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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1997-02-26, Page 2Page 2 . Times -Advocate, February 26, 1997 'Regional wrap up Bed allocation compromise in works GODERICH Two delegates ht'' the .Huron -Perth District Health Council Task Force will meet with representatives from the counties' - eight hospitals prior to March 1. to discuss bed 'allocation, reports the -Goderich -Signal-Star. • ' According to task force chair, -Janet Hook, any change in bed numbers will • .be a compromise between the hospital's original proposal and the DHC preferred option. • • Compared with 'the hospital's --option, the -preferred option re- moves 34- beds . from. Huron County while adding 31 bed -to Perth County. Huron County • doctors passed a motion tore- turn to the hospitals' proposed bed number as - well as imple- ment a governing body -for each county rather than the single ad- ministration recommended in the preferred option. Tim Hortons lease signed ST. MARTS - Tim Hortons may.. he open for business by July1. reporls'thc -Journal Ar- gus. = A lease is,signed forthe prop-: erty at the corner of Queen and Peel Streets: where the 55 -seat restaurant will be built. The pro- ject is anticipated_ to add ap- proximately S3 miilion a year to .Si. Marys economy while pro-- - viding 20 to 25 jobs. ' The demolition date of the tor - mer Downtown Pontiac- building .has not . been determined and • •con'struction depends on the • ground condition. Seaforth enters into restructuring project SLAFORTH - Council signed a letter of intent to enter into a restructuring project .with 'Clip- . ton. Goderich and the townships of McKillop. Hullett. `Colborne and Goderich. reports the. Huron. Expositor. . Costs for. the Central Huron Municipalities Restructuring Project will be shared. Fifty' per cent of the -costs • will be based on assessment and 50 per "cent will- be shared equally -among the seven municipalities. Government clusters ministry offices CLINTON - The local Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs office is un- der construction in an effort to add space for the Ministry of Natural Resources local office. reports the Clinton News- Record. As part of continued govern- ment : cost-cutting, when leases come up for government -used .wilding, the leases are not re- newed. Ministries are clustered together where they share a sim- ilar clientele. The expansion will add one room to the office along with an addition to one room. A two - bay garage is also in the works to house MNR equipment. The addition will total 600 square feet. Exeter resident Jim Ahrens, centre, poses with three Co- -. lombian children . who have -received bedkits through Sleep- _ ing Children Around the World. ; A Colombian child enjoys her new bedkit. Dashwood and Area Volunteer Firelighters Jeremy . Becker, forefront, and ban Lachance, - back right, help the grade one and kindergarten students of Our Lady of Mount Carmel • School unravel a fire hose off the back of a tank truck. The firefighters visited the school last week to take part in a Community Helpers unit. They displayed some of the equipment they used when responding. to emergencies and -showed them -a cartoon video on_ fire safety be-' fore observing a school fire drill. - - Crimes of the week Snowmobile Stolen • A snowmobile parked at Top's , Bar in Vanastra was stolen on Fehruary 15, at approximately 2 a.m. The machine was a 19-96 Arctic Cat ZRF. licence.693466. It had a 2 up seat with a hack rest and orange/green checker - pattern on the cowling. It ap-' pears' the machine was pulled to , , the roadway with a truck and - driven away toward the Scafoith 'area. Theft From Vehicle A 1996 Ford pickup was in Mur- phy's parking lot at 125 Main • St.. Exeter, when a thief, re- movdd a black Samsonite case Beds for needy children - ta ned a S mans -Nixdorf model • •- 707 lap top computer. -world port modem. and a German' . • passport. The theft occurred be- tween 9 and 10 p.m. . +' Continued from front page was -the case with other SCAW.' members. Ahrenswas over i - whelmed 'by reactions of bedkit re- - eipients. . : . • "Its something. they could never. 'ever afford to tnisz." he said. re- calling an I8 -child _family squeer- ring five members in one bed • - He was also amazed at the sight of small children heading for home . carrying their 50 to 60 -pound iron- framed hcds while • others pro-. • • ceeded to loada number of beds on rooftops of taxis • • - • ?`There are so many people (who) -aren't' getting beds," he re- 'narked.- addirighi volunteer duties sometimes.includedrotecting dren from theft and ensupinc their - route home. - - -"Some kids travel three or four hours in, the hack. of a truck." to re- ceive •their beds. said Ahrens. who -plans to return to Colomhia on an- other SCAW-trip in December. Ill ' you ' 'have information about these or any other crimes, call Crime Stoppers of Huron County, 1-800-222- 8477 and you could receive a reward of up to 51000.00. REMEMBER CRIME DOESN'T PAI' CRIME STOPPERS DOES. Good year. for Usborne, Hibbert Insurance KiRKTON - Marc than -175 poli- cy holders of the Usborne and Hib- ben Mutual Fire Insurance' Compa- ny attended Monday's ' annual meeting in •Kirkton and learned the company had a , very successful year. President Larry Gardiner' reported net income fot the year 1996 was $1.125,548 .compared to 5807.200 for the previous year. - Gardiner credited the high net in - .come to a seven percent increase ,n premiums written and a decrease in claims of 10. percent. • -He said - ' refunds- -totalling 5750.547 as 30' percent of -policy holder premiums have been ap- proved. Gardiner added. "Cheques will be going out on April. 1997." He continued, -"There will be no rate changes. for 1997. but some policies with excessive claims will he reviewed." Secretary -manager Mike Caers said • returns on investments for 1996. were 10.33 per cent and. the cost of operating ratio was. 25.52 per cent: Caers said operating costs of some mutual fire insurance compa nies run as high as 50 percent. - The secretary -manager , contin- ued. "The ratio for us this year was 'almost the perfect one. Out of total gross.premiums 65 per cent went to claims.. 25 per cent to operating 4 costs. leaving .10 per cent for sur- plus. For a nun her of years we kept opertattng costs _ down to. 23. per cent." - Nei premiums -written -for =1996 - were 52.313,947. That's 'an previ- ous • increase of --about 5-135.000' over 1995: ' Net claims .for the just concluded year were 1'1.371.358. down from 51.515.645 for the previous year. This year's refund. surplus of. 5750.547 was up from last year's figure of 5694.302. Two of the present djrectors Lar- ry Gardiner and Jack Hodgen were each re-elected for another three- , year term by acclamation. During the past year, Lorne Fee- ney who was a director for 20 years passed away. ' " In an election to finish the last two years of Feeney's term. his son Ron was the winner defeating Leon Malone and Joe Ryan. Ron Feeney's grandfather Martin was also a director of the company for 17 years, Feeney farms on Concession 2 of Hibbert Township. as does one of his -opponents Joe Ryan. The other candidate Leon Maloney farms in McKillop Township. The other directors of the fire in- surance .company in addition to Gardiner. Hodgert and Feeney are Michael O'Shea. Morris Willows and Joe Chaffs. Agents are Wayne Mayer of Ex- eter. J.P. Uniac of Mitchell and John Moore from Dublin. At Monday's annual meeting of the Usborne & Hibbert Mutual Fir- nsurance Company, two di- rectors were re-elected in addition to one new one. Back left aril directors Ron Feeney, Joe Chaffe. and Morris Willows, and secretary -manager Mike Caers. Fja directors Mike O'Shea, Larry Gardiner, and Jack Hodgert. Chinese Medicine clinic to open in Grand Bend GRAND BEND - At its Feb. 17 meeting. council passed-a.niotion to amend an agreement with Ernest Sherwood.: The amendment waives a clause stipulating two -car parking with turnaround• at 22 Ontario St. South, where Sherwood plans to establish a Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture clinic. The clause will he waived for.14 months at which ,time, he may either relocate his .practice or pur- , chase'the building. • • ' •- ' ' Because the business qualifies as a -home occupation operation, us • - ing less than one quarter of the iota) flgorspace, the parking spaces are not requited: Council- replaced the•parking clause with a request for written permission allowing .Sherwood's clients to park at the • neighboring business, Barbara s•N.aturally. Sherwood must also erect a,sign 'advising 'clients where parking is available. Main Street Task Force • In a report -to co'uncil, the task force'recommends Main Street loop options be revisited,and "consideration be given to possible turn- around re -alignment, and bathhouse upgrade/enharicement." 'Council decided to hold a special meeting regarding this option, Other recommendations including the preferred bathhouse upgrade. platform seating on the pier and a tourist booth were adopted sub- ject to budget' deliberations: - The bathhouse. upgrade, designed by Fanshawe students, is con- sidered by council to he a good start to planned beach enhancement. -I( was added that improvements to the bathhouse will be required if. London is successful in . its. 2001 Canada Summer Games bid. Grand Bend is ,set to host sailing and beach volleyball events at these games. • . Harbor Committee - . After much discussion regarding concenr for swimmers created by a proposed "non-motorized`waterchannel,' council passed •tec- omniertdations of the Harbor Committee. The channel will be up for a non -motorized rental business to be established on the main beach. Canoes, sailboats, windsurfers and kayaks will be rented from this location. The committee also recommended the eilla4enter into a non- exclusive agreement with Grand Bend Watersports for personal wa- tercraft rental as well as two new operators; Shannon Harris and Cari Aikens. ' As well, council will support the committee reining dock space in the south basin. which will be used for a-commercialbusinessunder a transient trader license. Park plan Council took Lambton County Planning Department -up on its of- fer of assistance in planning the development of a park at River, Road,and Alberta Street. - Council has started the -process by initiating a rezoning of the property to 'open' space' •. _ Discussion will continue with a iocal group that has plans to study howio return running water in the old river bed by pumping ground water and creating a small waterfall."' That just dovetails beautifully into what some people in the com- munity are thinking," said Councillor Bob Mann. Plans for the park also may include a playground area, leisure space, picnic areas and a pavilioh. The planning department will be used to help develop concept drawings. . Trapped driver rescued • Continued from front page Durand said the water they were in was more than three feet deep and very cold. "We were up to our bellies in it and t was numb for the waist down." He added it took about 15 min- utes w remove his nephew who was semi-conscious and possibly suffering from hypothermia, Senior Constable Leo Weverink from the Exeter OPP Detachment said the police couldn't determine how long Durand was trapped in the icy water but it was possible he could have been there for more than four hours since he was last seen at midnight. "Another 10 minutes could have made a difference. They (the res- cuers) should be commended for the action they took. They certainly used their wits about them and pos- sibly saved this fellow's life," said Weverink. Dave Durand said his neighbors as well as a number of people driv- ing by stopped to help but he wasn't prepared to label anyone as a hero. "I think anybody in the same sit- uation would do what we did. Eve- ryone there dove right in to vol- unteer whatever they could," he said. Brad Lucas owner/operator of Zurich Ambulance Service re- sponded to the call with partner Cynthia Strickland and said Durand was already out by the time they ar- rived at the scene. He was trans- ported to South Huron Hospital and then transferred to Victoria Hos- pital in London. Lucas said it was difficult to say how much longer he could have survived in the icy water but credits the rescuers for their "heroic" ef- forts and ingenuity using the front- end loader to help free him befor.. it was too late. "This was the kind of thing you see on those Emergency 911 shows on T.V.," said Lucas. 1