Times Advocate, 1994-8-10, Page 1SEIP'S
valu-mart
4 & 83 Exeter 23 62
Cherries
for pies are a
still available.
Place your order wltE us
235-0262
Serving EA (ler and area since 1873
SEIP'S
valu-mart
4 & 83 Exeter 235-0262
Niagara Lemonade
5/994
J
with this coupon
Expire. Aug. i3N4 110. 9043
rINN 111111 INN INN ' $REIRIB t1
' If you aren't subscribing to The
'Times -Advocate, you're missing out.
Use the coupon below and
subscribe today!
1 Name:
1 Address
City
1 Prov.
Postal Code
Canada
Within 40 miles - (65 km) addressed to
non letter carder addresses „oil
$30.00 plus $2.10 G.S.T.
a Outside 40 miles - (65 km) or any letter
I carrier address $60.00 + $4.20 G.S.T.
Outside Canada -$99.00 rt $88-40P30•90
t USE YOUR CREDIT CARD
0000❑
1 00000U0 Card No.
I Expiry Date
❑ Visa ❑ Master Card
❑ Cheque enclosed
Retum to; TIMES ADVOCATE
424 Main St. =feint Elm— 6�
I1
1
Inside
Dangerous
intersections
High corn
and
yield signs
make for
some scary
crossroads
See page 2
The
cats are
back!
Will Hens
make a
cat bylaw
an election
issue?
See page 3
Ready
for any
- emergency
Local
volunteer
firefighters a
"safety blanket"
See Crossroads
Second front
Brawl mars
tournament
The OPP
are looking into
a Peewee
baseball
tournament
fight
See page 14
Cyclists raise
$154, 000
Weekend ride
supports
multiple sclerosis
fight
See page 22
Experts
page 11
Classifieds
pages 18-20
Announcements
pages 21-22
Plus
Home Locator
•
iiimmiammr
4
Wetlnestioy, August 10. 1994
Lucan and
Biddulph start
study on future
amalgamation
Will the two one day join
into one municipality?
LUCAN - The municipal coun-
cils of the village of Lucan and the
township of Biddulph have agreed
to explore the possibilities of future
amalgamation of the two munici-
palities.
Both municipalities have agreed
to retain the services of Richard
Chowen for a period of approxi-
mately two weeks to prepare a
study of the proposed venture.
Chowen gained his expertise in
this area in his position as transition
director in 1989 overseeing the
amalgamation of the town of Clear-
water and the city of Sarnia.
He will be assisting both munici-
pal councils in the evaluation of
whether or not to amalgamate by
undertaking a comparative analysis
to determine various advantages
and disadvantages of the amalga-
mation of Lucan and Biddulph.
Councils of both municipalities
would like to stress that this propo-
sal is only in the early stages of in-
vestigating the very complex issues
surrounding the feasibility of amal-
gamation. If after this investigation,
amalgamation appears feasible, in-
put will be sought from residents of
both municipalities at public meet-
ings.
Chowen's report is expected to
be finalized by this October and ac-
cording to the two reeves will com-
plement the Middlesex county
structural review which is also now
underway.
Both councils have endorsed by
resolution the study to be done by
Chowen and will each pay $2,500
to have it prepared.
Lucan reeve Tom McLaughlin
said any decision on the report
from Chowen will be tabled for pe-
rusal by the new councils which
will he elected this fall for a three
year term in both municipalities.
McLaughlin added, "Both coun-
cils see some potential in amalga-
mation. Some emotion will be tak-
en out by having the study prepared
by Chowen. He is completely neu-
tral and I have confidence in get-
ting a fair report."
Biddulph reeve and Middlesex
warden Earl French said he feels
the Ontario Ministry of Municipal
Affairs will be supportive of any
examination of this proposal as
*'See Amalgamation, page two.
Flowers trashed
Fred Mommersteeg, who looks after Exeter's public flower beds, was upset Monday
morning to find that vandals had damaged several of the planting beds. Here, he surveys
damage to the flowers beside the lawn bowling green. Apparently vandals Sunday night
uprooted and threw the flowers onto the green. Mommersteeg said it is unfortunate, but
true that this happens at least once a year.
Business gets tipping fee rebate
Has the town set an
EXETER - A businessman who sent his
cardboard to the dump last year instead of re-
cycling it came looking for a rebate from town
council last Tuesday evening - and got it.
Now some councillors are worried they may
have set an awkward precedent for their waste
management program.
Joe Darling, representing Darling's Food
Market, came to council asking for the rebate
proposed a year ago when the waste man-
agement program came into effect, increasing
tipping fees by 600 percent.
awkward precedent,
Several businesses at the time complained
about the higher fees, and argued they didn't
represent an incentive for some businesses to
reduce or recycle their waste, because their
waste was non-divertible "garbage". Council
at the time agreed to look into a tipping fee re-
bate for those businesses already doing all
they could to recycle, and in fact paid Nabisco
Brands a $7,200 rebate last year, and plan an-
other $15,000 rebate this year to the company,
which has won several awards for its waste re-
duction programs.
wonders council?
Darling, however, acknowledged that the
grocery store did not remove garbage from its
waste until mid-January 1994, and then only
did so by asking the town to collect it for re-
cycling. Council had decided that "major"
waste generators, such as the grocery stores
and large retailers, would have to provide their
own recycling systems.
The public works committee had initially re-
jected Darling's request for a rebate, noting the
store had made no effort to recycle cardboard
Please see Rebate, page two.
Grail e id'
mayor not
running in fall
election
GRAND BEND - The municipal
election may be three months away
but several members of Grand
Bend's council have already an-
nounced their attentions.
Monday night, councillors Ed
Fluter and Bill Uniac both an-
nounced they would not be running
for re-election and mayor Tom
Lawson said he would not be run-
ning but would be backing another
candidate.
Eight Ex�ter projects stalled
Only one $5,000 grant came through a $150,000 application to jobsOntario
EXETER - Hopes to see a series of upgrade projects
worth over $300,000 started in Exeter have been dashed. A
provincial job -creation program has decided that Exeter's
application doesn't fit the bill.
The town had applied for a 50 percent grant under the
jobsOntario program on projects worth a total of $307,960.
A preliminary application confirmed that the projects were
eligible under the program criteria, but the response last
week was that the pro-
posal lacked a long-term
job creation component.
Town administrator
Rick Hundey said he is
puzzled about the sudden
change in attitude to-
wards the town's applica-
tion. . .. -
"I just think the rules
were changed mid-
stream," he said, point-
ing out many other pro-
jects in other municipal-
ities were approved
under the program, with-
out creating jobs beyond
short-term construction
work.
For all the work put
into the applicati-m for
more than $150,000 un-
der the program, the
town only got approval
for $5,000 to help con-
struct a new "entrance-
way"' s gn at the corner
of Highway 83 and Main
Street. Not approved
Projects denied grant
funding
•MacNaughtom Park
scenic gardens
*Swimming -pool -
renovations.
'Tennis court repairs.
•New playground
equipment for.
Victoria and
MacNaughton Par
•Wellington street
asebcll diamond.
walkway between
lotz and Pryde
Boulevards.
•Renovations to the
Community Centre
including a new roo
heat exchanger,
a dehumidifier.
were projects to help the Lions Club construct the scenic
gardens in MacNaughton Park, and a sweeping "recreation
renewal" project to upgrade several facilities across town.
Hundey admits none of the projects directly create new
jobs, aside from construction; but he said the jobsOntario
program agreed that improving a town's image and rec-
reation facilities does help open possibilities
to attract new development and businesses.
"If commercial development qualifies as
long-term job creation, then ours qualifies,"
said Hundey.
The town's strategic planning exercise,
drawn up in the spring, was part of the job-
sOntario application. That plan was a re-
quirement to help identify areas of the town
needing improvement to encourage future
growth.
Since the strategic plan's recommendations
have been rejected through this grant pro-
gram, then that suggests it didn't mean much
to the province after all, said Hundey.
Hundey said he wondered if the province's
job creation scheme was running out of mon-
ey, or if political considerations suggested
Huron County had already got its fair share.
"That's hack to what they used to do,"
argued Hundey, if community plans are being
set aside.
The town is going to appeal the province's
decision, and is contacting MPP Paul Klopp's
office about the rejected application in an ef-
fort to get those projects back on the table.
Now that a jobsOntario grant is out of the
picture for the Lions Club's ongoing plans to
put a scenic garden in MacNaughton Park, it
may take a bit longer for town residents to see
the project finished.
John Stephens said, however, that the gardens will be
completed, but will have to rely more on locally -raised do-
nations. He said the club's original plan was to complete
the project without government grants, and it looks like it
will have to revert to that scheme.
Victoria Park's old swings and playground equipment were
scheduled for replacement this year, but since a jobsOntario
grant fell through the project is on hold.
4
i
4