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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1982-01-06, Page 1w +►.+.w.r+.w .f ,v r ., r . .. • mom. .w e..s. r3ayA* ry... ,?', 01 "1' a'► xre vat, That February holiday may not ft Discussion around the Ex- eter council table this week • indicated 'that some members were of the opi- nion that their idea for a February holiday may have been ill-conceived and should be aborted. Mayor Bruce Shaw noted that they had decided some nine months ago (May 25) to declare the third Monday in February as Heritage Day to be marked by a civic holi- day, but the idea which had been circulated through a resolution from Kingston,_ had drawn little support from other Canadian municipalities. ' • We're about to give birth to this baby," Shaw said Monday. He said council c t. •It .44 •-r. come a er c come a ear ail could proceed with the holi- day as planned or could res- cind the May 25 resolution. In answer to a question from Deputy -Reeve Alvin Epp. Shaw said he didn't know of any communities other than Kingston planning the holiday and it was noted that the idea had been defeated at this year's meeting 'of the. Ontario Association of Mun- cipalities. When he was told that the local merchants would be obligated to close their stores if council declared the holiday; Councillor Bill Mickle said the merchants should therefore be con- sulted before the decision was made. Mickle also wondered U the town's own staff would get an extra paid holiday, or whether a substitution would be made. ' Shaw said the intent bad been to switch the'holldayy for the one the town staff received on Easter Monday. Works superintendent Glenn Keliti shook his head to indicate that Members of his staff were not in favor of switching the hbltdays. Councillor Tom Humphreys wondered what 'the effect would be tie banks and the pest office, while Dorothy Chapman men- tioned the school closing situation. . Clerk Liz Bell said that please torn to page 2 WINTARIO WINNERS — Eugene Guenther and wife Jean hold the stub of a Wintorio ticket which won them 525,000. The couple, from RR 3, Dashwood, recently discovered the .winning ticktit from o May 28 lottery drove. , rr'y . 7 1' Belated riches Finds $25,000 ticket in annual, review A yearly check of Wintario tickets turned up a $25,000 winner for Eugene Guenther of RR 3, Dashwood. The ticket was from the May 28 lottery draw. Giitwther said he puts all his tickets in a Friedsburg mug after checking only .the 'winfall' numbers for any free books. A yearly check of the prize winning numbers revealed the winning ticket. When told of the case of a man currently applying for welfare after a two year, S100,000 Wintario .spree of fast food and beer, Guenther said that he never really got to see the money. - lie said •it had been im- mediately invested in a home buyer's investment plan. Guenther was laid off from General Homes two weeks ago and his wife 'Joan is currently on maternity leave, expecting the couple's second child. They have a daughter. Lori, aged' three. While in Toronto to•pickup the check for his winnings, Guenther said two other winners, one of S137.400 and another of S100,000 were also collecting their checks. "I was sitting there with $25,000." Guenther said, "1 was happier than they were!" - t 3✓ei',: pro irnes Serviris South Huron, North Middlesex One Hundred and Ninth Year VOC & North Lambton Since 1873 EXETER, ONTARIO, JANUARY 6, 1982 Price Per Copy 40 cents Damage ever $350 000 ire destroys resort motel Owner undecided about rebuilding ._. Wit,,.- r -:?..; rJrn HOTEL LEVELLED — The,Green Forest motel in Grond Bend was levelled by fire early Sun- day. This picture was taken after the smoke had cleared Monday morning. T -A photo COFFEE FOR FIREMEN -- Stan Johnson of the Grand Bend fire department and On Becker of the Dashwood brigade take time out for a coffee at the scene of the Green Forest motel fire in Grand Bend Sunday morning. - T -A photo Exeter council veto proposed tax :revolt By a vote of 6-2, Monday, - n Exeter council decided against joining a form of •'tax revolt" being proposed by the council of the • Township of St. Vincent. After a short debate, cou'n- cil voted to turn down a resolution from the Meaford area township. calling on consumers to stop paying provincial sales tax across . the counter and also urging all merchants to refrain from collecting sales taxes. The idea was fostered by St. Vincent Councillor Eric 'gins and was circulated owing a 3-2 vote by his rIta; ouncil members. In a 'letter explaining his dea. _ Biggins said the provincial sales tax of three percent was introduced into Ontario ostensibly to help pay the cost of our medicare program. it was increased to five percent and is now seven percent, and he suggested it was the biggest single contributing factor to inflation. "We have gone the full cy- cle and are now being asked to pay privately for future medical and hospital charges. Do we hear cries of Outrage from the opposition? What Opposition." He went on to say that both the federal and provincial governments "have proven beyond a shadow of a doubt, that they are totally in- capable of wisely spending the revenue pried,from the taxpayer ih a continually In- creasing volume; and further because i believe / that taxation is theft. I urge collected and the branch will all Canadians woo would like undertake collection direct - to halt inflation to stop pay- • ly from the customer, ing provincial sales tax provided the vendor notifies across the counter." it within 20 days of receiving Biggins quoted from a the refusal and has obtained department of revenue tax ,the refusal to pay in writing bulletin which noted that the from the customer. purchaser is always liable "in this country, citizens for the sales tax until it is Please turn to page 2 A fierce fire early Sunday morning in -the Green Forest Motel at Grand Bend caused an estimated $350,000 of damage and gutted the 14- - room building. The village deputy fire chief, Prosper Van Bruanene, said the alarm was called in at 5:00 a.m. by a motel- neighbour whose window had been lit up by • the bright flames. Fourteen men rushed to the scene. The OPP summoned fire units from . nearby Forest, Parkhill and Dashwood •for assistance. The blaze took several hours to control, Van. Bruaene said, and the winds were blowing - -burning fragments off the motel's roof. But there was no danger of a second fire breaking out, he said. • - According to motel owner John Resch, the building was "partially covered" by in- surance. He wasn't sure whether or not he would re- build, saying it would depend on what happens in the near future. He was staying at the home of his son Adam at the time of the blaze. Resch has / LEAVING THE SLED — Deanta'tlncierwobd leaves her small toboggan after hitting o bump down One of the hills at Morrison Dam, Sunday afternoon. T -A photo Interest rate down The interest on tax arrears has been reduced by Exeter council in view of declining interest rates elsewhere. Last year, council upped the tax arrears interest penalty to about 24 percent, but in a bylaw approved this week, dropped it to 18 per- cent for 1982. Also passed was a bylaw authoriz ing the municipality to borrow up to $L000,000 to y>?ieet current expenditures' n41 the taxes are collected. Clerk Liz Bell said the town may not,have to borrow any funds. ESCAPE DAMAGE The Exeter PUC ex- perienced no problems due to the high winds which lashed the area, Monday. "We were fortunate," commented manager Hugh Davis. One power break was experienced shortly before 6:00 p.m. and lasted for about five minutes. Davis said the district connection was lost, but did not know the extent of the area affected by the short black -out. Exeter OPP ,said there were no storm -related problems reported to them. OVER ESTIMATE The repair work on the Exeter bridge has been, completed and the project will cost nearly 820,000 more than originally estimated. Works superintendent Glenn Kelis •advised council this week that the total repair bill will be S64,100. It had been expected to be around 845,000. The town will be respon- sible for paying 10 percent of the cost and the province will pick up the balance. The project was done on a time and material basis by an Owen Sound contractor. TALKS SCHEDULED A meeting between Huron 'County board of education and mediator professor Jeffrey Gandz has been set for January 11. "We'll see where we go from there," said, education relations commission ap- pointee Gandz . The meeting will be in regards to the unsettled agreement for the Huron secondary school teachers. The two groups have not met since November and Gandz said the teachers have yet to arrange further meetings. A fact finder's report recommended $36,180 as a maximum teacher's salary. The board offered $36,200, while the teachers requested $37,200. w owned the motel for, 4' - years. The motel was empty at the time of the fire, Resch confirmed. - The building was already burning stronglywhen- the first firefighters arrived. A strong southeast fanned the flames more. Tete gutted wind' even building is being inspected by the Fire Marshal's office in Chatham. No cause was listed. • It was Grand Bend's ts..� MANY HANDS IN ACTION — The Grand Bend fire department needed all the hands they could muster at the Sunday morning fire of the Green Forest Motel. Due to a double exposur+ firemen lorry Whiting, Ken Vingo, Garry Desjardine and Larry Taylor appear to be doing more than their share of work. T -A photo Biggest test is female candidate Riddell will back Peterson London Centre MPP David Peterson who is one of Five candidates for 'the Ontario Liberal leadership was in Exeter Tuesday night to gather support for his campaign. Peterson met with about 25 party faithful and possible delegates to the, convention which will he held in Toronto February 19 to 21 to name a leader to succeed Dr. Stuart Smith. - Peterson said "my campaign hit the ground running and 1 was in 12 cities in the first few weeks. We have to function in every riding. My job.is to prove I'm capable of organi3ing. The new leader will have a Constant. campaign for three years -for the next provincial election," Ile continued, "The new leader must be ready. We will be facing at least one by- election. i am very con- cerned 4)f the changes in the party that must be made." • "1 am. not. satisfied with our staff at some levels. We must develop an inventory to show where our strong and weak points are and come up with fund raising to get rid of all of our debts, If I am successful every party problem will become mine." When someone suggested he was the favourite, Pherson said, "Being a front' runner creates problems. I will have to outwork pnd outdo the others and genuindY win the job in everybody's mind." Peterson criticized the Conservative government for the recent purchase M Suncor. Ile added, "There was no logical ettplanation for this purchase. it was the biggest single mistake ever made by the province. it comes at a terrible time, when everybody's being,: squeeied:`' ' The London MPP con- tinued. "It will never make money unless there is a big strike like Ledyc or Hibernia. At least 10 com- panies turned down offers to buy-" Asked if the subject was - brought .to a vote: Peterson replied. "it never came to a vote. A majority ' in parliament is like dre= - tatorship. They are borrowing 325 million (rofn pension funds for the down payment. At this rate of spending the Canada Pen- sion fund will be bankrupt by the year 2003.._ Peterson said he was facing four serious can- didates for the Liberal leadership and added. "Our philosophical diffefences are not that much. Probably more a figment of the imagination than reality." Huron -Middlesex .sIPP Jack.Riddell is throwing his support behind Peterson. Riddell told the T -A over the weekend. •'1 identify pretty well with him and he was ;very helpful in my campaign' during the last election." - • fie continued, "Peterson is our financial critic and has a tremendous knowledge of business and finance. lie's the one that I feel can get our party straightened out financially." Riddell expects the most opposition to come from Sheila Copps, one of the newest • MPP's • from Hamilton. She is 'the daughter of former Hamilton mayor Vic Copps and according to Riddell "has politics in her blood and is out to win. She's Much •more than just a sacrificial lamb." Asked about the outcome. Please turn to page '2 . • second major fire in the past year. the Lakeview Casino having been destroyed in June. - On December 15. 60 -year- old Fred Statton was pulled from his smoke-filled room on the second 'floor of the motel. Careless smoking was suspected to be the cause of the early morning fire. Statton is still in intensive care at London's University Hospital. Ice leads to crashes Icy road conditions con- tribWed to two of the four accidents investigated by the Exeter OPP this week. One injury was reported, it being of a minor nature. It occurred in one of three accidents on Thursday when vehicles operated by Gordon Phillips, RR 1 Hensall, and Hoa -Van Nguyen, RR 5 Clinton. collided on Highway 4 south of Hensel'. Phillips sustained minor injuries and damage was set at 83.000. A vehicle, driven by Lynda Iredale, RR 1 Centralia, went out of control on con- cession 2-3 of Osborne Township and rolled over on its roof in a creek. • • The driver escaped uninjured and damage was listed at 81.000. The other Thursday crash was on concession r2743 .Of flay Township and involi•ed vehicles driven by- Mark Masse. Nensall; andR obert. Vanderhoek. RR:3 _Zurich. Damage was listed at 81.800, in the collision south of Nigh- wavy 8.1. The other crash .of the week was on New Year's day when a vehicle driven by Donald Brown. Calgary. went out of control on con- cession 2-3 of Stephen and . rolled over in the ditch - Brown was not .hurt and damage was estimated at $2,000. - OPP Sgt. 'Ray Glover reported . that New Year's eve was "one of the best ever" and no charges were laid for impaired driving. There were no criminal investigations over. the entire holiday period. LEADERSHIP CANDIOA►TE VISITS - David Peterson MPP London Centre and one of fur. tandidofes for the. 0••tor,o liberal leadership was In Exeter Tuesday night looking for support from prospective deteaates Fr,,1v the left ere `luron Middlesex riding association president Bernard Benn, Ruth Hogan, MPP -Jock Riddell and MPR ho 1,i. Pi.terson t, .\ rhoto 1 4 .\, s