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HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1978-01-12, Page 141) By Nick Hill Clinton, Ontario 30 cents Thursday, January 12,1978 113th Year -Aro. 2 weather !,971r., HI IO NI Co JANUARY 3 20 13 21 4 31 6 25 5 32 24 26 6 29 22 23 7 30 23' 20 8 36- 27 15 9 25 3 17 -8 Snow It" Snow410" 12 10 -6 -8 19 Council okays town hall study The 93 -year-old Clinton Town Hall will finally be studied to determine its future, Clinton council decided last Monday night. Council gave the go ahead to the Goderich firm of Hill and Borgal to conduct a feasibility study on the old structure to see if it's worth fixing, or should be replaced. Monday night's decision reverses a decision taken last month by council, who rejected the study by the same firm, at nearly the same price. The firm, made up of former county planner and architect Nick Hill and architect Christopher Borgal, had ot- ofered to do the ,study for $3,500 complete last month, but were turned down. This month they agreed to do the study for $3,000 with printing costs extra. In a letter to council, Hill said the study would include a careful, thorough evaluation of the buildings, including its architecture, function, structure, ser- vices, and required restoration, im- plementation and costs. Hill also told council that the evaluation would be accompanied by floor plans, elevations and .a plan of action for restoration in compliance with statutory building codes and practices. Included in the study would be a soil .est to find out how well the sagging building can be supported. Hill said he will even find out what grants are available and show how the work can be done in phases. In 1974, council spent $12,000 on an structural analysis of the building by the London engineering firm of MacLaren and Associates and it recommended that it be torn down and the site made into ar park. • No date was set for completion of the study. Hill told the News -Record that he was excited about ' the study and looked forward to the project. Hill • had been involved in the restoration of the Exeter Town Hall, which was completed in December. Tough year for school bd., Turkheim says The Huron County Board of Education faces a tough year in 1978, both politically and administratively, ac- cording to 1977 board chairman Herb Turkheim. Turkheim told the board in his final address as chairman before turning the gavel over to 1978 chairman John Elliott that restricted funding by the provincial government and declining enrolment would force the board to take a long, hard look at education costs in Huron County in the coming years. Turkheim said a reduction, in grants from the province would cause financial hardship for the board and that declining enrolment would add to the problem. He pointed out that the province is threatening to cut back grants and fgithough no official figures have been even it appears the cut will be from four to six percent. He added that costs have risen by that much at least in the past year and that the grants are based on a student per capita basis. Declining enrolment would mean Huron is eligible for fewer grants than last year -even without cuts in provincial spending. "We as a board are going to have to take a close look at educationcosts and use a great deal of foresight when we make financial decisions," he warned the trustees. Turkheim said that education costs in Huron have risen dramatically in the- past hepast five years and that the board has asked Huron's municipalities to carry those costs. He said the board's requisition to municipalities has risen 100 percent since 1973 adding that the __hoard is still not in great financial shape. The past chairman said that the tr i .�wuld;.have.to_,be economic in their future decisions but would also have. to remain politicians. He said declining enrolmentmay make it appear that closing schools will save the board the money it needs but suggested that closing schools would not be the answer. He added that the ..board owes every ratepayer in the county the right to an We got a big laugh at our office last Friday while reading the new Chase Almanac and Fact Book. The book had just arrived through the mail and yours truly thought it hilarious that they would be so brash as to predict the weather so far in advance. One paragraph in par- ticular in the January predictions said that "on the 10th -12th a powerful storm .... paralyzes many areas of Southern Ontario and Quebec." Well, in retrospect,. they were only a day out and Chase now has the_ last laugh, as a crippling blizzard --struck , here the 8th, 9th and 10th. What about the rest Of the winter? Well, Chase says it's going to be very cold right into March with only a few days respite, but they aren't predicting anymore severe storms. + + + Hopefully, most of our readers will be seeing this humble effort at the usual time, but for a while on Tuesday, it looked like we would be delayed at _least one day. . And if it isn't storms, it's the flu, this year the Texas flu. Although we haven't heard of any deaths locally that can be blamed directly on the "bug" it seems haf every other person is down with alomething, and the hospital is full of sick,. people. The latest word has the flu abating somewhat, but the experts tell us to watch out for the Russian flu, which is now on its way. + ++ Because we had three dozen com- pliments and inquiries on how we took that picture of the Clinton Band which appeared on our -front page last week, we thought' that we could give all those who asked some background on it. The picture was taken off of a black 'and white television and photographed with a 35 mm camera using a 50 mm camera: The film used was Tri -X pushed to 3,200 ASA, and the exposure setting was f5.6 at 1-60 of a second. The color was added at the printing„ plant in Goderich in what is known as a auo-tone process. Oh yes, the photographer was yours truly. + ++ And still on international items, we have learned that the Seaforth Old- tirners will be playing the Finish Old- timers in Seaforth on January 25 at 8:30-- m. wAnd don't forget that this Sunday is the opening event in Ontario Street United Church's Centennial 'year, so drop around and hear their special speaker. + ++,„..------ ' Finally, inflation is not all bad. We are now worth more.,Reinember when the chemicals making- up the human body were worth only 98c? According to the Financial .Post of December 24th an up- to-date valuation has just been made. We're now worth $5.60 ... an increase of 471 per cent. The consumer price index in the,.anie period has gone up 353 per cent.i R „!A 1 education system. for their children. He cited the Vanastra Public School as an example of the political respon- sibilities the board has. He said opening the school in Vanastra last year was a "foolish move but a political one". He said trustees really "had no choice" but to open the school because of the reac- tion from taxpayers in Vanastra at the time the decision was made. He said Clinton Public School couldn't handle students from Vanastra and the board was considering bussing students to other schools as an alternative. In a public meeting the trustees met with "500 ratepayers ready to throw bricks at them if they made the wrong decision" he claimed. Turkheim ,said that if the board started looking at schools in the county with the idea to close some, one of the first to be considered would be Hensall Public School, a school in his con- stituency. He added that Hensall would only be closed "over his dead body". "I would only hope that trustees put themselves in the position of the board member in whose area a school is being closed," he said. "A trustee from Wingham should make his decision Turn to page 3 • • Clinton mayor's address In his New Year's address to council Monday night, Mayor Harold Lobb said he wanted to see the continued co-operation of council and a better clean-up of the town as council's priorities. Mayor Lobb, who didn't start on Council until after a March election last year, because of the sudden death of mayor -elect Don Kay, said he was very pleased with the co- operation and the great amount of work done by council -this year. "If everybody works together like this, than the whole town runs better." he said. He said that he won't seek re- election this November, "so you better take note. My wife wants me," he -joked. Because the International Plowing Match in Wingham this year is expected to attract up to 250,00 people, with many of them passing through and stopping at Clinton, Mayor Lobb said he wouk` like to see the clean-up campaign, intensified this spring. "There's no reason that we can't leave people with a good im- pression of our town," Lobb said. -7.="--7:77.7=7,777,=\` Vu Can ctor must pay for dstand repairs Clinton ;town council agreed with the Kinsmen Club and the Ontario Racing Commission (OIC) engineers that the contractor who built the new grand - NI stand, Twin Locks from Works of Niagara Falls should pay for strengthening the footings. The ORC said that the footings were a &Aga faun and had ordered the town to re -inform then or case the new =IAN structure. Council had been bculdn g back a 1$16.610 final payment to Twin Locks auad will deduct the cost of the new foots. VAN. and send thea the tliffenence. Town soticait r Beecher Menzies agreed with the move. t Taking a chance It took highway crews with two huge plows neatly two hours to bash their way' through a drift on Vinegar Hill in Chit= on Tuesday so trucks cotdd get through to area farms. Here two Flees Feed Mill trucks with Ken Doer and Don Gautreau thread their way through the narrow opening onTuesday- (News -Record ) lizza The first real blizzard of the winter blasted the area for the fust three days of this week, but by Wednesday mor- ning, winds had died down somewhat, and the sun appeared again. ' The storm, which started Sunday afternoon following a brief one -day January thaw, packed winds up to SO kph, and combined with about eight inches of snow, succeeded in blocking roads for Monday and Tuesday, closing schools, stores and most roads tout of town_ Students enjoyed the first three days )ff school, with only the odd school open in Wednesday. Things were expected to ;et back to normal by Thursday. Highway and county road. crews were gulled off the roads on Monday night After visibility became nil in the blizzard rod although the highways were bare for he most part, huge drifts up to ten feet Jeep blocked some roads Tuesday. Milk and bread were in short supply on Tuesday afternoon in some stores, but supplies were replenished by Wed- nesday. Snowplow operators and snowmobiles were making emergency runs on Tuesday to bring -feed to farmers and fuel and food to outlying homes_ Even though the wind chill factor was minus , 40 degrees CR there were no reports of death or serious injury from the storm_ A few motorists became stranded on the blocked highways. A power failure on Townshend Street on Monday nht kept a dozen houses without power for up to four hours, but a PUC crew, -with bare hands.. quickly had the electricity back on_ About 200 homes were without power in Dublin on Tuesday afternoon. • Several nurses at the Cling howital had to work double shifts when za.ff living in the rural areas were moble to get to work Monday and Tuesday_ The hospital is full because of the fin epidemic. New agency has hornenikers The new Family Care Agency of Huron County, operating on a Canada Works grant of $33,540, came into effect January 2, 1978. Qfflces are located in No limit on garbage bags For the first time in 12 years, Clinton residents will be able to put out as much garbage as they want, after town council rewrote part of the garbage collection by-law on Monday night_ , Twice the fun Clinton's New Year's babies arrived last week and the two bundles of joy posed with their mfr,; Janene Wise, last Thursday. Derrick, left, and Darryl, right, are the Hirst , children for -Doug and Janene Wise of Clinton. (News- ' Record photo) r • The original by-law, passed in 1966, limited residents b three. -bags a week, and stores to six bags a week_ The new sections, to go into effect on February 1, say that residents can put out as many containers as needed to remove the garbage .from their premises. Garbage will also be picked up from Morgan's Mobile Horne Park.. Council also 'accepted the tender of Randy Glew of Clinton to pick up the garbage for another three years at a cost of 317,500 per year. The Glew tender was the second lowest of five received.. The lowest was Lorne Wall at 317,000 per year, and the highest was from Brian Kennedy and Basil O'Brien at S30,710 per year. Wayne Layton bid in at 326,000 and Bud Chamney bid bleat $28,00&. Both had escalation clauses from increasing the rate for the 'remaining two years of the contract • Councillor Rosemary Armstrong, chairman of the sanitary and waste committee said council chose Glew's bid because they felt he knew the town better, having picked up the garbage for the past five years. She said that Clinton n had the lowest cost of any town in Huron County, and said that if council wanted to upgrade the service. then they would have to pay more_ "I don't see how anybody can do it that cheap," she said, referring to the cost of maintaining 'a truck and paying salaries out of the $170. Exeter pays • $44,000 per year. Goderich pays $68,1100 and Wingham is negotiating a new contract. Seaforth has private collectioh_ a� Win am inco-operation with the Ministry of Social Services_ John McKinnon. der of social services for Huron County. told county council Thursday in Goderich that between 40 and 70 cel homemakers and others are signed up with the agency to provide service on a fee basis to private individuals and agencies in Huron. McKinnon explained that Horne Care with offices int Seaforth will be a major user of the new agency_ When homemakers are required by the Home Care co-ordinator, M.r-s. Betty Cardcnta . she Will call the Family Care Agency in Wingham where it is expected homemakers. househol,;l - w 'and co>anions will be a ' - ' . im- mediately for service anywhere in the city. Home Care is a orm funded service paid for through Ontario Hospital Insurance (OHIP)_ ibis crews when a patient under the doctor's care in hospital leaves hospital early and goes borne under continued medical sur- veillance there_ Always. Home Care includes the services of a visiting nurse or a physiotherapist or -both. and oc- casionally a,. homemaker and corn- Pan - It was clearly pointed out at T nr- sday's council meeting that to quality for Horne Care which is funded 100 percent by OHIP. one must be undid- a s be in hospital and require con- tinued medial assistance at home after leaving hospital early_ The Home Care program., McKinnon said, is designed to alleviate the over- crowding in -hospitals. The Family Care Agency will also provide homemakers for the Social Service Committee should one be required. and for private indlvidua1 When homemakers are required by the social services committee for persons in need. the cost is subsidized up to ES percent by the Ministry of Social Ser- _ Individuals, McKinnon Pointed out, will pay for the service from their own Rates for the homernakers,,, heuseibold cleaners and companions were approved by county council and are on a par with Red Crass rates for such services in thPs larger centres_ Tara t*page3 . 0