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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1989-01-04, Page 2Page 2 Times -Advocate, January 4, 1989 PUC to ask for tenant A yvrite-off of. $2,726 in uncol- lectable 1988 electricity bills at the December meeting of the Exeter PUC has led to adoption of a new olicy to ensure. such a situation • I not occur again. P manager Hugh Davis was asked o draft a resolution for com- missioners' approval stipulating that as of January 1, 1989, all new .% customers occupying rental accom- modation in Exeter will have to, . give the PUC a $100 deposit before ' hydro service begins, unless they Prove .they have a good record of. paying.thcir utility bills. ThiS could bedone through a letter from the customer's previous -Supplier of electric service. - 4 The resolution will contain the proviso that -the money be refunded after a certain period -Of f time, if the customer had not been given a dis- connect notice during that period. Commissioner Harry De' Vries proposed adding that no interest be iaid on deposits hold for one year, s the accounting procedures would be too cumbersome. Davis had done -some research, and found that the PUCs in St. Marys, Seaforth, Clinton, Gode- rich and Strathroy all -require de- posits from residential tenants who arc considered potential poor risks. He explained that before writing off the bills, the PUC bad first done everything in its j ower to collect: The delinquent customers were then taken to small claims court or the unpaid accounts were handed over to a collection agency or a lawyer. "The utility has to be seen as a company. that makes every effort to collect its money", Davis noted. "The amounts written off are small, but represent a heck of a lot of administrative work. Besides, we arc handling someone else's money", De Vries said. . • The office staff of the Exeter utility were commended for han- dling over $2.5 million in 1988,' and being one dollar over at the " end of the year. Gas tenders from Exeter Co-op and Rowe Fuels were -opened. Both offered a three cent discount eposit on the net price. Davis asked one of the staff to check that day's price, saying •in his experience the gas price north of the -river in what was once Francisville is usually two-tenths of a cent lower. When this proved true, the One-year con- tract was given to the Exeter Co- op. .The commission. and staff have reached an agreement on wages and benefits for the next three years. Linemen and water staff employees will receive a 6.74 percent increase on January 1 of 1989, a 4.53 in- crease the next year, a 3.48 increase at the beginning of 1991, and an additional two percent on July 1, 1991. . The manager and the office staff will receive a five percent salary in- crease at the beginning of 1989 and 1990, and either five percent or thc cost of living, whichever is greater, -on January 1, 1991. The commission agreed to raise the rent on the apartment on the second floor of the PUC building by four percent. Authority watershed flan EXETER - General manager Tom Prout has announced that:Che Ausablc Bayfield Conservation Au- thority has approved a watershed plan summary. It provides information on the ABCA, its mandate, goals and ob- jectives which will enable the Con- servation Authority to meet the challenges of resource management problems considering the most ef- fective role and methods to use and strategies and programs designed to meet the resource management ob- jectives of the ABCA. .The Watershed Plan is designed. to guide the Authority in the future management of the resources with- in its area. of jurisdiction: . The plan will outline areas of concen- tration' for the programs and pro- jccts.of the Authority for the next 10 to 15 years.. The Planistates the objectives of the Authority for the .program arcas soil erosion, water supply, water quality, recreation, forestry, envi- ronmentally significant are- as, fish and wildlife and cul- tural and historisal resources. These program areas have been ranked, as funding seldom allows for complctc coverage of all pro- grams. There is significant integration between the. program areas oLthc Watershed Plan. .For example; strategics designed to achieve ob- jectives for flooding may also serve to alleviate water quality or water supply problems. The objective of flooding, the highest priority, arca, into prevent loss of life and minimize property damage .by the management of floodplain land. .This will be achieved through: a flood forecast- ing and warning system; enforce- ment and registration of Fill, Con- - struction and . Alteration to Waterways Regulation; education programs; management_ of hydro- logically significant areas; mainte- nance and operation of water con- trol structures; and monitoring of Oddfellows help Lions - The Exeter Independent Order of Oddie! - lows recently donated $500 to the Exeter Lions Youth Centre pro- - ject. Above, Wilmer Adkins Oddfellows Noble Grandpresents the cheque to Lions president Ross Mathers. Get donation for nature trails EXETER - A new project esta- blished late in 1988 by the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority Foundation has received a financial boost. - Ted Jones of -the Ausablc Bay- field Foundation announced Mon- day that $3,000 would be forth- coming for the Whccls to Nature program at the Rock Glenn Con- servation area from the Arcangclo Rea Family Foundation in London. The Wheels to Nature program will be providing wheelchair access - ability to the Rock Glenn trails so handicapped persons can enjoy the beauty of thc conservation arca. Joncs said the main thrust of the London based Arcangclo Founda-. tion is to promote cnviron'mental conservation. WINTER STOCK MUST GO Sale Starts Today ALL DRESSES 50%0FF Infant to Size 16 • 1/a 'OFF KNIT SETS (SKIRT & PANT SETS) 1 OFF BOYS' PANTS (Casual 8 Dress Size 2 to 1fi) •25% OFF OSH KOSH (Excluding Spring Arrivals) Jeune de Coeur Separates 4 0% OFF Boys & Girls Sizes 2-16 NEW HOURS MON. TO SATURDAY 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Kidz 4LOie Main St. Seaforth drainage activities in rural and ur- ban areas. ._ Soil erosion was ranked sec- ond in importance to the Authority and two objectives were developed. One was to provide protection of life and property from soil erosion, and the second was to identify ex- isting and potential soil manage- lnent problems. . .Ttic first objective will be rnct by undertaking. remedial measures to control the problem at the re- quest of the Municipality and to designate erosion prone areas in planning documents. Upland soil erosion problems will be addressed through the Conservation Services Program, education of the public, participation in the activities of the proposed Huron Soil Conservation District and by identifying areas that exhibit the greatest capability to transport sediment. In areas of streamban and ditch - bank erosion problemJtthc Authori- ty will review municipal drainage proposals, -register and administer Fill, Construction and Alteration to Waterways Regulation, encourage, municipalities to.adopt drain main- tenance programs; initiate an educa- tion program and offer Conserva- tion -Services programs. Wind erosion will be reduced by planting -windbreaks through-Eon---users-to-the-mid-January-meeting-to servation Services Program. • The third priority program is'the Authority's water supply pro- gram. The water supply objective is to manage water and related land resources so as to provide adequate water supplies for the .water uses occurring in the watershed. The Authority, in order to achieve this objective, will'operate and maintain water control structures, manage hydrologically significant areas and . develop an educational program. The fourth ranked program arca was water quality and the objec- tive is to improve the overall water quality within the watersheds of the Authority. This will be achieved through plan review, Ministry of Environment watcr'sampling assis- tance, an education program on manure storage and handling prac- Please turn to page 22 t Exchanging gifts Exeter Bantam goalie Darren Mason (left) and team Sweden goalie Gunnar Vrang exchange gifts before their game at the Rec Centre on Thursday night. Team Sweden won the game 12-3. For Mails=see=paQ..,; Charles Corb�fnamednew Middlesex county warden Accept tender for insurance EXETER - At a special meeting held December 22, Exeter council examined two tenders received fpr the town's 1989 insurance pro- gram. . After reviewing the policy word- ing and coverages, the proposal from O.M.E. Insurance -in the amount. of $38,538 was accepted.. • The Exeter Public Utilities Com- ritissiott was given permission to withdraw $14,000 from the water- works 1988 capital reserve to cover an anticipated deficit in the water- works capital budget. - Letters from the Business Im- provcntent Associaton and the P.U.C.. requesting storage'area for Christmas decorations was referred - to the executive committee. eceive grant fo museum OTT WA - . Murray Cardiff, M.P. tor uron Bruce Today an- nounced t the Huron ounty Pi- oneer Mus um has been granted 'funding in t e amount of $59,660 for the final ge in the expansion and renbvatio of the Museum. This will re ult in six jobs over a period of 15 work weeks. The funding comes under the Un- employment Insurance Section 38 Job Creation Program which is de- signed to provide opportunities for unemployed workers to maintain and utilize their work skills during periods when they are laid off and without other employment. WEST McGILLIVRAY - McGil- livray Township held a reception in the North Middlesex Community Centre ori the evening of December 8 to honour Reeve Charles Cor- bett's election that day to the office of Warden of the County of Mid- • dlesex. for 1989. A large number of Middlesex County officials and McGillivray residents were in atten dance. At the most recent council meet- ing,discussions continued on the fluctuating watcr pressuresin the Lake Huron Pipe Lineand the re- sulting damages to the lines in the McGillivray water system. Council was advised that plans and estimates for remedial measures were expected by year end. It was tentatively decided to invite .water Draw winners EXETER - The recent ticket draw sponsored by the Exeter Oddlellows in which tickets were also sold by the Exeter Lions Club members proved vary successful. The winners were Jane Russell, Exeter; Karel Homolka, St. Catha- rines and Paul Anstctt of Clinton. Oddfellows Noble Grand Wilmer Adkins reports net revenue from the draw was 8780. Charles Corbett discuss the problems, solutions and costs. ScrgcantRobcrt Erskinc of the Lu - can O.P.P. detachment attended and presented his annual report on law enforcement and crime prevention in the Township. Council discussed arrangements for a reward program directed towards the return of road signs removed from Township roads as well as the identification and conviction of those responsible. It was notcd that McGillivray Township could be celebrating its 150th anniversary in or about 1992. public meeting probably will be called early in the New Ycar to be- gin planning for the celebrations. February 18, 1854. Council approved a ncw set of Rules & Regulations to govern procedures in council meetings. Rule No. 6 states "That no member during session shall absent himself Hensall Meeting to discuss county waste management • HENSALL - A public meeting will be held at the Hensall Com- munity Centre ori Monday, January 30 to discuss the Stage 1 prelimi- nary report of the Huron County Waste Management Master Plan. The meeting will begin at 7,30 p.m. A short presentation will be followed by an opportunity for area residents to ask questions, offer opinions and suggest revisions or corrections to the report. Much of the work of the Stage 1 report involved gathering back- ground information about the cur- rent waste management situation in the county, and to develop an un- derstanding of future needs for w e management. Coes of the full report are avail- able f. loan at all town and village branch ibrarics, or may be ob- tained b contacting the Huron County r , artment of Planning and Develop ent. Estimates in icate that within 20 years all landfil ites currently op- erating in the c s unty will have reached capacity. Only this week, t e Scaforth- Tuckersmith landfill site was closed permanently and esidents must take their refuse o the Holmesville landfill site, located 4.2 kilometres west of Clinton on Highway 8. • By beginning to plan now it will be possible to develop a compre- hensive strategy which considers options to reduce waste, and identi- fies locations for ncw waste dispo- sal facilities. However, bccausc planning for, and implementing a waste manage- ment system is a complex process, and one which takes•many.years to complctc, it is important to begin immediately, in order to avoid the crisis situation being experienced .by many Ontario municipalities. Because landfill sites do not havtt, weigh scales it is difficult to deter- mine the amount of waste generat- ed. HOWCVCr, it is estimated that about 42,000 tonnes of waste was disposed of in Huron County in 1988. The total gauntity of waste -which must be manaagcd over the 20 year planning period from 1991 to 2010 for which this study is lacing prc-• pared is estimated to be 880,000 tonnes. A •similar meeting is planned for the Blyth Memorial Hall on Janu- ary 19. for more than 20 minutes without express leave of absence from the Council." This provision may well have been related to the early cus- tom of holding council meeting's in one of the several taverns within the township. A new office is noted in a resolu- tion by Patrick, Flanagan and John Mahon that Isaac Moody be Asses- sor forthe. present year and that James Doyle be added as an Assist- ant and Interpreter for the present year for the three north wards. - WANT TO APPEAL YOUR ASSESSMENT? You still have time to appeal your 1988 assessment if you feel your home or business property has been improperly assessed. Your assessment is important because the amount of property tax you will pay in 1989 depends on it. The assessed value of your property is multiplied by the municipal and school mill rates to determine your prop- erty taxes. Notices of Property Valuation were mailed to property owners and tenants whose assessments have changed since last -year. Open house information sessions were held in your area to give you the opportunity to ask ques- tions and correct any errors. The Assessment Roll was delivered to your municipality on December 20, 1988 and will be used to calculate the taxes you will pay in 1989. You can review the Roll at your municipal office during regular business hours. If you believe your property has been improperly assessed and you have not yet registered an appeal, you still have until January 10, 1989 to mail or deliver your appeal to the Assessment Review Board. And remember, even if you did not receive a Notice of Property Valuation, you still have the right to appeal. Appeal deadline — January 10, 1989 The Assessment Review Board is an independent tri- bunal under the jurisdiction of the Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General. It is intended to provide you with an additional opportunity to have your assesst'aent reviewed if, in your opinion; it is not fair and equitable with the assessment of similar properties in your area. The Review Board is more informal and relaxed than a regular court of law. You may present your own case; retain a lawyer, or _ ask a relative or friend to speak as your agent:— To g r:—To rielp you in filing your appeal, Notice of Appeal forms are available from the Assessment .Review Board, your Regional Assessment Office, or your municipal office. You can also use the reverse side'of a Notice of Property Valuation, or write a letter giving the property address and roll number along with your reasons for appealing. Appeals should be forwarded to the Regional Registrar of the Assessment Review Board at the address shown below. If you appealed your previous assessment, it will be nec- essary to lodge an appeal against your assessment with the Assessment Review Board each year, if the appeal against your previous assessment has not yet been set- tled, or your 1988 Notice'of Property Valuation does not reflect the most recent decision of the Board. In those parts of Ontario designated for French Lan- guage Services, you can appear before a bilingual (Eng- lish/French) Appeal Board. Please check the space provided on your appeal form if you wish to use this service. Ontario Ministry of Revenue Regional Registrar ASSESSMENT REVIEW BOARD MINISTRY OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 426 Third Si..1st floor London. Ontario NSW 4W6