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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1996-01-31, Page 2Page 2 Time-Adwcutc, /unwary 31, 1996 Pitbulls now cost more to license CLINTON - Owners of pit - bulls _ and pitbull crosses will have to pay a $100 li as of Feb. 28, whet; the la' due, reported the Cli atoll Record. The new animal law, passed at council's Iafk13 meeting.. ablO atones the dogs are to be muzzled while. walking: The cost to license, other breeds of spayed or neutered dogs remains the same at 810 while all other licenses are in- creased by 85. A late charge ;of 815 will be charged to thou who pay their fees after the deadline. rnivel celebrates 10th aiiI.versary Chris Skilkoa TA staff GRAND BEND - It's a carnival that's a birthday party. That'i hay/ Grand Bend Winter Carnival organizers are de- tfrvent- I year wig mart the 10th anniversary of the carnival and its mascot's birthday. Benguin is a life-size black. red'tlnd white birdthat was named by local youth, Jornathies,Lavie. in a contest during the fust year ofthe say they will celebrate Beoguin's 10tk:.. as -a theme this winter and are looking forward to one of their most ambitious carnivals ala to date. This ye&,s c±airpeson; John Musser, said there are over 30 events planned from Feb. 2 to Feb. 11 *Use added features. Charity casinos, snowpitth ;ctdtit, cook -offs, dances, figure slotting dem- shows, barbecues. skating parties and a few of the activitlea *-gods can expect to ad urian that has gain ' recogm- licit Over the`jiilara will be the short► at contest in which teamsof =ow sculptors� Catrids.'t tnited States, Poland and Mexico' will blies eight foot 1)1, l , of s. life, tranatorning them into animated LI re. in c* r don of Beoguin's birthday, Musses said ;now sculpting was one of the ongic a of the carnival whet it started in 1986. "It has really snowballed since then," be said adding local mow sculptors reputing local businesses, clubs, schools and churches wi1I tti'ao get a chance to display their talents. 'The carnival aiillft`ick off Friday night with a fashion show at the Rbyal a anadia► Legion. The up -scale show will fea- ture clothing from five Grand Bend and Exeter stores dis- ptay gm the,,cst In women, mens and childrepswear. St**fkaham, fashion show eoordi ooti � ,, �the picot a will take on lively and entertaining atmogibere as ap- proximately 40 local models preview everything from classic dresses, risque swimwear, and western cloth- ing o the down -right funky as they move up and down the runway. It viii be a unique show, very different from the.tottlidonc in the pest," she said. The techniastese, from the Huron Country Playhouse will!' trovide the lighting and sound, qq and Baynham d their expertise will give the show a professional edge. New to the carnival this year is the crowning of Miss Prinoesat when one of three young girls. from five to eight years -old will be named Princess with judging based on per- sonality`and talent. The Carnival Princess, complete with. robe. fiefs and. roses, and her two attendants will make ap- pearances throughout the 10 day festival. Musser said the carnival has always been geared towards childrtdi,-however, there is a cross-section of licensed events fuer itch ks such as the Gong Show talent contest, Bring - i o,ir-Own-Meat barbecue, Rotary Club Casino, or the Shul- l' .2bold Fun Day for seniors. But it's the children that have always been drawn to the magic of a winter carnival and this year a Rotary Children's Village will be the most popular event for youngsters. The village is actually a huge land of snow taking up most of the Colonial Hotel parking lot with ice slides and life-size Council urges Bell to upgrade services .s• r. SEAi~OWTH , -� (`ouncil has once again decided to send a let- ter to Bell Canada urging the company to upgrade its switch- ing services, reported the Huron Expositor. Services such as call forward- ing and call identification are not yet available in the Seaforth area. Council claimed the switching system was originally scheduled for an upgrade last year. Measles campaign beginse24'. HURON COUNTY Students in Huron County from junior kindergarten to OAC grades will receive a second dose of measles vaccine in February and March, reported the North Huron Citi- zen. The vaccine, which is only available through the Health Unit, will be administered by the county's public health nurses in school clinics. Ontario has the highest num- ber of measles cases in the Americas with more than 2,000 cases reported in 1995. It is a highly contagious viral disease with complications including pneumonia, brain damage and in rare cases, death. Godfather Pizza coming to Mitchell? MITCHELL - Following the closing of Walkom's Food Town on Jan. 13, the building has allegedly been purchased by Godfather Pizza, reported The Mitchell Advocate. According to London Godfa- ther Pizza General Manager Sharon Baker, "nothing's totally settled yet." "We have been looking to go to Mitchell, have been for some time," she told the Advocate, "but the location has not been decided...It looks very promis- ing." If Godfather Pizza has pur- chased the building, the restau- ram will open this spring. Mitchell physician dies MITCHELL - Dr. William El- vey Pridham, who was affiliated with the Stratford GenernI Hos- pital for 38 years. diod on Ian. 20 at the age of 90, reported, the Mitchell Advocate. Looking for family HURON PARK- Habitat for Hu- manity Huron County is looking for a qualified family who live in las-than adequate housing. An in- formation meeting was held at McCurdy Public School and a gen- eral meeting was held last on Tues- day at Central Huron Secondary School in Clinton. Huron Habitat for Humanity is a volunteer organization that seeks to build homes for the working poor. To qualify for a home, the family must be living in substandard housing, have a steady income but be unable to secure a mortgage from traditional lending in- stitutions. The family must also contribute 500 hours of sweat eq- uity and be able to repay an inter- est-free mortgage. "We encourage anyone interested in ng involved in this vital ofianizat to come out gild help in build hope," stated a 'recent press release. Vision Habitat is an international non- profit, non-government, charitable organization that strives to elim- inate poverty housing and achieve a vision of justice. Habitat is non- discriminatory, involving a broad spectrum of social, ethnic, religious and economic backgrounds who work together. Habitat is a joint partnership ven- ture involving community and cor- porate donors, prospective home- owners and volunteers. Partner families and volunteers are co- workers on an equal footing, con- tributing from their own ex- periences. Government money is not ac- cepted for construction of new homes, renovations or repair of ex- isting dwellings or general oper- ating expenses of projects. Gov- ernment money is however received for acquisition of streets, utilities, land or houses needing re- habilitation. Sweat Equity Sweat equity is described under the mission statement as unpaid la- bor invested by each Habitat for Humanity partner family. The family assists in thc construction of their own house and those of other habitat homeowners by contrib- uting 500 hours of labor. This ar- rangement reduces costs, increases pride of ownership and fosters pos- itive relationships. Bill 26 gives new powers to municipalities ' Continued from front page sort of thing, people looking out for one another." While police and fire de- partments are trying to slash ad- ministrative costs, charging a fee for emergency services is a li- ability risk not many municipalities are willing to take. "The powers that be, the fire board and the mu- nicipalities have to be very careful what they do because of the mu- nicipal liability," said Morgan. However. according to a local OPP source, charging a fee for ser- vices such as gun registration, which generates much paper work, is worth considering. snow sculpting& carved into the village where children can play, explore and have some fun. Funds for the carnival are being raised mostly through sale of 85 buttons agd,g20 Cash and Fly Draws which ca be picked up et th¢,,Winter Carnival Office on Main Street, Grand Bend. The' igetrdiasexl buttons will go into a dra* which includes a trip for two to Las Vegas sponsored by El; lison Travel in Exeter. Musser said the carnival is not a fundraiser, it is only in- terested in meeting its expenses to pay for itself and year af- ter year the event has managed to break even thanks to the over 300 volunteers from the community who help pull it off. "There are so many people working behind the scenes it'9 incredible," said Musser adding the planning for next year's carnival begins as soon as the present one ends. So far, there have not been any cancellations and every- thing is in place and ready to go, however, organizers are still keeping their fingers crossed hoping for favorable win- ter weather. The recent warm snap gave organizers, who watched all the snow melt before their eyes, a scare but more snow has been trucked in for the sculptors, and local meteorologis are calling for frigid temperatures to stay with us going int4 the first week of events. Musser said bad weather will not stop the carnival but the) are prepared to scale down things just in case. However, Musser remains optimistic, saying he has put in a special weather request to mother nature. 'Ten clear, windless and sunny days about -5 degrees cel- sius temperatures...with snow please." Ice Castles. Ann Bayley of IceCulture in Hensall stands in front of an ice castle at Oakwood Inn created by sculptors Ju- 'lian Bayley and Kevin Bender. Weighing in at 4,000 lbs the sculpture took approximately 40 hours to create. Sculptors will be at Oakwood practicing their art Thursday carving a display which should be ready this weekend. White Cane week slated for Feb. 4-10 • HURON COUNTY - The 50th anniversary of the White Cane will be celebrated in 1996. The theme of White Cane Week is ability, not disability. White Cane Week is celebrated this year, February 4 through February 10. A visually challenged person carries the White Cane for a variety of rea- sons. A White Cane gives the individual the ability to be free to travel inde- pendently. The White Cane indicates to the public that the person carrying it should be given special consideration when travelling on foot or on pub- lic transportation. The White Cane is the eyes of the traveler. Objects on the sidewalk such as bicycles, toys, automobiles and building materials are discovered as the person sweeps the area in front of him/her with the case. Street curbs and signs are located with the cane to prevent nasty acci- dents. When a blind person wishe to cross the street, he/she holds the White Cane out in front of him/her. This indicates to motorists that they should stop and remain stopped until the street has been successfully negotiated. All members of the community are urged to join in celebrating White Cane Week, and the 50th anniversary of the White Cane by helping to pro- vide a safe environment for the visually challenged individuals who live and work among us. A film will be shown to seniors on how to cope after losing sight on February 1, at 1 p.m. at the Town Hall in Clinton. Co -collection program in Osborne begins in April Contract with Bluewater Recycling Association will run until December 1997 USBORNE TOWNSHIP - Council agreed at their Jan. 23 meeting to enter into a contract with Bluewater Recycling As- sociation for co -collection ser- vices. The term will run from April 1 to Dec. 31, 1997 with rates to increase according to the cost of living. Council was in- formed collection could take , place on the same day (Thurs- day) as regular blue box collec- tion. Francis Veilleux, of Bluewater Recycling, congratulated Usborne on their initiative to explore the possibilities of joining local mu- nicipalities in a newly -formed community. He also offered his as- sistance as a third party neutral position, should the need arise to promote or facilitate negotiations. In other council business, Bob Benner, acting as solicitor for transaction of land purchases for the Osborne-Biddulph boundary road curve, indicated a survey of the land is required. A draft cor- respondence offering Mr. Hayden 51,470 for .49 acres of land need- ed for road widening was ap- proved by council and has been forwarded to the landowner. Council also approved of con- ducting a land survey for the area. Correspondence received from the Ministry of Transportation ad- vised council the ministry has ex- amined the area of Highway 23, north of Kirkton, including the en- trance to the community centre and gravel pit. The study con- cluded there is not sufficient jus- tification to consider any changes to the existing spced zone at this time. Conservation tuthorlties Delegations from Upper Thames and Ausable-Bayfield Conserva- tion Authorities attended the council meeting to discuss funding cut-backs, the 1996 levy, and the future of conservation programs and services. Council approved maintenance of the Upper Thames municipal levy for next year at last year's rate to allow the authority to return to its original mandate. Council agreed in a subsequent motion to ask the Ministry of Nat- ural Resources why it is setting up a new program, the Community Based Land Stewardship Initiative, when Conservation Authorities have been severely cut. Council will also inquire why in a time a re- straint,, the ministry is spending money on a duplication of pro- grams provided by Conservation Authorities. According to correspondence re- ceived by council from thc min- istry, the land stewardship program is currently being implemented in Huron County and other parts of Ontario. Council recommended Stewardship Coordinator Steve Bowers be asked to attend a future meeting. Other business Hern Farms Ltd. has submitted an application to sever lands at 'Con- cession 10, Lot 6. The Huron County Library Board is currently reviewing its grants to municipalities for branch library fa- cilities. County staff visited each library during the week of Jan. 22, to measure the floor space used for , library purposes. 1 1� A