tags and also permit dogs to run at large. However. some members felt there would be little gained unless council decid- ed what action they would take if the warning was not heeded. "Our bark will be worse than our bite." Councillor Jay Campbell commented. Exeter's industrial promotion committee members feel there is inadequate accommodation for visitors to the community and hope to enlist local residents in setting up a "bed and breakfast" program. The suggestion for bed and breakfast accommodation, where private homes offer srrvices to overnight guests, was made by a citizen. The committee has sup- ported the suggestion and asks those who would be interested in participating to let someone at the clerk's office know. "It is fully understood that guidelines and controls May be required," the com- mittee's written report to council stated. Councillor Gaylan Josephson said Monday night that the bed and breakfast program was an excellent approach to im- proving accommodation in Exeter. His thoughts were echoed by Councillor Jay Campbell, who said he had people in the store every day looking for accommodation in Exeter. He noted there were provin- n vi to from PUC cial guidelines for facilities that were offered for such a program. Much of the discussion at the May 26 committee under consideration meeting pertained to promotional brochures. No final conclusions were reached and a further meeting has been scheduled for June 9 to develop a brochure. Dave Werrett of Semi -Fab Industries Limited Exeter Please turn to page 2. Exeter's finance com- mittee will decide next week whether they will accept an invitation to attend the next regular PUC meeting to dis- cuss their request for infor- mation on PUC salaries and budgets. Chairman Bill Mickle was a bit hesitant in accepting the invitation, noting that council's request for the in- formation was very explicit and the Public Utilities Act was very clear in stating council could request such information. At their meeting last week, the PUC decided to in- vite the finance committee to their June 30 meeting to clarify the interest and in- tent in the request for the in- formation. Noting there were strain- ed relations between council and the PUC, Councillor Jay Campbell said he welcomed the invitation to dialogue. Mayor Bruce Shaw, who was absent from last week's Commission meeting, relayed the invitation to council. He said the Com- mission did not wish to divulge the information re- quested by council. The finance committee will meet next week to decide on their next step. Council members remain unhappy with the method used to determine the cost they face to have the PUC handle the sewer surcharge billing. They received a copy of a letter to PUC manager Hugh Davis from Onthrio Hydro outlining how the cost is ap- portioned. The letter in- dicated the factors used were arrived at based on es- timates of the work involved in preparing and calculating each type of bill. The letter said that because the sewage bills are calculated on a flat rate amount and• involve no meter reading, a factor on one is appropriate while a factor of two represents the relative degree of complexi- ty involved in the prepara- tion of a hydro bill based on the metered amounts. Councillor Gaylan Josephson said he couldn't see the logic in determining the factors. saying that there was no way that the work involved in reading meters and preparing the hydro portion of the bill should only be a factor of two if the sewage bill was given a factor of one. He said the factors were obviously drafted by Ontario Hydro to keep their costs down. Councillor Jay Campbell suggested council were get- ting the run-around on fac- tors and said rather than taking the matter up with Ontario Hydro. they should ask their MPP to investigate the situation with Hydro. Ames Serving South Huron, North Middlesex One Hundred and Eighth Year dVew • VOC & North Lambton Since 1873 EXETER, ONTARIO, JUNE 3, 1981 Price per copy 40 Cents Had drugs for trafficking at 115, area Judge W.G. Cochrane levied two jail terms when hP presided at Exeter court, Tuesday. An 18 -year-old Woodstock man, Denis Colic, was given 90 days for the unprovoked assault on an Exeter youth last week and a 17 -year-old student at SHDHS was given two days for the possession of drugs for the purpose of trafficking. In the latter case, Peter Simon Smith, Zurich, was charged on April 22 when a teacher at the school wit- nessed his attempt to sell drugs to a 14 -year-old female student. The teacher took Smith to the school office and he was then turned over to Exeter police. Smith had approximately 10 cigarettes with marijuana in them. In addition to the two-day jail term, the Zurich student KINSMEN HAVE A VISITOR — Allan Aston of Holywood in Ireland spent some time over the weekend with members of the Exeter Kinsmen club. He is on a Young Men's Service Club exchange in Canada. Above, Aston chats with Bill Armstrong and Bob Reynolds of the Ex- eter Kinsmen. T -A photo Crediton trucker dies in Melbourne crash A 43 -year-old Crediton man was killed Wednesday morning when his large transport was struck by a welding supply van on Highway 2 west of Melbourne. John McDermott, a driver for Earl Lippert Trucking of Crediton, was pronounced dead at the scene of the colli- sion by Coroner Dr. M. Sanders. The driver of the other. vehicle, 28 -year-old Gerry. Meyer, Chatham, died later in Strathroy Middlesex General Hospital. The Crediton man had been eastbound on Highway 2 with a load of copper coils when the other vehicle failed to stop at the intersection as. it proceeded north on Middlesex County Road 8 and struck the tractor trailer. The accident occurred around 10:30 a.m. and OPP at Glencoe listed total damage at $80,000. Both vehicles were wrecked and their loads dumped on the highway. An obituary notice for the Crediton man appears 'elsewhere in this issue. Only one minor injury was reported in the five accidents investigated this week by the Exeter OPP. That injury was sustained by Brian Regier, Zurich, whose vehicle struck a tree in Zurich on Saturday„ Damage was set at $1,800. It was one of three ac- cidents on Saturday, the next one occurring in Hensell and involving vehicles driven by Irene Davis and Mary -Ann Wilson, both of Hensel'. They collided on Highway 84 in the village and damage was listed at $800. The other Saturday crash occurred on the Hay -Stanley Townline and involved vehicles operated by Mary McCann, RR 3 Dashwood, and Bruce Shaw Jr., Exeter. Damage was estimated at $1,100 in that one. On Tuesday. vehicles driven by Richard Gingerich, RR 3 Zurich, and William Kenny. Stratford, collided on concession 10-11 of Stephen south of Highway 83. A hydro pole was also damaged and total amount of damage in the incident was listed at $660. The other collision was on Sunday when an unknown vehicle struck a hydro pole in Zurich and left the scene. Damage to the pole was estimated at $1,500. youth gets two days in jail was fined $300 or 30 days and told that the victim was was given until;September 1 unconscious for a short time. to pay the fine., Colic told the court he was In handing down the stiff penalty, Judge Cochrane noted that the amount of drugs involved was not great, but said he was basing his ruling on the fact the occurrence took place in the high school. • Colic pleadediguilty to the assault charge, laid after he attacked Rob Bllcke, Exeter on May 22. The latter sustained alroken nose, two stitches to Ms H,cuts to the back of his head and a concussion. Thi court was Price up, thefts too With the price of gasoline continuing to escalate, the Exeter police department note that the theft of gas is also escalating. The officers are stepping up patrols on parking Tots, etc., but suggest that a lock- ing gas cap may be a wise in- vestment for motorists. The department also reports an increase in the number of thefts of other items from parked vehicles and note most vehicle owners provide an easy op- portunity for thieves as they leave their vehicles unlock- ed, windows open and often even with the keys in the ig- nition. " I f your vehicle or something in it is stolen in this situation. it is almost the victim." the press release notes. "If you must leave valuables (especially tapes) in your vehicle, lock them in the trunk .out of sight." ,The police remind residents that if they see someone suspicious around vehicles. the police should be notified. "You may be helping a friend. neighbour or even yourself!" Four bicycle thefts have been reported to police in the past week and three of the bikes have been recovered. Bike licences, which greatly increase the chance of recovery, are available at the police of- fice. It has been suggested that locking or otherwise securing bikes may be a good idea. The police have received reports of dirt bikes using the local parks and this is in contravention of local bylaws. No warnings will be given offenders caught con- travening the bylaw. The particular area of concern is the new ball diamond at the east of the rec centre. NAPPY MOTORING This' week's Times - Advocate contains a special supplement which will be of particular interest to anyone who owns or drives an automobile. The Car Care supplement features many handy tips on the maintenance and proper care of your vehicle. It also carries advertisements from area firms providing automotive -related services and merchandise. under the influence of alcohol at the time. Testimony revealed that LONG WAY AROUND — SHDHS teacher Gerry McAuley was involved in a collision beside South Huron Hospital, Thurs- day. He finally made it for treatment of his injuries after waiting for close to half an hour for an ambulance and then a circuitous route necessitated by the fact the shortest distance between the two points was blocked by the smashed vehicles. He suffered only minor injuries. Own costs down, but Hay taxes up At Hay township council's May meeting. Monday, councillors passed along county and school board mill rate increases but cut sight- ly the township's general rate The township's general rate dropped .17 mills to 49.30 mills. County and school board increases pushed the residential mill rate for public school support up 10.89 and 15.64 respectively. The total rate for general - township public school sup- port increased about 14 per- cent up 26.43 mills from the 1980 rate of 189.06. to a rate of 215.49 mills. Separate school board in- creases were not as great. making the residential rate for separate support 210.79. Commercial rates are now 253.51 mills for public and 247.98 mills for separate sup- port. In dollar terms. the mill rate equates to the dollar levy on a 81.000 assessment. Public school supporters would be paying $215.49 on a residential assessment of $1,000. Mill rates in the Dashwood Police Village were about 4 mills higher than the general townhip rates Residential rates are 219.06 for public and 214.38 mills for separate support. Commercial and business rates increased to 257.74 mills. public. and 252.21 mills for separate school support. Councillors were sur- prised to see the township's general rate had actually decreased. but lamented the fact nothing could be done about school board and coun- ty increases. The 1981 estimated budget totals $1.363,738. Major ex- penditures include $288.144 for transportation services. $176,174 for planning and development. and $120,056 for general government. Clerk Joan Ducharme reminded council the budgetted amount for plan- ning and development in- cludes 8173.000 for drainage and shoreline improvement. Other expenditures in - Please turn to page 2 he and his girl friend were walking along Main St. when they approached a group of local youths and Colic started the altercation. Judge Cochrane ordered the 90 days in jail to be served intermittently from Friday nights at 7:00 p.m. to Monday mornings at 6:00 a.m. Colic was placed on probation for the period when he is not in jail and ordered not to consume alcoholic beverages except by the prescription of a doctor. Colic was also given a two- day jail term after pleading guilty to the possession of drugs on the same date. The time was to be served con- current with the other jail term. Two drivers were each fined ;300 or 30 days after pleading guilty to driving with a blood alcohol content over 80 mgs. They also had their licences suspended for three months. Given the penalties were David R. Atthill, Exeter, and Darrell E. Dale, Seaforth. Atthill was charged on May 23 and a breathalizer showed a reading of 120 mgs. while Dale was charged on May 9 when a breathalizer test showed a reading of 170 mgs. Both had been stopped by police for erratic driving. A fine of 8500 or 50 days was levied against a 17 -year- old Huron Park man, Steven D. Dawe. He pleaded guilty to five counts of theft during January. The loot included cassette tapes, leather boots, quantity of tools, a tape deck and a battery charger. Everything has been recovered. The youth's mother told the court that their house had been gutted by fire and the accused. at the in- stigation of another person, had committed the thefts to raise money to help her. The thefts were said to be out of character for Dawe, who has a ' job and no previous criminal record. The 8500 fine was levied on the one theft involving items worth more than 8200 and on the other four charges, he was given a suspended sentence and placed on probation for six months. He was given 90 days in which to pay the fine. Judge Cochrane reserved - his decision on wilful damage charges against Ralph Ivan • Bremner, Exeter, who pleaded guilty to damaging a wire fence at the Exeter Co -Op on April 30. He drove his vehicle into the fence a.id damage was estimated at around 8680. Sentencing was put over until June 9. Michael Norris Gallagher, RR 3 Exeter, was given an absolute discharge on a mischief charge arising from damage he caused by driving a vehicle over the lawn at the Ontario Development Corporation property at Huron Park on April 26. The damage was repaired by the accused. Hearing set for Laidlaw The Ontario, Municipal Board has set June 17 for 'a hearing into Exeter's ap- plication for a zoning amendment to permit Laidlaw Transport to re- locate on the eastern out- skirts of the community. Three objections were received in the town's plan to change the zoning of the property on Highway 83 east to facilitate the move. One of those objections has since been withdrawn and the hearing will hear the other two remaining. The hearing will be held in the municipal office, com- mencing at 10:00 a.m. 1t has been feared that it may take up to six months to get an OMB hearing, but the board has moved quickly on the matter. A decision may be given at the hearing, or it may be reserved. "It's super having it that soon." Councillor Jay Campbell remarked at Mon- day night's council session. "Amazing." was Mayor Bruce Shaw's response t. HUNGRY BEAVERS -- The Dashwood-Grond Bend Beavers completed their regular season Wednesday with o picnic. Shown enjoying hot dogs are Jason and Eric Cloy T -A photo