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The Goderich Signal-Star, 1973-04-26, Page 2a PAGE 2-,-GODERICH SU:NAr..STAR THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 1973 EDITORIAL COMMENT Answer may be in the plan A gentlemen's agreement. That's what - it was; according to Councillor Dave Gower, chairman of the Goderich Area Planning Board. Of course, Gower was referring to the recent approval of a building permit for a 24 -unit apartment house on Bennett Street just east of South Street in Eric Krohmer's growing subdivision. Although Gower admitted he was disturbed because the building permit had to be issued in accordance with the 1958 bylaw when the Town .is so diose (probably by the May 3 meeting) to giving third and final reading to the new proposed Restricted Area Bylaw, he ad- ded that in his opinion council and the planning board were "obligated" to san- ction the permit when the two bodies had "tentatively given approval" to Kroh- mer's plans months and months previously. On the other hand, Councillor Elsa Haydon feels strongly that council and the planning board acted unwisely and in complete contradictionSof the Official Plan in granting Krohmer permission to . build the particular .multi -unit housing complex in question. She insists that because Krohmer's plans fall over 12,000 square feet short ("no small discrepancy," says Mrs. Haydon) of meeting the requirements of the new proposed Restricted Area Bylaw, the permit should be denied. Black is black. White is white. There is no grey. As well, Mrs. Haydon fears the Town is setting a dangerous precedent in this regard and • points out that other developers may expect thesame con- sideration as was extended to Krohmer. She may be right, although experience .xshas.: $,hC„ ,,. at:, rion-oifi.cials._bavem..�.m an uncanny ability to judge each project on its own merit in accordance with or in opposition to existing regulations - and get away' with it. There's no reason to assume this case will be much different. The unusual aspect of this latest minor skirmish between Mrs. Haydon and the remainder of council with perhaps' the exception of Deputy -reeve Stan. Profit is the complete awareness of most members of planning . board +and council to the discrepancies in the en- tire matter - and their coLtective willingness to overlook them in this'in- • stance. — Building inspector Roy Breckenridge, a town.official hired to uphold the town's bylaws, has repeatedly and openly declared that Krohmer's plans just do not conform under the new proposed bylaw, but that haS not deterred- h fl from recommending - yes, pleading for - the project's approval. Breckenridge believes that because the area upon On assignment Its cieicet1 ... a f" Sex in the cinema Of late that sticky question of censorship has cropped up which Krohmer plans to build has been aain as is tends to do every zoned for multi -unit dwellings for couple of years, this time sometime now, council and the planning sparked by the decision of board should overlook the fact `that ac- Toronto Metro Police to seize the now famous by cording to the bylaws Krohmer has only thae no Hollander bookTby about two-thirds of the required amount Ha v ie Hooker" under the of land to build his apartments. He slake Criminal Code as being por- that in comparison to apartments put up nographic. last year in Goderih, for instance, Kroh- - With this question of ob- scenity and censorship in mind mer's plans are a great improvement. - Chairman Gower states without the .advertisements published in last week"s edition of this hesitation that Krohmer's plans do .not newspaper prompted some stand up under the rigid restrictions set discussion about the fare of out in the new proposed zoning bylaw, movies peesented to Goderich and area. Those Aver - but that does not keep him from voting tisements are shown., below in favor of giving Krohmer the permit he loudly hailing the movies in requests. Says Gower, "It was a gen- tlemen's agreement under the 1958 "fascinating," "erotic," bylaw made several years ago. We jvst -disturbing," "horror," and couldn't tell Krohmer he must change "savage." II when he's always Personally I regard the his plans, especially motion picture industry as one done everything in his power to meet great the art forms of the requirements set out by the Town." ' twentieth century and enjoy Reeve Deb Shewfelt told council last movie livery much as e of the moviess uch a 4 Thursday that Mrs. Haydon was essen- tially correct in her assessment of plan- ad- vertised above would interest There is another way to ap- nie in the slightest but on proach the problem, however. Hing board and council's judgement, but assignment I* attended the If the company would put bet - still Reeve Shewfelt was prepared to Mustang Drive -In at Goderich ter film entertainment in comply with a motion which upheld that to view these pictures and see Godericfh, theyor cion an chargI very same recommendation. Shewfelt is just what all this so called more convinced the Town of Goderich "shocking, fascinating, erotic, . suggest, actually make more sex acid sin" was all about. money. It's been claimed enter - desperately needs the type of develop- The question of just how tainment at local theatres is ex- ment planned by Krohmer and is much effect such films have in pensive enough but I for one prepared -to back up his convictions with creating or complicating our would gladly pay more and see action in direct conflict with the town's many social ills is . often something worth viewing. discussed in connection with As for the Drive -In films official documents. And what about Krohmer, the respec- well as Lady and the Tramp," he explained. "It's a family type movie but I'm willing to bet on a poor turn out. I won't get the same response as for last weekend's movies. The • teenagers; who want to go out that night won't even go near the place." Mr. Lyndon suggests that this shows the consumer is demanding these movies, although he admits the movie companies cash in on the third rate „quickie. "I really have nothing to do with it though," he explains, "that's the trend, and I',m caught in it." Personally. I have to agree with the Drive -In ,manager. The company he works for sends out the movies and it is their business to know what will sell. A- lookxftt the atten- a dance figures show they seem to know what they're doing too: such motion pictures in ad- dition to their artistic merit ted developer who is investing dollars in and the like. &There have been Goderich? At a recent council -meeting, studies made by governments, enf he told members he is puzzled by the Univers trcement many ciescouand ies in ries. fact that had he built his apartments last of the world and just as varied . year, he would have encountered no 9p - as the studies are their con--' osition at all. In other Afords, 'Krohmer �M.n „eels caught lh.. a tranTrbfl t1.°pertod Abet- ween the two bylaws and is understan- dably concerned for his own financial welfare when major variances arise. Out of all this' sterns one recurring thought. Maybe the Official Plan is too prohibitive - too restrictive - when it comes to apartment dwellings. If Goderich needs this kind of-aom- modation and if Local and out-of-town builders are seeking ways and means to provide this accommodation and still turn a .reasonable profit on their invest- ments, shoulci not the Official Plan provide the means to this end? Already it appears that local officials are having difficulty living within the rules and regulations of the Official Plan where apartments are concerned. Surely there- must be _some, middle of the road solution which will curtail this continual turbulence 'bver apartments going up in the Town of Goderich. • History repeats itself Back in the days of the French revolution when mobs of oppressed people in Paris cried for bread; Queen Marie Antoinette is reported to have said' "Let them eat cake". History has a habit of repeating itself. Today it is provincial treasurer John White who imposes a 7 per cent tax on light and heat and then advises the poor and lower income people of the province, on whom the tax falls heaviest, to put on a sweater and turn out the lights during the bleak Ontario winters. The arrogance of Marie Antoinette contributed to her death by the guilt tine in 1793. The equally arrogant provincial treasurer probably will be spared that elusions. They claim the com- " t'ete°ra ge...o{,°efforts•frerrn- one ----.F. to dangerous. As these surveys and studies prove by their widely varied findings, there is no firm con- clusion to be drawn about the influence of blue inovi'es on the sexual habits of Canadian's,' and I suppose particularly young Canadians, since they tend to go to more movies than an older generation* It is conceivable that a per- son 18 years of age (since by law these movies are restricted to those of that age. or older) may see an all night run of "such films and after several such evenings begin to assume, since sexual activity seems to be so simple on the screen, with none of the complications abot!it which they learn at home and school, they might as well get in 'on The "Mb; -- It It is possible 18 year olds are more easily influenced by sexual movies than older per- , sons and that perhaps,they may not remain,,in as firm control of their emotions. The drive-in theatre' has been called a passion pit. • fate. However, when the people of On- The question then arises, do tario realize just ' what this added tax all those steamed up car win - means in terms of their costs (Seaforth dows result from activity prom- peop a WI 8V movies being shown? At the $30,000 additional each; year for heat same time isn't it possible the and light) they wilt use other means of drive-in represents only a con - indicating their displeasure. • venient spot to park for a few Today we prefer to use the ballot in- dollars and if it were not run - stead of the guillotine when our leaders, , n'ing sexual movies the car win- by dows would be getting just as by their disdainful attitude, indicate they steamy there or elsewhere? have lost touch with the people. To settle those questions it And at times the ballot, while perhaps - would have to be somehow not as final, can be equally as effective established, whether sexy as the voters in Huron and St. George's movies prompt the blood to boil enough to let morals slip, or ridings recently proved. whether the morals aren't —Huron Expositor h h he firs Slace this editorial first appeared, the Energy p at fact I II h e to pay out as Much as pied by the sexually oriented really all that ig in t lace. To establish th seems nearly impossible. has been lifted by Hon. Toho White Were the morals dragged down by dirty movies or did a new set of morals encourage the .production of , skin flicks? Again there seems to be no an- swer. The sexual movies shown over the past weekend were about as bad as any film could be. True, sex was cheapened and exploited, but it was done in such a way that my blood didn't even get lukewarm. I wasn't offended or horrified or disgusted, just amused that so many people would pay $2.00 to see such garbage. (You can rest assured my $2.00 will be charged to my expense account) The skin flicks make money though. John Lyndon, manager of the Mustang Drive -In, points out that often if he runs a good allow on the weekend the money goes down the drain, people..,jutit don't go to see it. "On the weekend of May 3, 4 and 5 the Mua4,ang will show Napoleon and Samantha as Tax A the eoDecfcfj SIGNAL -STAR —0— The County Town Newspaper of Huron —0— nouns.d,n111;5andpublishedeveryThursday'al37WestSt ,Goderich,°nierro Member of the Audit Bureau of Crrculat,on. the CWNA andOWNA Advertising rates nn rer)uest Subscriptions payable .n advance. $s 00 in Canada, _! SO in 'II cnuntr,es other than Canada, sl*Ile copies 20 cents Second class mast Reg,stral,on Number 071$ Advertising ,s accepted nn the cnndrl,on that. ,n the event of typographical error. that portion of the adverl,s,ng space occupied by 111e erron►ous item, together wren reasonable allowance for signature, «,h not be charged for but the hal ante of the advertisement will be paid for al tM applicable rate In the event of a typegr aph,cal error advertiunq goods nr s.re,ces al •wrong pr ice. pods or services may not be sold Advertis,nq ,s merely .n offer to sell and may b. withdrawn a1 any lima business and Editorial Office TELEPHONE 524.6331 area code 513 Second class mail registration number --0716 Published by Signal -Star PubNshing Ltd. ROBERT G. SHRIEK-pridsnt and publisher SHIRLEY J. KELLER--editor R. W. SHAW --editorial staff EDWARD J. BYRSKI---advertising manager DAVE R. WILLIAMS—advertising representative 0 on May 3, 4 and 5 1 won't go see them eitHer because they lack merit for me in another way. If Mom and Dad want to take the family out to the show they are ideal, but not many families will be out and we all know it. The beat` example of what I am trying to demonstrate might be taken from the Northern On- tario Community of Kapgskasing where I lived and worked several years ago. Kapuskasing has two movie theatres. One runs the same movies as the Goderic t i r've- In, while the other runs e top notch movies being seen at the same time in larger centres like Toronto. I know this by com- paring the theatre adver- tisements locally to the Kapuskasing newspaper I still receive. It is obvious from the physical appearance of the two theatres there that the one run- ning better shows is a healthy business while the other is struggling to keep in the black. The conclusion is, offer a good product over a bad one and the consumer will pay a little more for the better merchandise. Both "Dagmar's Hot Pants" and "Lady and the Tramp" have, little artistic merit and the only reason Dagmar does better at the box office than Walt Disney's pooch is because sex is indeed a marketable commodity and dogs just are not. An excellent movie, "Fiddler on the Roof', is presently run- ning at the Park Theatre (owned by the same firm as the Mustang Drive -In) and is' doing very well despite the, fact it took it nearly two years to get here. Imagine the crowds., the any invested the money to g it here when it was still fresh' and new. Would it not have paid for itself? The issue here is not censor- ship. I opposeundue censorship in all its forms and so does this newspaper. This week's skin flicks should be censored if anything should, but who is to judge what is pornography and what is not? Has any one adult the right, or the power, to tell any other adult what he can or cannot see? We believe no one has that right and that censorship is an - affront to freedom so the decision comes back to rest with the consumer. If we can boycott meat why can't we boycott bad movies? Until shown otherwise the movie companies will continue to run cheapies for the fast buck. If the trend Mr. Lyndon spoke. .of reverses, and we show we have some taste in enter- -•• tainment after all, the same company will follow iht as they have in the p HQw much public support longer lit movie tiled with such phi: "Women hungrily so embraces as he lsalvation throughaus in?" - movies'. That doesn't begin to describe them, To blazes with the issues. It's a free country anyone old enough to etto member of parliament ie enough to see bare breast; what about this rest ofur want to be entertained? those sort 'of movies the entertainment lies in r laughs you get from the camera angles, out of G. footage and acting that" have been drummed outai grade two drama productia I never did discover "Dagmar's Hot Pants" b� plot, though I doubt There must be many when the people of Glr., and arca would like tole to a show but look in the to find nothing worth .: listed on the enterta page. The trouble is enough do attend to main films turn a profit. I:. many ;o out of desperado If th• •e is to be a chaag must • .ake ourselves spicul - by our absence. see a ,!-w trend. Special editorial comment 1 by Ron Shclw ovie fare or last weekend -' _... ,. air 'WA Tzto"' APR. 2.2 faINIDAy NIGMT ppE, HOlIpA Y TO. DA WN . 4« coeo,z SHOWI OMITTANCE ,g`STRicyro 1 rS E/SONS r{� Of 161 OR Olt DRIVE'IN THEATRE Sunday AprII 22 DUSK TO DAWN SHOW 7U11�IGtfT PEOPLE JOHN ASMI PAY GA,,! a AOUIT TNiIRTAINNKNT rwyoUNG, T,,E EV LAND ri lE SAVAGE COLPR, nnc_.. ef. RENNIE DAMON • BROWN ...AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL •• • • d AOWETENTtRTAN/NMI plus 'NEW SCREEN EXCITEMENT! Tref STORY AU. TRUE 1 Tr! MAN ALL EVILI I dIIIId Plat 161111161111 W nNm,r,y 'YL '4 Fmbree,r rk Wet T SALVATION THROUGH SIN! plus Roger Moore 8S T ENTERTANIIINIT everyone is dying to -w' A ,. meet MIN* memos 1,lidy vAMssA HOWRROei-ci/ttr'j Int alAtA 1T MMCHAEU ©RYANT AIMTENTERTAINMENI rotafAls � MARRIAGI Q GIRL GRABBERS CO THE. LONERS '"°"11 tADMISSIOI DUSK TO DAWN ONLY 12. THURSDAY FRIDAY-- t5ATURDAT April 19 - 20 • 1 1 THE TONERS Dean Stockwell Scott Brady CsitiVEdja ItOTli,E, • UR DIS1 -'BAII�II OST SUE DONS MARIA AOAM cJlnton sicaflfl': TH RENO* WNW yoGAllNB6w„ 4 OFFICE—S:00, FIRST SHOW -8:3° gIGFEATURES—ACTION & Suflday, ApriI flnd — Dsk toD ..a HOCKER t FA IOCIN nlaamm�owof • N (Oof If 1u119111I11 .-, TILE roam PA oJgcl # A UNIVERSAL PICTURE TECHNICOLOR 'id d1 ;aril has for th al al use ho 5 to ce tho in nt ti tax gedl issue et. It rathf the rte none s in rte P ourel ficin s and ince, ,nt h dal Ben' ed a `(F co01 Ter Loi past oily m 1 cial too the toil Lha redo ant dha ue� rate- . r, I -rn01 alcu dingy; an "•tali a on F year ' a ee i e a 4.7 et Bre on arli oth s a nl di( ber rstf s t( nil sb ou S8 Pc d to in tt inc ag gE al rr ds n el S