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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1996-04-24, Page 2up and expenditures down. Trustee John Jevnikar of- fered congratulations to administration and statT in the system, commenting on how difficult it must have been to achieve this reduction in the board's•deficit. Although the news provides a bright light for the hoard in the budget darkness. trustees will still have to deal with $5.6 million dollars less in provincial grants in 1996. The hoard is Lacing a $2.6 million revenue shortfall on its 1996 Preliminary Expenditure Esti- mates. The lower than expected carry over deficit will also have to he eliminated and the board must make decisions that will deal with more anticipated cuts from the province for 1997. Trustees will begin making decisions on 28 pro- posed budget reductions at a special meeting of the board next Monday at 7:30 p.m. at the Monsignor Fee- ney Centre. Page 2 Times -Advocate, April 24, 1996 Regional wrap u� Blyth girl leads run BLYTH - Kendra Carter, of Blyth, will lead this year's IOth Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics, reported the North Huron Citizen. The run is expected to go through Blyth at approximately 11:15 a.m. on April 30. People interesting in making a donation to the run may drop it off at the Wingham OPP detach- ment or the Blyth Public School before April 30. Rabies clinic request refused SEAFORTH - The town's re- quest to have a spring rabies clinic has been turned down by the Huron County Health Unit. According the the Huron Ex- positor, Seaforth, which has an annual tall clinic, asked council for an additional spring clinic af- ter Animal Control Officer Rob- ert Trick expressed concern about the high number of rabid skunks killed in the area during the winter. Many veterinarians, however, feel a second clinic isn't neces- sary and stress owners should have a complete health assess- ment of their pets rather than rely on rabies' vaccinations only. The health unit recommended municipalities require proof of rabies vaccination before issuing dog tags and recommends dis- tributing rabies information with the tags alFwetls.tau notices. Serious injuries result in car striking building County board responds to enquiries CLINTON - The Huron County Board of Education has responded to media and public enquiries to clarify its intent respecting board amalgamation as part of its re- sponse to the Sweeney Report. The controversial document filed with the Minister of Education in Febru- ary, 1996 calls for the establish- ment of tour school boards in the four -county region. Two of these would be amalgams of the Huron and Perth, and the Bruce and Grey County Boards of Education. The Huron County Board of Edu- cation response to the Sweeney rec- ommendations concurs with the need for education finance reform, offers to reduce the number of local trustees, acknowledges a smaller central administration, but asks for an alternate structure that would also create four area boards in this region. Huron is seeking some form of 'amalgamation' on a geographic basis, by County, which would al- low existing groups to come togeth- er in some fashion that guarantees existing constitutional language the independent, values -laden cul- can work with efficiency to serve and religious rights. ture of school programs in the vari- the needs of all students in a man - In a clarification, Board Chair ous school components of a new ner that a respect differences, pro - Roxanne Brown states, "If we combined authority. There is no ef- tects minority situations; and ac - could just set aside the 'turf' con- fort here to take over any other ju- knowledges that there is only one sidcrations for a moment, there risdiction. What trustees seek is a taxpayer. The concept must, at the must be some constitutionally ac- dialogue to explore meaningful least, receive thoughtful discus- ccptable way to respect and protect sion. LONDESBORO - Two Gode- rich men were in critical condi- tion, reported the Clinton News - Record, after their vehicle struck a building in the village on April 15. Goderich OPP reported Mi- chael Bottcher. 22, of Goderich, was driving south -bound on Highway 4 at about 9:50 p.m. When he attempted to pass a tractor -trailer, the vehicle began to fishtail and left the highway before it struck a road sign and hydro pole. The vehicle then went air- borne before striking a building on the main street of Londesbo- ro. Both Bottcher and a passen- ger, Gordon Ferguson, 22, of RR 2 Goderich, were in critical condition in the Intensive Care Unit at University Hospital. Two other passengers, Mi- chael Elliott, 21, of Goderich, and John Wood, 38, of Dungan- non, were treated locally for in- juries and released. Bell Mobility tower gets go ahead minority tem " the interests of supporting students Trustees stated that, if we truly programs and finding new savings seek partnership and collaboration for the taxpayer. - in the spirit of working for aca- Common sense tells us that com- demic excellence, fiscal equity and bining business functions can re - cost efficiency - we can find a way duce overall costs. We believe that interests in a new sys- ways of extending partnership in to provide for all sectors. It was felt community continuity with corre- that ways can be found to preserve sponding political boundaries for the independence of language and municipal and school board au - religious rights for Roman Catho- thorities is desirable. Huron tics and other denominational County is seen to be the right - groups, for French Language stu- sized political jurisdiction. The dents and for the broad amalgam combined population base and the that comprises the existing 'public' revised student enrolment base education system. will create a viable and economi- A 'community education' author- cal education governance unit. ity, would be one approach. Such Yes, there will be fewer trustees, an authority brings disparate fewer administrators and a small groups together, is working well in working core at the centre of such other jurisdictions where 'separate' a new system. And saved dollars, and 'public' schools work within if not all required to meet future the same education authority. We transfer payment reductions, can can combine our business adminis- be re -directed to support class- tration, our operations, our pur- room needs. chasing and plant maintenance, our A 'community education author - transportation, and our manage- ity' will not be a panacea. But with ment of health and safety into one a full effort and commitment on hesive unit. Yet, we can protect the part of all component groups, it MCKILLOP TOWNSHIP - Bell Mobility has been given the go ahead by Industry Canada to construct a transmission tow- er on Sideroad 10 of McKillop Township near Beechwood. According to the Huron Ex- positor, permission was granted April 1 and notice was sent to neighboring land owners. In January some neighbors in opposition to the proposed tower due to possible links to cancer and other illness tried to halt the tower's construction. Good news for Catholic Board Accumulated deficit lower than expected LONDON - The London and Middlesex County Ro- man Catholic School Board received some relief in the midst of its budget headache. Superintendent of Busi- ness, Jim Hardy, revealed at Monday's regular meet- ing of the board, that it appears the hoard's accumulat- ed deficit will be much . lower than originally anticipated. Hardy told the board the unaudited finan- cial statements for 1995 show the board has a carry over deficit of just over $166,000. The hoard had been making tentative plans to deal with a carry over deficit of $1.4 million. Hardy did caution that this good news may be tempered somewhat when the audited financial statements have been completed. However, he added that it is not likely to result in a return to the originally anticipated figure. Trustee and Vice Chair of the Board Paul White- head, heartened by the news, said this was a result of the kind df care thet.has been taken in getting revenues Repatriation of ABI clients to begin by next October Huron MPP Helen Johns addressed the Huron Head Injury Association HENSALL - According to sur- vivors and parents of acquired brain -injured children who at- tended Thursday night's Head In- jury Association meeting, there has been an lack of servicing for these individuals in rural On- tario. Helen Johns, Huron MPP and parliamentary assistant to the health minister, addressed the county chapter. Her topic was the re- patriation of persons with head injuries from facilities in the United States. With the creation of facilities such as Westpark in Toronto and training, an initiative will bc intro- duced starting next fall to bring 76 people receiving care in the U.S. back to Ontario. Groups of 25 in- dividuals will be placed each year for three years. In addition to the high cost of keeping patients in the U.S., it im- portant for brain injured people to be serviced locally where they can be near family and their com- munity. Johns said the ministry wants to provide "the best quality service for the best price." The ministry will accept pro- posals from the private sector, pub- lic hospitals and individuals until April 29. It will then review pro- posals in May and make a shortlist of candidates. In June ministry representatives will look at the sites and successful proposals will be announced in July. This process will be followed for each of the three years. A sub -committee has created a list of 33 criteria to determine who can be a service provider. These in- clude qualifications, resources, the ability to meet provincial standards, financial stability, experience, and "We prov best service best the provider's mission philosophy. Johns Stressed it is important for both public and private service providers to be tied into community organizations such as Homecare. According to figures from the Ontario Brain Injury Association, more than 16,000 Ontario residents will sustain injury to the brain this year. "Most of these injuries will result in brain damage severe enough to cause permanent dis- ability. The effects of such injuries create serious hardship for the in- dividual, his family and society in gener- al," explains the OBIA. Families of brain in- jured people face a challenge in finding appropriate facilities in Canada. Although local hos- pitals deal with acute care, there has been a historical shortage of se- vere behavioural programs, life skills training, outreach and long- term community housing. Through private health insurance and no-fault automobile insurance, some pressure has been taken off the public sector but often court proceedings tie up funds for years. "Hopefully we will clear the courts a little bit better," said Johns. want to ide the quality for the price." Agreement reached Bi -annual auction For many years Norm Whiting has volunteered his services as auctioneer for the South Huron Hospital Auxiliary's rum- mage and auction sales. Last week the event raised nearly $8,000. t3 r ..al, ,-eve., 1, ol� •1>t i it iu ii3u.1,�1 u•. ■ New reeve to take position May 1 Continued from front page After Wraith declined to take on the new position, Brady stepped in although he admitted he wasn't "particularly crazy" about ac- cepting the job. I, for one, would be willing to take that chair, Harry...I've dis- cussed it with my family and I've discussed it with a few other people in town." He said residents have told him they don't want a byelection, add- ing he also doesn't feel it is fi- nancially necessary. "There's no point to have an elec- tion for one position." In a later interview, he explained holding a hydration would he a waste of time and money, especial- ly with the prospect of amalgama- tion in the future. "If there was an election, where would the candidates come from?" he asked, explaining only a few people in Lucan have adequate po- litical experience. "I feel I did the right thing," he said, concerning taking on the posi- tion as reeve. "I'm willing to do the job and I believe I'm capable of do- ing (it)." He feels one of the village's most important issues is the potential amalgamation between Lucan and Biddulph Township. "We happen to think that Lucan- Biddulph is a marriage made in heaven," he said. "There's so much working back and forth already, it's baby steps...to achieve it....If we were one municipality it would be a piece of cakc....1 think the pros out- weigh the cons." Another issue he mentioned council may have to deal with in- cludes the resignation of Paul Dale as chair of the village's sewer com- mittee. "According to his letter, he felt that we were not giving him lat- itude for (his) job," said Brady. 1 In the meantime council has tk cepted sewer committee rec- ommendations, some of which have already been put into effect. "A lot of progress was made in a ,very short time," said Brady, con- ceming the committee's work. or Continued from front page needs." Director of Education, Paul Car- roll expresses satisfaction that this approach sets the stage for further discussion and decision making to meet significant funding short falls in the next two year period. The Huron County Board of Edu- cation operates six secondary schools and 24 elementary schools in Huron County. OSSTF, founded In 1919, has 50,000 members across Ontario and approximately 267 secondary school teaching members in Huron County. students. As well, he continued, progress has been made with two subdivisions, one under construc- tion and one awaiting approval. And as far as council's re- lationship with the Lucan Business Association, he explained, "There was a small problem in the very be- ginning and it was strictly com- munication...We've been past that failure to communicate for the past eight months." Having experience as a journalist for 20 years, he admitted he didn't favor recent Lucan coverage from a local daily newspaper. "Presenting both sides of the sto- ry is extremely essential," he stressed, adding there has been a lot of positive activity in Lucan during the past few years. "I think it's painfully obvious we're making progress but certain segments don't seem to see that." He has been a Lucan councillor for nearly four and a half years. Regarding being voted in during the last election, he said, "I per- sonally take that as a vote of con- fidence and I don't think I'm trying to take over Lucan at all. Living in the village for more He also mentioned the fact coun- cil has agreed to establish an ec- onomic development committee based on a recommendation re- cently put forth in a report by Uni- versity of Western Ontario MBA ;1. than 18 years, Brady works in real estate and volunteers with the Li- ons Club, the United Church, the Heritage Committee and folk music organizations. Now that council has accepted the resignation of McLaughlin and declared his seat vacant, the same process will take place at council's May 7 meeting in order to replace Brady as councillor. Council has two options in- cluding holding an election or ap- pointing a councillor, either from a list of unsuccessful candidates of the last election or from the public. It's a tradition in Lucan, explained Brady, to appoint councillors from past election lists. "That's the option that Lucan has always used in the past to fill a va- cancy," he said, adding there are two individuals qualified for the job. According to a report recently circulated to council by Rcymer, council vacancies in Parkhill have been tilled by appointment while a vacancy in McGillivray Township was filled by election and the Township of Nissouri has used both methods. Effective May 1, Rob Brady will be Lucen's new reeve. f �