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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1996-02-07, Page 1r;m SEIP 'S valu-mart 4 & 83 Exeter 235.0262 n4 Under Sete 2 100.62353.535 SEIP'S valu-mart 4 & 83 Exeter 235-0262 9 C Vit. .�. ( awrtSaJaer Hotline 235-3535 • 4b'edne,;(1aV.Fehnl.Iry 7. 1996 raao urs t ai ■ n you sent to The, 1"' ', you're °" 'rtow Useben ri °tit.1 1War i rvarrte: �� I dress 1 Prov. : caned* 1 P W i ri*. - (66 hm) addrsseed to 1 non lever coder addresses 1 $33.00 plus tt2.3113.S.T. Orchid*40tnees-(85m7)orany letter carrier address $63.00 + $4.41 O.S.T. I Out** Canada 41011.00tea we mimeo 1 1 I ClICXXXIGICXICI ZIOCICEICK3 Card No. 1 i Expiry Date 1 Li Visa ❑ Master caro 1 0 Cheque enclosed Retum to; TIMES ADVOCATE 1 I N Ma Main 424 iii erNN MIN =Heti, Grand Bend Winter Carnival See page 10 Safe Child Program See Crossroads Second front Announcements pages 22-23 Experts page 24 Classifieds pages 25-28 Star Time ;buys Oscars movie stock EXETER - Although Oscars Vid- eo on Main St. has closed, the in- ventory of movies will still be available for the enjoyment of area residents. Sue Bode, co-owner of Star Time Video, announced her firm has pur- chased the entire inventory of mo- vies. A recent report in the T -A which stated the Oscars inventory would be bought by Reel Time Movies was incorrect. Truck stolen from Kirkton arena gTEPHEN TOWNSHIP - Exeter OPP received a report on Saturday that a pickup truck was stolen from the arena at Kirkton. The vehicle, which was recov- ered the following day in London, is described as a 1966 GMC blue pickup, license plate NB 1 208. OPP also received a report that a Massey Ferguson heat housing part was removed from the bulldozer at the Stephen Township dump. Fire leaves hipka family homeless Pat Masse from the Dashwood Fire Department is steadied by a fellow fire fighter as he helps battle an early morning blaze in Shipka on Friday.. Over 24 fire fighters from Grand Bend, Dashwood and Stephen Township struggled to extinguish the fire in extremely cold temperatures. No one was hurt in the blaze. Chris Skalkos T -A staff SHIPKA - An early morning fire kept fire fighters busy for over eight hours in the village of Ship- ka on Friday. Grand Bend and Dashwood fire departments responded to the 7 a.m. blaze at the home of Gordon McCurdy on County Road 4. Stephen Township fire de- partment also assisted by trucking in extra water. Three members of the McCurdy family were home at the time, ho*ever, they fled the house after smelling smoke coming from the upper part of the building. Jerry Van Bruaene, Grand Bend fire chief, said the cause of the fire is still unknown but suspects a wood burning stove may have been responsible for igniting the blaze. Fire fighters were hampered by the steel ceilings and walls of the building which needed to be ripped down in order to douse the fire inside. "The old building was clad in steel, it was impossible to get wa- ter to it without cutting holes in the walls," said Van Bruaene. The freezing temperatures also posed a problem once fire fighters became wet, risking frost bite. "Around noon everyone was sat- urated with water and our biggest problem at that point was keeping our hands warm and dry," he said. The valves on the tanker trucks were also affected by the cold and water in the hose lines would freeze up if they were shut down for more than three minutes. Local residents brought out hot coffee and sandwiches for the fire fighters, providing some relief from the cold. Fire crews managed to salvage a few tools from the home, however, the entire building was destroyed and Van Bruaene estimates the damage at over $100,000. McCurdy said the house was in- sured, but the family lost every- thing in the fire and he doesn't think insurance will cover their entire loss. For now, the family is living in a friend's cottage and they are thankful for the outpouring of gen- erosity by their neighbors who have donated food and clothing. People wishing to assist the fam- ily can make a donation at Hicks General Store on RR 8 Parkhill in Corbett. Board offering JK for next year Continuing to offer Junior Kindergarten for the 1996 - 97 school year will not put the board at any financial risk Heather Mir T -A staff CLTN 'PN - Jturop Coon •hoard of Educattton trustees passed —*motion at Monday's meeting t I continue to offer the Junior Kin dergarten program for the 1996 '97 school year. A motion, tabled at the board' January meeting resolving to offe JK only if there are no additiona local property tax costs, was de feated. The new motion include direction to review the matte again,once the Ecker Committe recommendations are made avail able based on financial and any other relevant information in- cluding the use of early childhood education staff. Trustee Norm Pickell suggested defeating the original motion be- cause the board has not received funding information for the 1997 school year. "We don't know what the grants will be next January," said Pickell adding, "I don"t know how we can commit to no additional local prop- erty tax costs." According to Director Paul Car- roll, the move to continue offering JK for the next school year does not put the board at any financial risk and several trustees who did not support the program initially said it has received good feedback. Renovations completed at 20 schools in Huron to accommodate the program were also a considera- tion in the decision. "It would be a sin not to use those accommodations," said Trustee Don McDonald. Junior Kindergarten has received support from parents of children enrolled in the program as well as elementary principals and teacher federations however some parents and taxpayers continue to oppose the program. Although opponents have expressed concern about the cost of JK, the board has found the rate of participation in the pro- gram has increased. According to Louise Sygove, ear- ly years coordinator for Huron, re- search indicates children who par- ticipate in early school programs develop a love of learning and a Po=itiye altillig .�.1101_61� "r cess. o "In a world which demands tie - development of complex skills of - literacy, numeracy, problem solv- ing and technological competence, s it is increasingly evident that chil- r dren need an early or solid founda- 1 tion on which to build these d e skills," she stated in a report out- lining the merits of year one in the early years program. The Director's Action Report on JK indicated that although the grant rate has been reduced, eliminating $20,460 of surplus revenue, the program will continue to provide a small surplus of approximately $10,000 for the current fiscal year. Per pupil grant reductions shift the financial burden to the property tax base, increasing the standard mill rate. Regardless of local spending, the property tax share of education cost is increasing. "I don't think it's going to be an easy chore to maintain our figures in single digits," said Carroll. John Snobelen, minister of educa- tion, announced JK would be made optional for school boards ef- fective beginning next 'school year in November 1995. A recent memo stated a review of the pro- gram will be a long-term process by the Tory government and any changes to funding or structure will be announced well in advance. According to Carroll, cancella- tion of the program will create ap- proximately 5.5 surplus teaching positions and one or two surplus educational assistant positions "compounding staff reduction prob- lems." In related council business, trus- tees supported a recommendation from the Executive Committee that the board indicate its support "to establish alternative community- based delivery of junior and senior kindergarten coordinated with community child care programs us- ing a combination of early child- hood education staff and education act teacher consultants." Exeter DPP administration centralizing in Goderich Streamlining of ad- kinistrative4unotions may improve front line service Heather Mir T -A staff EXETER - Ontario Provincial Police arnin- istrative changes will allow for 24-hour coverage in its western region. Streamlining of administrative functions will include the centralization of Exeter and Wingham OPP administration in Goderich. The "right sizing" of 43 de- tachments in the region is designed to reduce the cost of administration through a'clustering of administrative functions while maintaining or en- hancing the level of service to the communities served. "Eighteen detachments have been identified as administrative centers and over the next few months they will take over the administrative duties only of the identified surrounding detachments," stated a recent OPP press release. Included in a list of detachments to be served by centralized administrative centers are Grand Bend, to be served by Forest; Sebringville, serving Lis- towel, and London, serving Lucan. According to Exeter OPP Staff Sgt. Don McGin- nis the delivery of service delivery shouldn't be af- fected by the change. He believes front line po- 'icing could be better since officers will be working "In way system sa town a mo 24 hours a day. McGinnis said the initiative is an attpinpt 10 im- prove perceived inpfflgienc q . at ths a ihistratlitp, level. �" "In some ways; 9eti'though Exeter pays' for 20 hours a day, this system could, in the long run, save the town a bit of money," he said, referring to 24- hour policing in the county. False alarms, representing roughly 90 per cent of all alarms, are a huge waste of OPP and municipal resources. InLondon, police do not respond to alarms from 6 a.m. until 10 p.m. because of the high incidence of false alarms. Such alarms cost the town between $200 and $300 during hours not covered by their po- licing contract andcould be dealt with by a cruiser in the area, due to the com- bined schedule. There are no plans of closing the OPP office in Exeter or of moving any staff members at the present time. The posi- tion of Staff Sergeant in Exeter, said McGinnis, will likely not be replaced when he retires. Staff Sergeants may also be as- signed to other duties. "Uniform jobs will be looked after by attrition," he said. Exeter's contract with the OPP for town policing will not be affected. Deputy Reeve Dave Urlin asked at Monday night's council meeting, "What will happen to our employee (a secretary stationed at the detachment)?" Mayor Ben Hoogenboom an- swered that the issue has yet to be determined. some s, this could ve the bit of ney." Library closure put on hold Brenda Burke T -A staff CENTRALIA - The Centralia Branch Library, which was an- nounced to close on Feb. 6, will re- main open indefinitely. "I really don't know whether to laugh or cry," said Maxine Hyde, who has been the branch supervisor since 1979. "I wish they would make up their minds. If they're go- ing to close ft, close it." In an effort to save $23,000 of its total of $175,000 in projected cuts, the Huron County Library Board voted on Jan. 4 to close Branch 3 li- braries in Centralia, Auburn, Blue - vale, Cranbrook, Gorrie and Wal- ton. Huron County Council upheld the decision. In the meantime, Turnberry Council has not agreed to close the Bluevale Public Library, which is open two hours each week and has a circulation of 611 compared with 928 last year. Stephen Township approved the closing of the Centralia branch only on the condition all six libraries are shut down. The Library Act states council's approval is required be- fore the last library branch in a mu- nicipality may be closed. As a re- sult, the closing of the other four Branch 3 libraries is also put on hold. "The Centralia Branch Library, as well as five other libraries in Hu- ron County are closing due to bud- get restraints," reads an earlier li- brary notice. "We just decided to take the no- tices down...the notices were going up was premature...We haven't any game plan," admitted Leona Arm- strong, chairman of the Huron County Library Board. She said the board, which has not yet heard from other councils in- volved, hopes to reach a com- promise. "We all wish the library board will go ahead with what they're do- ing," said Hyde, "so we're not hanging and our patrons aren't hanging...People are going to be afraid to come in and borrow or Continued on page 3 Financial advice you can count on! .George Godbolt CLU, CFP 496 Main Street 'Exeter ON 235-2740 When it comes to investment and tax strategies,' retirement and estate planning, and more, we have the expertise and technology needed to help secure your financial future. Call me today ft* financial advice you can count On! uomsed eilt Mutual UN ofieen:d.AAuRw M+wros Inc., two oonprrss of The Mutual Arai .