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Page 4 Times -Advocate, April 8, 1987
1111111Mallin ' MIL
Times Established 1873
Advocate Established 1881
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The headline in last week's issue
noted that the budget for the Huron Coun-
ty Board of Education had climbed to
$44.5 million for 1987. It's a figure beyond
the comprehension of most people.
To get it down to one that people
unaccustomed to such high finance can
more clearly envision, the taxpayer with
the average assessment of $3,110 will be
asked to contribute $490.53 to those costs
this year through property taxes.
However, that's only one source of
revenue for the board. The provincial
government will contribute about $27
million in various grants and if you're
among those currently working on your
income tax returns for this year, you pro-
bably have a fair idea of where the pro-
vince is going to get some of that money.
Other contributions will be made when
you fill up the gas tank or add seven per-
cent to the purchase price of goods and
services received
In short, education takes a big bite
out of the average pay cheque, from -a
variety of sources. •
That's one reason why an increase of
nine, percent this year is difficult to
• swallow for most people. Their pay che-
' ques don't reflect that size of increase
Y s JtihII
1- /
and for many rom the agricultural com-
. -
munity; it is in fact better reflected in the :� i.- ` r `j
��
percentage decline in their returns for
the commodities which are currently- f
under considerable pressure. v
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It's perhaps even more disconcerting :1
have increased by approximately 40 per- -.., c,.‘„,$). - 1
to note that education costs in Huron i ..460.0
4i
cent since the 1982 budget was establish
ed at $32.7 million. "MS EATING My LETTER -TO -THE -EDITOR CR1TISlZ1NG TNE. POSTAGE {NCREASE!
While the majority of ratepayers
acknowledge that students in Huron must
receive the best education available, that
challenge can not be met outside the
financial ability of those same taxpayers -
to pay the associated bill and trustees are
obviously having some difficulty in com-
ing to that realization.. -
The board's budget increases -con-
tinue to be above acceptable guidelines
and the ramifications of that can be as
serious as the educational standards be-
ing below acceptable guidelines. -
There's no doubt that it is an ex-
tremely fine line and that it is one on
which trustees must attempt to walk.
Most people are prepared to tighten their
belts to provide for the'future of the next
generation, but the slack in those belts is
becoming minimal.
Already paying
Many prospective automobile buyers
are shocked when confronted by current
prices and unfortunately get little solace
from knowing that they have already
contributed substantially to that cost
through their tax dollars and will con-
tinue to do so.
The federal government and those in
Ontario and Quebec continue to extend
sizeable sums from their treasuries to
assist auto manufacturers. •
The most recent example is the $220
million interest-free loan provided to
General Motors by the federal and
Quebec governments to allow the firm to
•
maintain its car assembly plant in Ste.
Therese, Quebec. The firm also gets
some big tax breaks over the next
several years. -
The decision, of course, is politically
motivated and extends the dangerous
practice of using public funds to assist
private firms, even those as financially
successful as General Motors.
Even the opposition parties have en-
dorsed the latest deal, realizing that to
do otherwise would be to lose votes in
Quebec during the next federal election.
Is there no one left in Ottawa to speak
on behalf of taxpayers who should not be
Lxpected to subsidize private firms?
Tears of joy
•
There was a rather interesting
issue raised at last week's
meeting of the Huron Municipal
Officers' Association over attrac-
ting industry to individual
municipalities.
Ridgetown economic develop-
ment commission member Tim
Roberts was quite candid in his
remarks about the involvement
of the senior levels of government
and how that can be of benefit to
certain municipalities while
creating unfair situations f
don't adhere to themselves.
Roberts also had a hard shot to
take at the mjnistry of industry,
trade and technology when he
suggested some civil servants in
the ministry are not current in
their perception of some of the
smaller communities which they -
are supposedly representing.
Hopefully his message will be
tons or Batt'n
others.
His comments came after .4; r
Chuck Godkin of the ministry of
municipal affairs advised the
Huron officials about what they -
can't do to attract industry, such The Editor
...with
as lend or give property or pro -
ide other incentives for industry • • • • •
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to locate within their confines.
Roberts was quick to point out,
- however, that the provincial
government quickly breaks the
rules it has established for
municipalities and provides in-
ducements or concessions to at-
tract major industries.
The latter are often given
many special services or conces-
sions that an individual
municipality could not offer.
g
relayed to those who work in the
offices at major centres and in
Robertsview fail to further the
cause of those smaller
municipalities which need in-
dustry as much, if not more in
some cases, than their city
cousins.
* * * *
People who enjoy the practice
of belittling journalists, and sur -
From that standpoint, the prisingly there are some out
overnment often gives one there, often use the time -worn
municipality a better chance of
landing that industry at the ex-
pense of other communities vying
for the same customer.
• In essence, provincial conces-
sions can work to the detriment
of some communities and the
benefit of others and adds
credence to the do as I say, not as
I do theory to which senior levels
of government often subscribe as
they set rules for others that they
phrase that you can't believe
everything you read.
Well, a call from the Ausable
Bayfield Conservation Authority
officeindicates that 1st week's
column was a case in point.
General manager Tom Prout ex-
plained that a comment about an
increase in honorariums that
added $10,000 to'lhe budget was
erroneous as only the chairman
receives an honorarium and so
1
the increase to the budget was amere $250.While I apologize for that error,
it should be explained that it waspatially perpetrated by that
very you can't believe everything
you read syndrome.The minutes of the Authority I,meeting from which the writergleaned the information notedthat approval had been grantedto " er diems and honorariums
for directors" and a later motion
detailed the amount•of those per
diems and honorariums.Tom acknowledged that theminutes were incorrect in sug-
gesting that both per diems nd
honorariums were set for di•wtors, when in fact, the
honorarium is singular and is ex-
tended only to the Authority
chairman.
P/ural was incorrect
. Acknowledging that the South
Huron rec centre board already
has budget problems for this
year; it is difficult to make sug- .
gestions that may add to their
woes, but it appears that some
consideration should be given to
revamping the public address
system in the auditorium.
Officials at last week's session -1.
of the Huron Municipal Officers'
Association had some difficulty
getting the system operating in-
itially and most of the addresses
that followed were accompanied
by a rather annoying hum.
The public address system is
an important facet of successful r.
sessions at the centre and is a
matter that should be deliberated
by the board to ensure that
customers leave satisfied and
anxious to return in the future.
Canada's general insurance com- premiums or even to get into the in- Before sho in malls
panies were crying the blues in the past surance business themselves.ppg
to partially emphasize the need for the
move to double and even triple
automobile and liability insurance
Dremiums
Now they're crying all the way to the
bank as their profits hit a record high of
$1 billion in the past year, in increase of
159 percent over the 1985 figures.
Obviously, consumers have been in-
ordinately gouged, leading to another
type of cry:' to have governments in-
tervene by demanding a rollback on
Halts
One of the best initiatives
which I have seen corning out of
the Ministry of Education is call-
ed the Co -Op program.
It allows young people in Grade
12 to go out into a job situation
each afternoon for a full
semester. They receive no pay
for the job but are expected to
work and to be trained for a
period of five months. At the end
of that time they are given two
credits toward their high school
diplomas.
. Presently I have two high
school students 'employed' at my
school eath day.
A young lady who is planning
on going into the Early Childhood
r.auca ton course at ',amnion
College next year is working in
one of my special education
classes with severely handicap -
Insurance firms argue that the cur- I'm not ashamed to admit that monotonous design and disregard
rent profit figures represent only a
reasonable return on their investment,
but that is suspect, given the fact it
comes close to matching the returns•ex-
tracted from credit card users which the
government has recently moved to have
reduced. •
While there's little that insurance
customers can do about past premiums,
they should expect that renewals will be
offered at 1986 prices or even lower.
vicious. circle
ped youngsters. She is getting
first hand experience with
children and seems to he
thoroughly enjoying herself. Al
..................................
By the
Way
• by
Fletcher
the end of the term she will cer-
tainly be able to make a judge-
ment about whether she really
wants to spendnviU1l year of her
life at college doing that kind of
work.
The young man whb is also at
my school is very much in-
tet`ested.in computers. Since we
happen to have quite a few com-
puters in the building he is able
to do some very specific pro-
gramming for us, especially in
curriculum for primary
youngsters. Already he is a
tremendous asset to the school.
In both - cases we, as tfrir
'employers', are expected to
make out weekly reports on their
progress to send back;_ to the
secondary school and their super-
visor there. In the end I will be
able to write a recommendation
for them to include fin their
resunfes when they actually go
out to look for a job.
To me it breaks that old syn-
drome of 'no experience - no job'
and the vicious circle that that
can mean.
4
I am old enough to remember lite
before shopping malls.
Incredible as it may seem to
young people today. we all got
along nicely, thank you, without
malls - until the late 1950's. Then.
suddenly. communities fell they
could not afford to be without this
new-fangled, big -city invention.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not
against progress,, and I have
spent a few dollars myself in
shopping centres. But 1 think that
large regional shopping malls
can maim or kill the downtown
cores of small towns.
Not all, but many' of our
villages 'and towns have main
streets that deserve to be kept.
aljve. They have an architectural
charm that is part of our Cana-
dian heritage.
- Although many store fronts
have been disfigured by modern,.
often hideous embellsihments,
from angelstone to glass,- from
ersatz marble to imitation Tudor
styling, the upper storeys of the
buildings are usually left intact to
show their original facades. With
a bit of common sense and the
help of a sensitive architect. most
main streets could once again
become as pleasant and attrac-
tive as they once were.
And they would. if it weren't for
the shopping malls. Invariably
these artificial centres siphon
business ' away from the
downtown core. Not only are
many • shopping centres
themselves eyesores - with their
acre$ of parking lots, their
for the neighbourhoods in which
they spring up. They also cause
the destruction and deterioration
of our downtown business streets.
'Towns that are already "hless-
ed" with one -or more malls
should think bow they could
PETER'S
POINT
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• revitalize their downtown streets.
But communities that have thus
far resisted the temptation of
shopping centres should con-
gratulate themselves and shelve
their mall projects forever. -
Time and again one encounters
the spectre of a small town with
a delapidated main street where
many stores are vacant and
others rented to marginal, failing
businesses, while a couple of
- miles away, in a modern shopp-
ing mall, the sales clerks stand in
the doorways of their empty
shops. chatting with each tither.
dying of boredom.
The mall will be busy on Friday
nights and on Saturdays. but dur-
ing the week it is a lonely place.
Amost as lonely as downtown. So
the merchants everywhere resort
to gimmicks to attract customers
away from each other..
I don't pretend to be a town
planner, nor do I have the answer
to parking problems in fairly con-
gested areas. But - I seriously
doubt whether allowing shopping
centres to be built in competition
with a town's main streets makes
any sense at all. To my mind, the
centre of a community should be
preserved as its viable, vibrant
heart. And the towns that have
managed to do.that seem to he -
the most attractive and
prosperous. -
If a -large fpod store or depart-
ment store is needed, why •not
plan it as an integral part of
downtown? With some feeling for
aesthetics as. well as economics?
There is no reason why modern
buildings couldn't blend in with
traditional architecture. And
even parking garages can be in-
offensive. It's been done ex-
tremely well in Canada and other
countries. Perhaps municipal
decision -makers should take a
look at other communities that
. can serve as models.
A town with architectural
charm, with a lively, interesting
main street and with pride itt its
heritage is more likely to attract
tourists and investors - including
much-needed industry - than p
place that is slowly being stratig -
ed by its own shopping mall,.
let's hope that long after the
last shopping centre has cloSed
its doors forever, our histone
towns will still be around to he flit
joyed by future generations. ;