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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1994-02-09, Page 2Page 2 Times -Advocate, February 9, 1994 INTHF NFWS Regional wrap up Horse betting possibility for Clinton CLINTON - Horse racing fans may soon hs able to get a taste of racing excitement in the off season with intertrack gambling at the Clinton Arena. The plan is still tentative how- ever. Permission must be grant- ed by both the Ontario Racing Commission and the Clinton Recreation Department. lntertrack organizer Ian Flem- ing said the new program would work in cooperation with a net- work of racetracks. He stressed that this is inter - track, not teletheatre wagering which would allow wagering in local pars and taverns through closed circuit television. With interack wagering, peo- ple could only wager from the arena and races would be picked up live via satellite, it was re- ported in the Clinton News - Record. Religious readings approved for Perth Schools MITCHELL - A policy on opening exercises in the schools "stirred up a hornet's nest" two weeks ago during Perth County Board of Education. In an 8-6 recorded vote, trus- tees approved a policy, effective in September, permitting a daily religious reading approved by the board as well as singing of 0 Canada. "Our students are going to leave these surroundings. We owe them the opportunity to learn that there are others in the world," said Terry Boyce, prin- cipal of Mitchell District High School. Trustees debated the issue at length raising concerns nn the children's ability to understand the origin of the reading and the risk that children may confuse the readings with teachings they receive at home, it was reported in the Mitchell Advocate. User pay waste FOREST - Forest council is considering joining Grand Bend and Bosanquet in the implemen- tation of a user pay waste re- trieval system. Mayor Gord Minielly said council will consider the pro- gram on a trail basis for the last half of 1994. That would coincide with Lambton County's plan to offer rebates to communities that are working towards reducing waste, it was reported in the For- est Standard. Woman appeals to thieves ST. MARYS - Some things just cannot be replaced. A St. Marys woman is coming to terms with that fact after per- sonal items, some of great senti- mental value, were stolen from her car two weeks ago. "Although it's in the police re- port and my insurance does cov- er most of the things, it's caused me a lot of grief," said the wom- an who asked the Journal Argus that she remain anonymous. Her car was robbed sometime overnight on January 24, while it sat in her driveway. Among the items stolen were dog grooming equipment including scissors her deceased fatherltad given her. The woman contacted the Journal Argus hoping the thieves would see the story and realize how victims are affected by such thefts. "it's no joke; i've been trau- matically affected by it," she said. Multiple use buildin would include daycare Plans shown to join public school and library EXETER - Although discussions between the Huron County Library Board and the Huron Board of Education re- garding the future of the Exeter Library have been ongoing for several months, a surprise at Monday's council meeting was the unveiling of blueprints for the renovation of Exeter Public School to include the town library. Gino Giannandrea, superintendent of schools for the Huron Board, presented the blueprints to council. He showed a plan that would expand the school's west wing to include a two - room library with a large and separate entranceway. The plans also call for adding new classrooms and day care facil- ities to the east wing of the school. "We do not need a new library at the school...we do need two or three classrooms," Giannandrea said, pointing out the school's present library would be converted to classroom use under the plan. Because such a proposal would involve not only the Min- istry of Education, but also the town and the Ministry of Community and Social Services, he said grant funds might be more readily available. Presently, the school has two portable classrooms, and a third might be needed once Junior Kindergarten starts up at Exeter Public School. "All I'm here to say to you is, if you're interested, we are in- terested," stated Giannandrea. He even offered to consider expanding the proposal even as far as including the town's own municipal offices in the school building. Councillor Ben Hoogenboom said the public meeting held at the Exeter United Church in October indicated many don't want the library moved "without some input from them". Giannandrea agreed, but said the focus of that meeting was mainly on an older suggestion to join the library to the high school. He said he could understand public concerns with that proposal, particularly those of seniors. This elementary school proposal, he said, may be more welcome. "There's lots of parking...they're not dealing with teenagers, which they don't want to," said Giannandrea, noting the li- brary would have its own separate entrance, and could almost be seen as a separate facility. While he said he considered it a very good idea, councillor Ervin Sillery asked about the costs of the plan. Giannandrea said the library addition to the school would cost "eight or nine hundred thousand dollars", but he said the town's portion would only be pan of that total. "Was there any kind of fear from the Huron County Library Board about this kind of project being promoted?" asked reeve Bill Mickle. Giannandrea agreed there appeared to be "some fear of the unknown". "What we tried to do was allay some of those fears by hav- ing a separate entrance, almost a separate facility, but at the same time an integrated facility," said Giannandrea. He said the town and school/children's libraries would be in two different rooms, with a desk/lobby area central to both. "This is a very large county library, about twice the size of what we have now. It might not have to be that big," said Giannandrea. Councillor Bob Spears acknowledged feelings will run high on such a project and that many residents are likely unwilling to see the library anywhere other than its present location. He said a public meeting will be needed, and should include cost estimates of renovating the present library. Mayor Bruce Shaw said the proposal could be discussed at an upcoming closed council session, and also at the Much 30 strategic plan meeting. Giannandrea said the public may find a combination facil- ity to its liking. "As far as the hours of operation, quite frankly I feel they can be expanded," said Giannandrea, referring to the town li- brary being presently closed in the mornings, and the school library closed evenings. Local unemployment 10.8 percent Government cutbacks hit employment centre EXETER - With unemployment in the South Huron area, you might think the Canada Employment Centre might be looking for extra staff to handle the larger caseload. Not so. In fact, the government has actually imposed cutbacks on the office, dropping staff from three employees to two in Exeter. Are two employees enough to handle the job requests from all those people, or the Unemployment Insurance paperwork of nearly 900 people? "Oh no, we've never had enough, period," said Laura Overholt, man- ager of the Exeter office. Because of the cutback, Overholt can no longer conduct job counsel- ling. That task is now being han- dled on a "centralized" basis out of the Goderich office. People looking for advice on seeking new careers may have to settle for group ses- Laura Overholt of Exeter's Employment Centre stands in the expansive offices of the centre which currently deals with a local unemployment rate of 10.8 percent. Despite the office's size and equipment, by April only two full-time positions will be used to run the office. Fees for boating groups differ and GB council questions why By Fred Groves T -A staff GRAND BEND - It may be a strange topic of conversation but Monday night at the Grand Bend Council meeting, discussion focused around boats, launch ramps and dockage. While it's still a couple of months yet before boat- ers and local dealers begin thinking about the wa- tery pastime, councillors showed concern over the cost of providing services to various groups. Following information and recom- mendations past on from the village's harbour committee, councillor Cam Ivey voiced his opinion about not treating groups the same. This boating season Grand Bend will sec three major events in the'Boat Show, thc Salmon Derby and Ke Pok- er Run. Of those the village was going to enter into a contract agreement with the derby as far as that event paying for the use of parking, dock- age and the launch ramp. "We shouldn't even be charging for the launch ramp. it's there to get boaters here," said Ivey. While the derby was going to pay a pre- determined fee of S450, neither the boat show or the poker run was going to be charged. it was de- cided at the meeting not to charge to derby hut have them make a donation instead. Two years ago it cost the derby $700 and last year it was $450. With thc two new events in the works, they could be paying a lot less if they choose to. At Monday's meeting there was some argument about when the in Water Boat Show would be held. Minutes of the harbour committee from February 2 indicate the local boat dealers said they were very busy in May and felt the show should be in early June. There were definitely some mixed messages about the show as Ivey said he heard the three local boat dealers wanted to have it earlier in the spring As far as launch ramp fees are concerned, the lo- cal dealers already have a set fee they pay over the course of the boating season. "They want to draw as many people as they can and the later it is, the more it will draw," said councillor Ed Fluter. "i'm in full support of the loaf show but it was successful before when it was held earlier," said councillor Bill Uniac. The show will require 40 dock spac- es to be used for 10 days and some members of council felt that may cut into revenue that could be gathered if those spaces were rented out to tran- sient boaters. "There was strong support by the committee this would work but if the harbour master says its a no go, it's a no go," said Mayor Tom Lawson. In fact it will be the harbour master who deter- mines the date of the show because, according to Lawson, he's the one who knows when the busy part of the boating season is. Uniac, a member of the harbour committee said the reason the show is returning is because it won't "We shouldn't even be charging for the launch ramp, it's there to get boaters here." cost the local dealers a lot. "We were trying to re-establish the boat show. It was disbanded because it became too expensive for the dealers." said Uniac. -• 1 Rabid fox found in Exeter, dog injured EXETER - A rabid fox loose in town has given the OPP cause for concern. Last Tuesday a fox was spotted near a William Street residence. Po- lice followed its tracks to a Carling Street residence where police found it had injured a dog. They later lo- catcd the fox near the Exeter Works Department and killed it. Testing later confirmed the fox in- deed had rabies. The injured dog will have to be quarantined for 14 days to determine if it has been in- fected. Any other Exeter residents with pets they believe may have been in contact with the fox are being asked to contact the OPP at 235-1300. sions with up to 10 people at once, said Overholt. She said the cutbacks are affect- ing Employment Centre offices all over the country. Early retirement packages are being offered to eligi- ble employees in an effort to reduce the overall size of the civil service. Exeter employee Helen Chandler' was encouraged to take early retire- ment, and as of April 11, Overholt says the office will officially have just two employees, actually three people sharing two jobs. "The challenge to us is to try and deliver the same services to our cli- ents, but in a modified manner," she said. The Exeter area's unemployment rate does not compare well with the rest of the county. The 7.7 percent rate for Huron overall is lower than the 10.8 percent in the southern re- gion. "I think 1 lot has to do with our manufacturing sector down here..it tends to have more layoffs," she said, adding other industries in this area employ more seasonal labour. Job openings coming through the office are also few and far between. "It's been very slow this winter with the number of jobs coming in," said Overholt, adding she is ex- pecting some upturn in spring. The search for jobs includes working closely with jobsOntario, the Huron Employment Liaison Committee in Clinton, the Huron Business Centre, the Board of Edu- cation, and other agencies. A new computerized "job bank" provides quick access to job listings right across the province, updated every 15 minutes. At least the Exeter office will be maintaining regular hours, said Overholt. The Strathroy office has had to shorten its hours, bringing more work this way. However, the Exeter office may have to close lunch hours should an employee be out on a course. Ill- ness may mean days closed. Still, Overholt emphasizes that for those looking for work in a tight economy, the Employment Centre is not the or)ly game in town. She says job seekers are always encour- aged to check other sources for leads to employment. PUBLIC NOTICE Union Gas Limited is planning to construct a four (4) inch diameter natural gas pipeline to the Village of Bayfield as well as distribution piping along various streets within the Villages of Brucefield, Varna and Bayfield. The proposed feeder pipeline will run north from the intersection of the Hensall Road and Concession Road 11 - 111 (Tuckersmith Township, Huron County) to Huron County Road 3 and then westerly along Huron County Road 3 to the Village of Bayfield (see map). Construction of the proposed pipeline is scheduled for the summer of 1994. to assess the potential environment effects of constructing both the main feeder pipeline and the distribution piping, Union Gas will conduct an Environmental Study. Details of the proposed pipeline project and Environmental Study will he outlined at a Public Meeting on February 24, 1994 at 7:00 p.m. at the Bayfield Community Centre (off Hwy. 21 on Jane Street). If you have any comments or questions concerning the Environmental Study, Public Meeting or proposed pipeline project, please call one of the following: Terry McNally, P. Eng. Intermediate Pipeline Engineer 1-800-265-5230 Ex. 2896 Tony Vadija Senior Environmental Planner 1-800-268-5230 Ext. 2887 If you have any general sales inquiries, please call Bill lane, Coordinator, Customers at 1-800-265-4173 Ext. 262. Union Gas A 0