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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1986-05-14, Page 1the1erich SIGNAL. sm 138 YEAR - 20 GODERICH, ONTARIO, WEDNESDAY, MAY 14, 1986 60 CENTS PER COPY Purchase of Crich industrial land squeaks by with 5 to 4 vote In a 5 to 4 recorded vote, Goderich coun- cil agreed at a special meeting Friday to buy 47 acres of industrially -designated land in Goderich Township from Donald and Lawrence Crich for $160,000. Council will spend $145,000 on the 47 acre• parcel, the subject of an uncontested an- nexation agreement between the town and Goderich, Township. The purchase agree- ment also specifies that the Crichs will receive a 1.97 acre parcel of industrial land with a value of $15,000 and that the right-of- way from Highway 8 to the 47 acre parcel be named Crich Street. While those who voted in favor of the mo- tion said the purchase was a positive step towardsthe growth of Goderich, those who voted against it said the Crichs were threatening to oppose the town's annexa- tion of their land if the town did not buy it. "I don't like being put under the gun," said Coun. -Bill Clifford. "From the binning we said the annex- ation was one issue and the purchase was another: We're being forced into making a decision that ties the two together. It really bothers me that at the llth hour of the an- nexation, we're told we have to buy the land or they'll contest it. They're not bargaining in good faith," he said. Clerk -Administrator Larry McCabe told council that the Crichs would probably file an objection to the annexation if the town did not buy the property. They don't want to own land in Goderich because property taxes are lower in Goderich Township. The deadline for objections to the annexation is May 21. Coun. Glen Carey said it was inflam- matory to talk of council having a gun to its head. "Negotiations often have the ap- pearance of having a. gun to the head. That's what tough league negotiations are. It's the nature of the beast," he said. Coun. Jim Searls said he- opposed the purchase because of the price of $3,000 an acre opposed to the $1,000 an acre price the town has sold industrial land for in the past. Councillor defends right to vote on land deal Before Goderich council's by-law to pur- chase the 47 acre parcel owned by Lawrence and Donald Crich squeaked by with a 5 to 4 recorded vote, Colin. Peter McCauley defended his right to vote on the by-law to council. "There is a rumor that there was a deal on my part and this rumor is totally false. I prefer the Crichs keep their land but I think it's a good deal for Goderich," he Said. The town has agreed to purchase the 47 acre parcel to add to its industrial land in- ventory. The parcel is the subject of and uncontested annexation agreement bet- ween the town and Goderich Township. McCauley did not declare a conflict of in- terest concerning the by-law to purchase the Crich property. He voted in favor of the proposal. During an interview after council's special meeting, McCauley said rumors had linked the sale of his home on Bayfield Road with the land deal with the Crichs. "Someone's bought an option on my pro- \perty but I don't know who it is. The real estate agent is taking care of it. The rumor said that if the landhdeal went through, my house would be bought but that's entirely false," he said. "I think the greatest abuse of power would be not to vote at all," he said. McCauley added that the unnamed potential buyer of his land would buy the land only if he received a .grant from Renterprise, a provincial Ministry of Housing program which is spending $75 million to provide incentives for apart- ment builders. In a subsequent interview, McCauley ad- mitted that he had known for several mon- ths that Donald Crich wanted to buy his house on Bayfield Road conditional on receiving a Renterprise grant. "But, that had nothing to do with the pro- perty dealings of the town," he said. "We just sold 25 acres last July at $1,000 an acre. We can't (shouldn't) buy this land but there's nothing to stop an industry from negotiating with the Crichs," he said. Searls also protested the 1.97 acres of in- dustrial land which will go to the Crichs as part of the deal. The Crichs plan to erect storage sheds on the land. - "Are storage sheds going to_en ploy peo- ple when a car dealership could build there?" he asked. Because the official plan authorizes warehousing on industrial land, Carey said there's nothing wrong with the Crichs' plan. Carey added that the new Foodland Queen and King At the stroke of midnight at Friday night's GDCI prom, Lisa Engelstad was proclaimed Queen and John Graham was proclaimed King for 1986. Lisa is the daughter of Ken and Kaye Engelstad and John is the son of Ricx and Nancy Graham. Both students plan to at- tend the University of Western Ontario. (photo by Dave Hamilton) Preservation guidelines will threaten future use of farm land for industry by towns. "The blackest hole of Calcutta will be worth at least $5,0.00 an acre once these new guidelines' are through," he said. Because he said the price to pay for the agreement does not outweigh the potential benefit to tlttiYoV,,iii !,"attracting industry, Carey said council- should support the by- law. "The numbers are there to support the by-law. We just have to decides whether we want this town to progress or nbt," he said. Coun. John Stringer agreed. "As industry grows, so grows the com- Employment minister to visit town Federal Minister of Employment and Immigration, Flora MacDonald will be spending the day in the Hition-Bruce riding on May 22. Starting at 11:30 a.m. in Exeter, Mac- Donald will spend the lunch hour there before travelling to Goderich where she will tour Champion Road Machinery Ltd. Champion received $1.5 million from MacDonald's Ministry in January to fund seven employment projects which created 118 new jobs. MacDonald will next visit the Canada Employment Centre in Goderich at 4 p.m. The same evening, she will be the guest speaker at the annual meeting of the Huron -Bruce Progressive Conservative Association in Seaforth at the community centre. munity. We much have steady industrial growth and we must have land to do that; all the experts say that. The price is high but we can't do anything about that. We have to take the opportunity now," he said. Though he said he was a little upset with the proposal for purchase, Coun. Stan Pro- fit said he could not say no to a proposal which could create jobs for Goderich. "We don't have an immediate -necessity to purchase the land but part of my terms of reference would be for the town to pro- sper and get bigger," he said. - Mayor Eileen Palmer pleaded with the council to "let common sense prevail" and pass the by-law. "Dollarwise we're sound and with the new Foodland guidelines, this may be the last parcel of agricultural land that Goderich ever has the opportunity to an- nex," she said. "Goderich doesn't have enough land for a medium-sized plant and it's futile to go through the hoops if we don't have land to accommodate industries. Plants wart to move yesterday, they don't want delays about zoning," she said. Palmer added that a meeting is being set up with the town of Goderich and Minister of Industry and Trade Hugh O'Neil so that he "can keep us in mind for one of those small auto.part industries." • After the vote, Palmer said she hoped the council would pass the by-law unanimously. "Those voting ,yea demonstrated their faith in the future of Goderich and 15 to 20 years from now, they will be recognized as such," she said. Voting in favor of the by-law were Mayor.. Eileen Palmer, Coun. Stan Profit, Coun. John Stringer, Coun. Glen Carey and Coun. Peter McCauley. Voting against the by-law were Reeve Harry Worsell, Coun. Jim Searls, Coun. Bill Clifford and Deputy -Reeve John Doherty. Free advice is offered for shoreline owners Record high water levels in 1985 resulted in millions of dollars of damage caused by shoreline flooding and erosion in areas on the Great Lakes. Cottagers returning to their properties along Lake Huron will be immediately aware that the erosion problems caused by high water levels continue. A technical advisory service is now available through the Maitland Valley Con- servation Authority to property owners who are experiencing shoreline damage. Through this service a coastal engineer will provide erosion control design advice to owners. This advisory service is being of- fered in hopes that it will ensure that any remedial measures undertaken will be as ef- fective as possible. This problem is funded by the Ontario government as a free service to lakeshore property owners. Property owners who would like technical assistance on shoreline erosion problems should contact the Maitland Valley Conser- vation Authority for further information. PUC determined to collect payment of account The Goderich Public UI ilit.ies. Conunis- sion has reaffirmed its decision 10 collect payment of an underbilled account. and has asked Bruno Lapaine, proprietor of he Bedford Arms Motel, to pay the bill. The commission met with Lapaine during their regular meeting May 8. The underbilled aci•nunt which goes back over a 22 month period was discovered when the coinmission con- verted their billing procedures to com- puter. The Goderich PUC billing was previously done by the London PUC. Three other commercial customers including the Town of Goderich, MacDonald's Restaurant and The Suncoast Mall have , already paid their underbilled accounts. The coinmission went into closed com- mittee of the whole to discuss the matter with Lapaine. Following the motion to pro- ceed in closed session, the PUC manager Evert Middel read from the Conflict of In- • terest. legislation which stipulates that where a member of the commission has declared a conflict of interest and the com- mission decides to discuss the matter in closed session, the person who has the con- flict must leave the meeting. The act also stipulates that the person who has declared the conflict is not to speak to the matter before or after the closed session in any attempt to persuade the commis- sioners how to vote. Mayor Eileen Palmer of Goderich has declared a conflict of interest where the ' matter of the Bedford Arms Motel under - billed account is concerned, because she is an employee of the Motel where she holds the position of.manager. Before leaving the meetuig, Palmer said she believes the commission is covered by insurance for employee error and omis- sion and since the underbilled'account is a result of an employee error, in her opinion, the underbilled account ghoul(' be paid by the commission's insurance. Having said this, she declared her conflict of interest and left the meeting. in an interview yesterday, commission chairman Dr. Jim Peters said the commis- sioners discussed the underbilled account with Lapaine. Peters said Lapaine did not agree to pay the bill, but he hasn't said he will not pay the bill. The commission stands by its motion which instructed the commission management to collect pay- ment for the bill, said Peters. In other business, Bob Cowan of the Frank Cowan Insurance Company and Beth Feagen of MacEwen Insurance Brokers appeared before the commission to discuss the commission's liability in- surance, environmental liability insurance and property insurance. Cowan pointed out that the environmental liability in- surance does not cover the type of accident included in the new spills legislation as it is covered in the commission's water con- tamination insurance. • The commission decided the commis- sioners would study the insurance presen- tation and bring their recommendations to the June meeting. Minister of Agriculture Jack Riddell, Huron - Middlesex MPP has confirmed he will attend the ceremony to open the new pumping station on June 30. The commis- sion,is planning a reception to follow at the Maitland Country Club. • Superintendent wants communication with parents By SHELLEY McPHEE-HAIST CLINTON - More than 1,600 students in the Huron County Board of Education system utilize the services of special educa- tion and Paul Carroll, Huron's Superinten- dent of Student Services wants to further "beef up" communication to the parent community of the special education services that are available. He told board members at their May meeting in Clinton that it has taken five years of building and study to meet the re- quirements of the sp cial education legisla- tion Bill 82 and he oted, "we're bringing er a five year building together aft things ag period and bringing consistency oto the system." Mr. Carroll explained that special educa- tion needs and staffing requirements are be- ing regularly monitored and delivery of the program is adjusted according to the cur- rent needs. Currently more than 1,600 pupils are in- volved in the special education services. In- cluded are 740 exceptional students, 300 remedial pupils, 300 repuiring additional speech and language training and 300 in- volved in enrichment courses. The program's cost in Huron County is $3.4 million, approximately 8.5 Per cent of the board of education's total budget. A major portion of the cost goes towards the additional staffing.. requirements. In each classroom every teacher, to some degree, must provide special education training. As well, the program involves 16 itinerant staff members who travel to schools throughout the county, 30 school based special education teachers, six designated special education, class staff members, five resource teachers for the 0^i secondary schools, three program resource teachers at the elementary level, 30 teacher aides, as well as secretarial and ad- ministrative assistance. Mr. Carroll explained I to the board members that the "school principal is the key factor" in the administration of special services. He said that the child is the central focal point and all resources are brought to bear to the child and the, classroom needs. Every school has a core group that regular- ly meets to identify and monitor the special education caseloads. He said that future directions for special education services are leaning towards greater program expertise 'for all staff members. "Additional time is being assigned to behavioral needs and specialized assignments. Support for enrichment and Local doctors attend rally At least 11 Goderich doctors joined the 5,000 doctors across Ontario who arrived in Toronto last Wednesday to protest Bill 94, the proposed ban on extra -billing. "We had a very good turn -out. The real problem was finding people to stay behind to ensure we had good emergency room coverage. We didn't want to leave any holes in the local medical coverage," says Dr. Don Neal. In Goderich, one surgeon, one obstetrical doctor; 'one emergency doctor and one aneasthetist stayed behind. Turn to page 2 INSIDE THE SIGNAL_ -STA° gifted is being broadened to every staff member," he reported. His report further stated, "In the secon- dary panel, the evolution of independent study options, small tutorial groups' and specialized ctirriculum for exceptional pupils 'at all le'tels of ability is particularly noteworthy. A study is currently underway to determine links among truancy, drop-out rates and special education history. The need for additional alternate approaches to education for troubled adolescents will be explored." Work with adolescents has also been ad- dressed at the community, level with a special committee brought together with various social service, health and educa- tional agencies and law enforcement taking part. Ue. Soccer shutouts. The Senior Vikings soccer teats record- ed back to back shutout wins this week, heading into the final week of the Huron - Perth Conference schedule with an im- pressive five wins and one loss record. T1 lc Junior Vikings suffered their first loss of the season Monday against Clinton but showed determination in their win against Norwell on Wednesday.' See this week's sports page in section A for details. Safety hazard A Goderich pilot, who has been flying commercially since 1956, testified at the hydro hearings in Clinton last week that the proposed hydro corridor through Huron County presents a safety hazard to pilots circling the Goderich airport on lan- ding approaches from the east. See details of Murray Ward's testimony 'on today's community page section A. Pop performer Singer Doug Cameron whose song, Montt and the Children, was inspired by the death of a young Iranian woman who was executed for her religious beliefs, per- formed at a benefit concert held at GDCI last week. The concert was sponsored by the local. Bohai community and proceeds will be donated to Family and Children's Services of Huron County. Signal -Star reporter Mike Ferguson interviewed Cameron. See page 4A for his story.