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Times Advocate, 1994-04-06, Page 1Grade 8 students at Stephen Central School spent Thursday afternoon enjoying sundaes as a reward for top magazine sales at their school. Mandy Werrett, front centre created her own ice cream treat and some fellow students decided to help her enjoy it. From left are Llsa Theroux, Missy Hayter, Heath Palen, Miranda Hayter and Samantha Edwards. .2b:•r..-4.,..0 •.•-•—?.R.e.sar. -mew... .d.. , . Heart and Soul Hard services are important, but Exeter has social and cultural needs too, council is told EXETER - If one message came through last Wednesday evening at the Exeter Strategic Planning Session it was that the town should take a harder look at its social, rather than physi- cal needs. About 170 people attended the meeting to express their views on how the town should shape itself for fu- ture years. Mayor Bruce Shaw admitted the attendance was about three times what he had expected. After introductory addresses by Shaw and Cathie Brown, the audience was divided up groups, each given the task of setting their own priorities for Exeter's fu- ture - to provide the basis of the eventual Strategic Plan. The ideas ranged from revitalizing the Old Town Hall corner as a focal point of pride for the community, to seeing better programs and services available for Exeter's seniors and youth. "1 just can't believe how much has come out of this short period of time," Brown told the group after their individual pres- entations. "We're really impressed," agreed mayor Shaw. "i'm sure all of us at council have something to go hack with and talk about. it's amazing thc similarity in the output from each of thc groups. You've given us a lot of help, a lot of direction." facilitator into eight The mayor promised the audience that work on their suggestions would begin right with the next council meeting so that the "momentum" would not be lost. As the meeting dispersed, a lot of the citizens could be heard thanking the meeting's organizers and council members for what they saw as a positive evening's work. "1 didn't know what to expect," said Audrey MacGregor, one Exeter resident. "But it was very organized. i was interested in thc farmers' mar- ket idea. I hadn't heard it before, but it came up in our group." Mayor Shaw said the public is far more interested in thc strategic plan- ning process than he expected. "i think that its a town composed of people when properly motivated can come np with good ideas and a terrific spirit. And it's unfortunate that more people can't become more in- volved more often," said Shaw. Even though the information had yct to be document- ed and analysed by council, the mayor admitted council had been given some very clear objectives to pursue. *"Please see Strategic, page two. "The town hall and the library, that complex combined, is probably where our heart and soul is going to be SEIP'S valu-mart 4 & 83 Exeter 235-0262 Gemedaidium Exeter Atom Broncos & Exeter Bantam Lincolns *OMHA Finalists. What a great year! Serving South Huron rNM — as OM alta tats IMI SUBSCRIBE! II f you aren't subscribing to The t I Times -Advocate, you're missing out.' Use the coupon below and subscribe today! 1 Name: 1 Address -1 City1 Prov. Postal Code 1 SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Canada Within 40 miles - (65 km) addressed to non letter carner addresses $30.00 plus $2.10 G.S T. Outside 40 miles - (65 km) or any letter carrier address $60-00 + $4.20 G S.T. ' Outside Canada -$99.001.w see.opou.y.t USE YOUR CREDIT CARD 00000000 L7D000000 Card No. 1 Expiry Date CI Visa Li Master Card 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ❑ Cheque enclosed Return to; TIMES ADVOCATE ' 2424 24 Main St. Exeter, Ont. NOM 1S6,- as as as Iritis — d � 171100 CT ♦ a North Middlesex & Latnbton Since 1873 Wednesday, Airril 6, 1994 SEIP'S valu-mart 4 & 83 Exeter 235-0262 Fine Quality Porcelain China This week: Dinner Plate 79¢ (84C + 6C G.S.T.) 90 cents A failing grad in future vision Mayor gives his report card on town EXETER - Mayor Bruce Shaw, in his introductory speech to the Strageic Planning Session, issued a report card on Exeter progress af- fairs, giving the municipal leaders an "F" in future vision. A high-school principal himself, Shaw gave the town passing marks in several other areas, but had to admit that town council had spent "When you're up to your fanny in alligators, sometimes it's difficult to realize your objective was to drain the swamp." Shaw told the 170 citizens who attended the planning session that he had been asked when he first ran for mayor what his philosophy for the town was. "That question, believe it or not has plagued me for the...last 17 or 18 years I've been mayor," he said. Faced with continual needs to up- grade services, pressures to hold property taxes down, cuts in pro- vincial transfer payments, and downloading of services onto mu- nicipalities, Shaw said council has been "fighting alligators" so long, there has been little time to focus on long-term goals. "We're in a financial squeeze, no doubt about it," he said, but added that makes it important to spend funds correctly. "There's a philosophy that says 'if you don't grow you die'," said Shaw, but suggested that if that weren't true tmild-Exeter be ` : fortable with a population of 4,500. "Those are questions that have to be asked," he said. Continued growth will require expensive additions to hard servic- es, such as a $3 million water pipe- line, a multi-million dollar sewage treatment plant, and more landfill capacity. Hard services may fuel growth, said Shaw, "but does Exeter have a heart, does it have a soul? Where's it going in that direction?" he asked. He went on to present his report card on nine areas in which local government has some influence. While council has done well in pro- viding services, management, and land use plans, he said the town needs to work on its parks and rec- reation policies, barely passes in providing community .services or cultural outlets, and completely fails to look far enough ahead. "We don't think about the future," said Shaw. "Our planning efforts to a great extent are fragmented or disjointed, because the central question has not been answered. Indeed, it hasn't even been asked before tonight," said Shaw. "So as far as planning is concerned folks, we get an 'F." However, Shaw said bringing Ex- eter's cultural efforts from a D' to an 'A' "will not involve erecting a scaled-down version of London's Performing Arts Centre...we're not interested in that." He said it may require no more than coordinating and making bet- ter use of existing facilities. Exeter's grades Exeter hospital budget situation still uncertain Queen's Park's funding `freeze' might translate into a 1.5 percent cutback By Adrian Harte T -A Editor EXETER - With the provincial government prom- ising transfer payment freezes for 1994, municipal- ities, school boards, and hospitals can at least be as- sured they will have as much money to work with as last year. Maybe, maybe not. Don Currell, administrator at South Huron Hos- pital, said it really isn't clear whether the hospital will be getting the same transfer payments from Queen's Park as last year, despite finance minister's announcement. "We don't know what we're getting yet," said Cur- rell. A letter the hospital received from the province is "confusing", he said. it does not specify any fund- ing amounts, and it can be read in more than one way. Last year, South Huron Hospital received its share of the base funding for hospitals, plus a one percent supplement for being a small hospital, and a one- half percent one-time additional payment. Does the promise of a transfer payment freeze in- clude all three of those sums? "There's some indication they're only talking about the base amount," said Currell. "Which would mean we'd be cut one and a4lalf percent." The administrator said he hopes to learn this week exactly what the hosnital will be entitled to under the province's financial policy. Only then can the hospital board begin to assess how it will approach its 1994 budget. The 1993 budget was some $4.4 million, of which $3,765,000 was paid by the province's base hospital funding. "It was more than that before they took away our Social Contract money," said Currell. if the small hospital supplements and the "one- time" additional amount are gone, it will mean South Huron will have to make do with $56,475 less. Each budget scenario is different, said Currell, de- pending on which transfer payments are still in ef- fect. Should the hospital get same funding as 1993's, there might be little or no hardship. Last year was a busy one for South Huron, with a high- er -than -normal patient load and its increased costs. Should 1994 settle down to typical patient loads then "we would probably be close enough to go ahead [with a budget] without any changes," said Currell. Pressures to cut health cake costs in the past few years have required some "creative solutions" from hospital staff and from the board's budget, said Cur- rell. if funding is trimmed another one and a half percent, where will will the cuts come from? "We've been making them for some time, and there aren't many left to make," he said. A slogan: words to shape the town's future role "Exeter, Where Urban and Rural Meet" That is to be the to n's new slogan, as chosen by an applause vote from eight choices put together by the focus groups at ast Wednesday's meeting. Each group was as to come up with a slogan to identify the defining characteristics of the town, with particular emphasis n the town's future vision. The winning selection was by far the popular choice of the 170 people who attended the meeting, mainly because it best captured one of the key sentiments ex- pressed by nearly all eight focus groups: that Exeter needs to recognize its role as the hub of a strong agricultural community. Other slogans suggested by the groups included: • "The New Exeter, a Community with Heart and Soul". • "A Community with Heart". •"Something a Little Extra in Exeter". •"Exeter, the Future is Now". •"A Good Family Community". • "Workingg Smarter to a Better Tomorrow' • "Exeter is a Community with Heart and Soul". - _ Inside County voting Huron downsizing on hold page 2 Back to school Unemployed urged to take another look page 3 Cigarette sales Where are the smokers? page 5 • Bantams Make -it �- � to finals Second front _ OMHA title Zurich Peewees bring it home page 15 Ambulance Zurich service holds open house page 17 Volleyball Co-ed league winners page 26 d � 171100 CT ♦ a North Middlesex & Latnbton Since 1873 Wednesday, Airril 6, 1994 SEIP'S valu-mart 4 & 83 Exeter 235-0262 Fine Quality Porcelain China This week: Dinner Plate 79¢ (84C + 6C G.S.T.) 90 cents A failing grad in future vision Mayor gives his report card on town EXETER - Mayor Bruce Shaw, in his introductory speech to the Strageic Planning Session, issued a report card on Exeter progress af- fairs, giving the municipal leaders an "F" in future vision. A high-school principal himself, Shaw gave the town passing marks in several other areas, but had to admit that town council had spent "When you're up to your fanny in alligators, sometimes it's difficult to realize your objective was to drain the swamp." Shaw told the 170 citizens who attended the planning session that he had been asked when he first ran for mayor what his philosophy for the town was. "That question, believe it or not has plagued me for the...last 17 or 18 years I've been mayor," he said. Faced with continual needs to up- grade services, pressures to hold property taxes down, cuts in pro- vincial transfer payments, and downloading of services onto mu- nicipalities, Shaw said council has been "fighting alligators" so long, there has been little time to focus on long-term goals. "We're in a financial squeeze, no doubt about it," he said, but added that makes it important to spend funds correctly. "There's a philosophy that says 'if you don't grow you die'," said Shaw, but suggested that if that weren't true tmild-Exeter be ` : fortable with a population of 4,500. "Those are questions that have to be asked," he said. Continued growth will require expensive additions to hard servic- es, such as a $3 million water pipe- line, a multi-million dollar sewage treatment plant, and more landfill capacity. Hard services may fuel growth, said Shaw, "but does Exeter have a heart, does it have a soul? Where's it going in that direction?" he asked. He went on to present his report card on nine areas in which local government has some influence. While council has done well in pro- viding services, management, and land use plans, he said the town needs to work on its parks and rec- reation policies, barely passes in providing community .services or cultural outlets, and completely fails to look far enough ahead. "We don't think about the future," said Shaw. "Our planning efforts to a great extent are fragmented or disjointed, because the central question has not been answered. Indeed, it hasn't even been asked before tonight," said Shaw. "So as far as planning is concerned folks, we get an 'F." However, Shaw said bringing Ex- eter's cultural efforts from a D' to an 'A' "will not involve erecting a scaled-down version of London's Performing Arts Centre...we're not interested in that." He said it may require no more than coordinating and making bet- ter use of existing facilities. Exeter's grades Exeter hospital budget situation still uncertain Queen's Park's funding `freeze' might translate into a 1.5 percent cutback By Adrian Harte T -A Editor EXETER - With the provincial government prom- ising transfer payment freezes for 1994, municipal- ities, school boards, and hospitals can at least be as- sured they will have as much money to work with as last year. Maybe, maybe not. Don Currell, administrator at South Huron Hos- pital, said it really isn't clear whether the hospital will be getting the same transfer payments from Queen's Park as last year, despite finance minister's announcement. "We don't know what we're getting yet," said Cur- rell. A letter the hospital received from the province is "confusing", he said. it does not specify any fund- ing amounts, and it can be read in more than one way. Last year, South Huron Hospital received its share of the base funding for hospitals, plus a one percent supplement for being a small hospital, and a one- half percent one-time additional payment. Does the promise of a transfer payment freeze in- clude all three of those sums? "There's some indication they're only talking about the base amount," said Currell. "Which would mean we'd be cut one and a4lalf percent." The administrator said he hopes to learn this week exactly what the hosnital will be entitled to under the province's financial policy. Only then can the hospital board begin to assess how it will approach its 1994 budget. The 1993 budget was some $4.4 million, of which $3,765,000 was paid by the province's base hospital funding. "It was more than that before they took away our Social Contract money," said Currell. if the small hospital supplements and the "one- time" additional amount are gone, it will mean South Huron will have to make do with $56,475 less. Each budget scenario is different, said Currell, de- pending on which transfer payments are still in ef- fect. Should the hospital get same funding as 1993's, there might be little or no hardship. Last year was a busy one for South Huron, with a high- er -than -normal patient load and its increased costs. Should 1994 settle down to typical patient loads then "we would probably be close enough to go ahead [with a budget] without any changes," said Currell. Pressures to cut health cake costs in the past few years have required some "creative solutions" from hospital staff and from the board's budget, said Cur- rell. if funding is trimmed another one and a half percent, where will will the cuts come from? "We've been making them for some time, and there aren't many left to make," he said. A slogan: words to shape the town's future role "Exeter, Where Urban and Rural Meet" That is to be the to n's new slogan, as chosen by an applause vote from eight choices put together by the focus groups at ast Wednesday's meeting. Each group was as to come up with a slogan to identify the defining characteristics of the town, with particular emphasis n the town's future vision. The winning selection was by far the popular choice of the 170 people who attended the meeting, mainly because it best captured one of the key sentiments ex- pressed by nearly all eight focus groups: that Exeter needs to recognize its role as the hub of a strong agricultural community. Other slogans suggested by the groups included: • "The New Exeter, a Community with Heart and Soul". • "A Community with Heart". •"Something a Little Extra in Exeter". •"Exeter, the Future is Now". •"A Good Family Community". • "Workingg Smarter to a Better Tomorrow' • "Exeter is a Community with Heart and Soul".