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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1993-04-14, Page 1Country Enamel Tableware 25 Bio ort h, soot k cs*h & eany b UHT PT FLOWERS Exner Serving South Huron inside Fighting back Coalition against county page 2 Fishing Commercial boats back on the lake Page 5 Nsatfth Are 'students taking risks? page 9 'Opinion Are we ready for afemale PM? page .11 Inquiry Police hearing to last days page 12 Irish Staying alive in playoffs page 14 Vandals to be charged after graffiti f3ptee. Geiser X{neiile investments RSP's GIC's Seg Ante 234,4420 Conservation Dinner as popular as past three years By Adrian Harte T -A Editor EXETER - The popularity of the Conservation Din- ner Auction has not waned after four years. Bidding continued to be lively Thursday evening at the annual dinner, jointly run by the Ausable Bayfield Conserva- tion Foundation and the Exeter Lions Club. While exact totals are not yet in, it is possible the profits from this year's dinner exceed last year's. Organizers had commented that the dinner auction's fourth or fifth year would be the true test of whether it will continue to be a viable event, and by all means it appears the event's future success is assured. While no items in the live auction brought bids over $1•,000 as in past years, total sales were $12,645, up nearly $2,000 over 1992's auction. The 29 -item sale included 19 limited edition prints, five original paint- ings, one sculpture, two firearms, a set of handmade hunting knives, and an oak blanket rack. The highest bidding was generated by a limited edition print by Alan Bateman, son of Robert Bateman, and was sold for $825. Volunteer auctioneers were Bob Heywood, Richard Lobb, Anne Mousseau, and Jack Riddell, Burt Lobb, and Norm Whiting. The Tammy Laye original painting, the dinner's pre- mier work, was not auctioned this year, but was raffled off in a special draw. The winner was Liz Watson of Parkhill; whose late father was an ABCA employee. Other special draws included a canoe raffle (valued at $1,500) won by Valerie Scott of RR2 Staffa, and a $2,400 package of donated items won . by Terry Romphf. Bids on the 35 -item silent auction were also up con- siderably from 1992. Total sales were $8,160, with the top bid brought by a Tammy Laye limited edition print at $620. Kate Monk of the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority said she had no totals for the dinner's pro- ceeds as of Monday; but noted that the difference be- tween gross and net profits this year may be larger than in 1992. Monk said the dinner committee had a harder time finding sponsors for some of the auctioned prints, and the framing costs will have to be deducted from the gross profits. "I can't see how we're going to do a lot worse than last year," said Monk. "We should still be in the area of $20-25,000 [profit)." Monk noted that the general raffle tickets sold well this year to the S *I -out crowd of about 400 people. "The tickets sold out quickly and the people whotat tended were happy to support the dinner," said Monk. "I think it went smoothly and people were enjoying that," she said. Proceeds from the dinner will be split between the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Foundation and the Ex- eter Lions Club. The Lions are still planning to spend their portion on upgrades to the Morrison Corridor, while the Foundation will be aiming for more land- scaping around Mon•isott Dam, a purchase of new wet- land for the Conservation Authority, more wheelchair accessible trails in other conservation areas, and to fur- ther improve the outdoor classroom in Parkhill. .Snowmobile daredevils inspire Hensall crackdown HENSALL - A draft bylaw was presented to Hensall council Monday evening to restrict the use of snow- mobiles in the village. Council noted there were complaints of unsafe use of the vehicles this past winter, some of which caused .damage to public and private properties. The draft bylaw states snowmobiles will no longer -..be.ellowed -on ,sidewalk;or boulevards, -am. pi* ate party, or operated in the village at all except by those going to and from their residences by direct ;routes. Councillor Dick Peckham said speed restrictions are permitted under a bylaw, but councillor Jeff Reabum pointed out such regulations were pointless without a village police force. He said the OPP would not en - EXETER - A spate of graffiti vandalism in Hensall will lead to charges, say the Exeter OPP. Vandals scrawled on cars and signs in the village with marking pens. Police say several youths have been questioned about the in- cident and charges are pending un- der the Young Offenders Act. Otherwise, the OPP reportthe past week to have been fairly quiet with no other major occurrences. A traffic accident last Tuesday morning took place when a pickup driven by Lorenzo Laroche of Sea - forth collided with a car driven by John Somers of Hensall at the inter- section of Concession 2-3 of Hay Township and Highway 84. La- roche was taken to hospital by am- bulance and both vehicles were se- verely damaged. Police report. Laroche was not wearing his seat- belt at the time of the accident. Third Sick Kids Walkathon this Sunday EXETER - The third annual Ex- eter Sick Kids Walkathon will be held this Sunday. Weather permit- ting, participants in the nine - kilometre walkathon will start from the Exeter Lions Youth Centre, lead out to Morrison Dam and re- turn. Last year's event drew more than 300 sponsored walkers and raised over $20,000 for the Children's Hospital of Southwestern Ontario. Audrey Skinner, who organizes the event with her husband, said that support for the event is grow- ing. This year, Holtzmann's IGA have co-ordinated donated pop from Pepsi and hotdogs from Schneiders which will be available to the participants at the Morrison Dam turnaround. "Now we're getting a few major sponsors, and that's a help," said Skinner. 'The Precious Blood CWL will be on hand at the finish line with more refreshments and cookies. The 1993 Miracle Child, Brittany Shaw from Stratford is expected to be present to cut the ribbon on the event at the 1 p.m. start. Dr. Bear, the Children's Hospital mascot will also be around to offer ene'ouragc- ment. force village bylaws. Bylawenforcement officer Alex Irvine said he re- ceived several complaints about snowmobiles running along the sidewalks at high speeds without regard to .pedestrians. "Bicycles and skateboards aren't allowed on side- walks either," noted reeve Cecil Pepper. "half a dozen kid .around .tgyw.are. ;polling it for everybody," comthet3ted cotuicillor Butch Hoffman, to which the other councillors agratd. The bylaw also bans the use of snowmobiles within village limits between midnight and 6 a.m. After some revisions were discussed to the draft, council agreed to -review it again at the next council session. Biddulph Township approves zero -increase .budget for '93 LUCAN - Ratepayers in the Township of Biddulph will be get- ting a break on their tax bills this year. Council last Monday held a special meeting to approve a bud- get which includes a zero -percent tax increase. "We've been budgeting preuy fru- gally over the past few years," ex- plained reeve Earl French after the meeting, adding that increased township assessment and a small surplus from the 1992 budget com- bined to cover increased expendi- tures so 1993 taxes can be billed at the same rate as last year. The budget even allows for a three -percent salary increase for township staff and employees. Capital expenses for the year in- clude new asphalt for some Bid- dulph roads, and the possible re- placement of the Mooresville Road bridge, provided provincial grants arc available to help with the cost. French said township council has tried to keep ahead of building and road maintenance and vehicle re- placements arc done regularly to help save money in the long run. "We feel very comfortable with it," said French describing council's budget. The township is still shipping its garbage to Watford after the clo- sure of the Lewis Sanitation site. The stripping contract expires at the end of this year, but French said Biddulph can expect landfill costs to remain constant, at least until Middlesex county begins its waste management plan. Biddulph will also be beginning a new official plan this year, provid- ing new zonings around Clande- boye and Granton for the focus of the township's residential growth. -*. ' . ' * 16414 aria , Steps are also expected to be taken to limit severances of properties from township farms. Despite the good news from council, Biddulph ratepayers can still feel a little uneasy about their upcoming property tax bills. Even though the township mill rate will not increase in 1993, the same is unlikely for the Board of Education and Middlesex County mill rates - both of which are expected to be greatly affected by London's recent annexation. "We don't know what the true picture of the annexation compen- sation package will be," explained French. WM IONA Lions Club memberitilartilliNlake holds up a print by Terry Redlin for the live auction part of Thursday's dinner auction evening, Additional coverage on page two. :Exeter buyer couldn't be found Heritage group disappointed at Joss of rail station By Adrian Harte EXETER - Members of the Exeter anmae rotat�a- .tion don't feel that Grand Bend is the pia peri an for -the town's old railway station, which is scheduled to be moved to the village °atoll month. r -Bob Heywood, president of the foundation, expressed disappoint - went at the news the town would be losing one of us landmarks to Grand Bend after an optometrist bought the building in an effort to save it from the wrecker's ball. Heywood said the foundation felt more than a little pressured by deadlines set by the Goderich and Exeter Railway Company, on whose land the station, built in 1911, now sits. The organization had been trying to find a buyer for the building so that it could be moved to a new location and pre- served as a heritage building, but could not meet a'March 8 deadline set by the rail company. "I don't know what the big rush is - the thing's been sitting there a number of years," commented Heywood, who called the announce- ment a Grand Bend buyer had been fognd a definite loss to Exeter. The foundation had been seeking a commitment from an individu- al or business interested in moving and renovating the building, but none could be found. Heywood said he had even considered buying the building himself just to make sure it was preserved. However, Heywood said at least the structure will be kept for fu- ture generations, if not in its home town. "Well be able to drive by it and say 'that's the Exeter rail station'. If it was a pile of lumber we couldn't do that," he said. Heywood said he hoped the buyers understand the costs involved Continued on page two. 717 ".e7 i be able to drive by it and say 'that's the Exeter- rail ftaon'. SEAFORTH - The public is in- vited to a family night f t the Sea - forth Fairgrounds on Thursday at 7 p.m. as the Huron County Board of Education's 'A Slice of Huron' winds down. Family members will have a chance to sec what the students have been working on all week as the program gives them a look at agriculture in the county. The prograrn, which had over 1,4(X) Grade 4 and 5 studentspar- ticipalr has several major support- ers including the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food, the Exeter p+al The Liman Optimist Club sponsored their third annual Easter Egg Hunt Saturday morning at lucan Public School. Atpyt 900 candy -Mad sots were set out in throe tieitis ter three *le f groups, and were all scooped up in seconds. Here the 5,6,7 age group storms the field.