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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1975-03-06, Page 10 Single Copy Not Over 25c Director "surprised" of all caoital The Huron County Board of Education voted unanimously to make an appeal to the Ontario Ministry of Education which refused any capital allocation for building projects for schools under the board's jurisdiction for the 1975 fiscal year. The board had budgeted for $00,000 in its five-year forecast which was to include $210,000 for renovations to Exeter public School, the construction of an in- dustrial arts and home economics complex in Exeter, Turnberry and Brussels, each to cost approximately $200,000 and also $40,000 for a mini -computer for South Huron Secondary School. The computer facility, if it was approved by the Ministry, would have been installed as a pilot pro- ject and under the board's ap- proval similar facilities would have been installed in other high schools in the area. D. J. Cochrane, director of education,. told the beard that he was sure the Ministry would cut back on expenditures but was surprised that they got nothing at all. He stated that the only course of action was to appeal the decision to the minister. A letter from the regional' office of tfie Ministry of Education in London stated that the region received its proportion of provincial funding and unfortunately all needs or re- quirements cannot be met. Board Member Charles Thomas said that the board should challenge the decision since the building projects were not only important from an educational standpoint but it would also be good , for the economy by providing jobs. Since the board cannot proceed MRS. BONNIE PLETCH works on a footstool and matching chair at Tuesday's upholstery class. The class is one of the courses offered for adults at F. E. Madill's evening school. r W. gbani Thursday, March Op 1975 { b expenditure with any project and building must be put off, a delegation of three members, Cayley Hill, Harry Hayter and D. J. Coch- rane, was elected to approach the ministry concerning grants for the region. A report to the board from Superintendent of Education J. W. Coulter indicated that phasing out North Ashfield school could save the board over $2,000. In the report Mr. Coulter listed two options available which would be to operate one classroom in North Ashfieldin the next school year to accommodate grades five and six and transport the other students to Brookside or tq provide a port- able classroom at Brookside and accommodate all the students at Brookside. North Ashfield school has two regular classrooms and two divided by a wall while Brookside has 11 classrooms, one kinder- garten, one library, a gym- nasium and a portable. The present enrollment in North Ash- field is 40, covering grades four through six. The matter was referred -to the committees for further investi- gation with the suggestion .that the board also re-evaluate its school boundaries within the county. One board member noted that, some children are already being bussed several miles to school while living within a "stone's throw" of another school. The meeting of the Board of efusal rants Education marked the AMe i the board had met on the MS Monday of the month, open to the public and also in advance of Vie, Education and Manegemeflt Committee meetings. i onday board members agreed to hud the boatd meetings on the fil# Monday and the two celnalittee meetings at the same time on the third Monday of the month. Mr. Hill urged board meanie to try the new schedule at least until the end of June and if it met with approval• the meeting pro- cedure could be adopted. He stated that the board could pro- ceed with matters much faster and get more things done under the new schedule. The board agreed under the terms of the Education Act that the Chairman's Advisory CoM- mittee could deduct an amount not exceeding $300 for each month missed by a boalyd, member. The director of educa- tion, acting as secretary, will now keep a record of attendance $ board meetings and committees meetings and the attendance record will be reviewed by the Advisory Committee. At the last meeting the mem- bers embers passed a resolution that the Advisory Cominittee would be re- sponsible for the question of pay- ment to an absent board member and that the absence of .. J, P. Alexander since November of last year be considered an ap- Proved leave of absence. lumbing inspection fee to be $15 for new homes Persons building homes in Hur- on County will soon be paying a $15 application fee for plumbing inspection. County council ap- proved the recommendation by the Board of Health at last Fri- day's session and hopes to in- crease the revenue in the plumb- ing inspection department so that it is not so heavily subsidized by county funds. According to the report made by Ed Oddleifson, chairman of the board of. health, the present plumbing inspection bylaw pro- vides for a fee of one dollar per fixture. As a result many permit fees are for two or three dollars which does not begin to cover the cost of making the necessary in- spections. In the first six months of operation; costs were about $18,000 while revenue was about $5,000. The chairman - of the board health commented that in the board's opinion, the county muni- cipalities should not be expected to subsidize home builders. The Ministry of the Environment in- sists on inspections and the costs should be added to the mortgage which is spread ,over a consider- able period of time and -is not 'a great added burden to the owner. Plumbing inspections are not re - Injuries, damages heavy in week of bad weather Three persons were injured, two seriously, and damages were heavy in car accidents last week when bad weather conditions made driving hazardous and tricky. Robert Woodason and Mrs. Shirley Woodason, RR 1, Tiver- ton are still in the Wingham and District Hospital with injuries in- curred in a collision Feb. 26 between their car and a snow plough driven by Gerald Dorscht of RR 2, Luckn'ow. The accident occurred on Highway 86, west of the Zetland Bridge. Mr. Wood- ason was admitted to the hospital with abdominal injuries, and Mrs. Woodason suffered injuries to the forehead, chest, thumb and knee. The Wingham detachment of the Ontaripp Provincial Police reported dathage estimated at $7,500. James McNaughton of RR 1, Bluevale, was treated at the Wingham and District Hospital Feb. 24 for a left arm injury in- curred when his car skidded on Highway 86, struck the south shoulder of the road and rolled over. Mr. McNaughton was re- leased from the hospital after treatment. Damage to the car was estimated at $1,000. John C. Coultes of RR 1, Bel - grave and Hugh T. Todd of RR 2, Lucknow were involved in a colli- sion Feb. 26 on Highway 86, west of the CNR crossing, Morris Township. Damage was esti- mated at $1,400. Another collision the same day on Highway 86, west of the Zetland Bridge, in- volved Jeanette A. Wardrop and Robert E. Ruttan, both of RR 3, Wingham, and resulted in damage estimated at $250. Two more collisions on Highway 86, also on Wednesday, occurred west of the CNR crossing in Turn - berry Township. Involved were Bruce Montgomery of Wroxeter and George W. Conner of RR 2, Clifford. Total damage was esti- mated at $1,800. Mr. Connor was also involved in the second acci- dent with Brian W. Bain of Wing - ham. Damage was estimated at $1,200. A collision Thursday on Huron County Road 30 at Concession 4-5, Howick Township, involved Marion S. Versteeg of RR 2, Gerrie and Margaret A. McCle- ment of Fordwich. Damage in the Thursday accident was esti- mated at $800. The Wingham detachment of the OPP also investigated six single -car accidents last week. A car driven by Norman Baudin of Toronto struck a fence post last Monday when it drove onto the north shoulder of Highway 86 to avoid another vehicle, skidded and travelled down an, embank- ment. Damage was estimated at $150. Another single -car accident Monday occurred on County Road 12, south of Concession 5-6, Grey Township, when a car driven by Bruce M. McCall of Brussels left the east side of the road and struck several guide posts. Estimated damage was $1,100. Rae L. Breckenridge of Bluevale was involved in a mishap last Tuesday on Highway 86, west of Bluevale when his car went off the south edge of the road, back across the roadway, then left the north edge and struck a highway sign. Damage was estimated at $400. Two single -car accidents oc- curred Friday on Highway 4. John R. Martel of London was in- volved in a mishap south of the Maitland River Bridge, Morris Township. Damage to his car was estimated at $250. William L. Crawford of Clinton was involved in an accident north of the Blyth CPR crossing. Damage was esti- mated at $350 A Saturday acci- dent involved Robert C. Brooks of RR 2, Wingham and occurred on Helena St., north of Victoria St., Turnberry Township. Estimated damage was reported at $1,000. quired for farm buildings such as barns and stables, nor for repair or replacement of plumbing in homes anywhere in the county. The total budget for the Plumb- ing and Environment Division of—. council is estimated at $44,500, the county's share being $29,500: The board is presently ne- gotiating a new agreement with the Ministry in connection with septic tank, subdivision and land severance approvals. It may be that additional funds will be forthcoming which will reduce the county's share of the budget. The Property Committee has brought to the attention of the provincial authorities insurance claims totalling. about $3,500 in connection with vandalism to county buildings and property since October 1973. Adequate policing during court sessions has been requested by the property committee. Chairman Stan Profit described the behaviour of some persons waiting to be heard in court as "absolutely awful". New county representatives to the five hospitals were appointed for a maximum period of five years. They are John V. Fischer to Wingham Hospital; Eldrid Simmons to Exeter; E. Beecher Menzies QC to Clinton; Gordon Rimmer to Seaforth; and Mrs. John Berry to Goderich. Under the terms of the Educa- tion Act a board member must forfeit his seat if he misses three consecutive meetings without a leave of absence. However a board member does have the right to appeal if his salary is affected by the resolution. In other board busnness a dele- gation had attended a metric workshop in Chatham and ad- vised the board to pursue a metric education program-. Vice- chairman Herb Turkheim said that he believes it should be part of the board's job to educate the public on the metric system which is coming into effect faster than the public realized. A motion was carried for the Advisory Board to' set up a metric com- mittee comprised of both board members and staff people. Lions sponsor speaking nite The Wingham Lions Club hosted six students for an annual "Effective Speaking" contest Feb. 25. Speakers in the girls' division were Barbara Ryan, Colleen Raymond, Mary Edith Garniss and Alison Roberts. Miss Garniss was- awarded first -place honors for her speech on "Free- dom" and her impromptu de- livery of "Women Are People". Gordon Wray was the winner in the boys' division for his talk on "Metrics" and his impromptu declamation on "Canadians Should Be Prouui". The other con- testant was Chuck Huntington. The winners now advance to a re- gional speak -off to be held in Lucknow April 12. In regular business, club mem- bers organized a schedule for their volunteer work as `good -will ambassadors' during the Midget Hockey Tournament. The Lions are -also seeking public support for the Easter Seal campaign in this area. Two injuries in snowmobile accidents Two snowmobilers were treatedat the Wingham and Dis- trict Hospital last week for in- juries resulting from two acci- dents. Ivan Mawhinney of Lucknow was injured when his snowmobile app&ently collided with a parked car owned by Dr. M. Corrin. Mr. Mawhinney was x-rayed for leg injuries and released. Larry Ivory of RR 1, Ethel, was injured last Wednesday when he was thrown ahead of his' snow- mobile while going over a snow - band. Mr. Ivory was treated for knee injury and released from the hospital. The Wingham OPP who investigated the mishap re- ported no damages to the snow- mobile. FIRST'SVMON MRS. JAMES BRITNELL, wife of Huron County's engineer who has been president. of the Ontario Good Roads Association for the past year, was presented with a bouquet of roses at the association's banquet Tuesday evening of last week in Toronto. Mrs. Joe Kerr of Wingham made the presentation. (Signal Star Photo) Two Clifford mem die in Howick Twp. crash A two -car crash at about eleven o'clock Monday morning claimed the lives of two Clifford men and sent a Harriston area youth to the Palmerston and District Hos- pital. The accident occurred two miles east of Fordwich at 'the intersection of Concession 6-7 of Howick Township and the 30th sideroad (Mud Lake Sideroad). Fatally injured were Eldon Demerling, 68, and Walter Harold Wallace, 60, both of Chi.... ford.,They were occupants of one vehicle. Driver of the other vehicle, Kevin Byers, 18,,of RR 2, Harriston, was listed in stable condition Monday evening in hos- pital. The mishap is under investiga- tion by the Wingham detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police. Eldon Demerling was bowl in Howick Township on July 31, 1906, a son of the late Louis Demerling and Frederica Gadke. He has operated a service station in Clifford for several years. He was a , member of St. John's Lutheran Church, Clifford. The late • Mr. Demerling rested at the Rolufs Funeral Home, Clif- ford, until today (Thursday ) when removal will be made to St. John's Lutheran Church for service at one o'clock. Rev. Paul Welk will conduct the service and interment will follow in the MRS. PHYLLIS MITCH E LL confers with Mrs. Bernadean ,Ritchie and Audrey Ritchie on their liquid embroidery projects. The decorative tube painting course is held Tuesday evenings at F. E. Madill. Howick Lutheran Cemetery. Surviving are his wife, the former Edna: Rehkopf; three sons,,Glen and Wayne of Clifford and Brian of Howick. Township; three daughters, Mrs, .Howard - (Lorna ) oward-(Lorna) Lints.. of Carrick- Town- - ship, Mrs. Donald (Dianne) Hutchison of Minto Township and Mrs. Neil (Janice) Paulin of Guelph; 17 grandchildren and one great-grandchild. There are also six brothers and one sister. He was. predeceased by five brothers. Harold Wallace was born in Howick Township on August 5, 1914, a son of the late William Wallace a"d Amelia Greenley. He farmed in Howick Township for a number of years before retiring about two years ago and moving to Clifford. He was a. member of the Fordwich United Church. Left to mourn his passing are his wife, the former Alma Stewart, : #'ye son§, t� t , istowel, Douglas'' o Tara, Robert of Palmerston; David of Clinton and Harold of Kitchener; one daughter, Margaret of Brant- ford; six grandchildren and one brother. The late Mr. Wallace rested at the Rolufs Funeral Home; Clif- ford, where service will be con- ducted- today (Thursday) at 3:30 by Rev. Charles Forrest. Tem- porary entombment will take place in the Palmerston Ceme- tery Chapel. Final resting place will be Fordwich Cemetery. Council -votes to renew ease on library office Twenty-three members of Huron County Council voted against signing a new lease for li- brary headquarters facilities in Goderich, but 30 affirmative votes were cast to permit the building on Lighthouse Street to remain in county service until at least January 1, 1977. The debate arose when the county library board asked coun- cil to approve a new lease with the owners of the building. Ac- cording to board members, the building has changed hands and new tenants have shown interest in the building. While the county lease does not expire until June 1, 1976, the new owners were willing to negotiate a new lease with the county at this time. The five year lease will increase the rent to the county to $4.85 per square foot or $810 per month with a yearly adjustment up or down for taxes and utilities based on the actual costs for 1974. The county can terminate the lease with one year's notice any time after January 1, 1977. The board members explained that if the new lease had not been negotiated until the present lease expired next summer., the odds are that a lease at that time would be much more .expensive then $4.85 per square foot. Theory was, according to Chairman Nor- man Durst, to lose a little now but gain a substantial amount later. Discussion showed that not all members of council were convin- ced the economy would remain that buoyant for that length of time. Reeve Ed. Oddleifson of Bayfield said he was "darn sure" the county would not have to pay as much for library facilities even 'in the present building, in 1976. "Maybe we want to be Santa Claus," quipped Oddleifson, 'who warned against "presuming" the economy would remain stable. He said he felt the country is def- initely efinitely in a recession and headed for a depression. :`The present lease should be honored," Reeve Oddleifson said. Deputy -reeve Frank Cook, a longtime advocate of decentral- ization of county offices, drew council's attention once mote to the fact that a building is avail- able at yanastra which would ad- equately house the library head- quarters. Library head William Part- ridge was present and comment- ed that the library staff makes regular use of court house equip- ment and facilities. "We like to be close to the court house," said Mr. Partridge. "I've been on this council for five years and it is the same old story. Everybody likes to be close to the court house," stated Mr. Cook. "Let's change it a little. Why does everything have to be in Goderich?" Reeve Oddleifson concurred. He said that with proper planning and a courier system,' library headquarters at Clinton could still make use of court house equipment and facilities. "You don't have to be just across the street from the court house to make use of equipment here," said Reeve Oddleifson. Deputy -Reeve Frank Cook called for a recorded vote which resulted in a 30-23 tally in favor of signing the new lease for present library facilities. During the debate, however, it was evident that county officials are considering 'a new county building to house the library as well as other county depart- mehts. It was pointed out such a building would take several years to plan with construction not pos- sible much before 1977.