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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1977-02-24, Page 41. PP RI 1 1I+TA , S,TAR.T >E.. 4' V Preservatlon is.... When the O'Brien building at the corner of East Street and The Square burned, most people agreed it was a tragedy. Now that the shock of losing that corner of history has passed, although the memories and the reminders of the fire will linger for many long years, there is a new question on the lips of *citizens. What will replace the O'Brien building on that important location? When the O'Brien building lay smouldering in ruin, many people shook their heads in genuine sorrow. Whether they realized it or not, they were grieving for a building - a brick and stone structure that had been an integral . part of The Square for decades. They were mourning for a bit of their heritage, a tiny piece of uniqueness that set Goderich apart from other communities. During those days as the innards of that building were exposed - charred and scrambled -it was easy to see the age of the structure. It was clearly visible the building had passed its prime. Some passersby commented on the building's vintage saying in contempt, "And some people would have worked to preserve a building like that." With the O'Brien building gone, many thinking citizens are casting their eyes around The Square. They are trying desperately to decide in their own minds what will become of The Square in the future - as other buildings fall to the wreckers' ham- mers in the years to come. They are trying to visualize how the beauty of The Square can be preserved without actually maintaining the existing buildings forever and ever. Already in the opinion of many, much of the beauty of The Square area has been lost with the addition of buildings of modern architecture. Certainly there is nothing wrong with the design of new stores -.and offices between West Street and Montreal St., and many would . claim these struc- tures are a ,tremendous improvement over the rickety buildings they replaced. But still, the new element looks like all other new buildings anywhere. There isn't much doubt that interested builders and imaginative planners could have combined to raise a block of buildings more compatible with the character of the fine old buildings elsewhere on The Square. Much of this can be legislated throughmunicipal restrictions which dictate the height of a building, the size of the windows and doors, the roof line, the exterior materials, and so on. Such restrictions would limit the con- tractors, of course, but they would preserve much of the architectural heritage given to Goderich by its settlers and pioneer builders. Goderich's Square wouldn't be a hodge-podge of ideas, nor would it have the appearance of every other remodelled municipality for miles and miles. To make this kind of planning truly successful, however, there must be the co-operation of citizens in general who feel a need and a desire to plan ahead so that some of the past can be preserved. It is doubtful if anyone can answer at this point just what will replace the O'Brien building on The Square. It is certain, however, that the building that finally is built there will need to be a special one if it is really to stand in the stead of the fine old traditional structure for which so many people had such deep affection. —SJK Time to delegate Early in 'January, this column carried an editorial comment which urged town council to' give greater support to its committees. The editorial pointed out that council members give much care and attention to the appointment of committee members. It just naturally follows that, these committees then should be respected for their decisions and supported in their recommendations. At the very first meeting in 1977 of the new industrial commission, it was vividly pointed out that members of that arm of council are not at all satisfied with 'the kind of treatment they have been receiving from members of town council. As Chair- man Gord McManus pointed out to his associates, Don Ainslie of the Borg- Warner firm says the Goderich In- dustrial Commission is "a joke" and really has "no authority". Mr. Mc- Manus was, of course, referring to a situation wherein . town council in- terferedwith the ground work laid by the Industrial Commission in so far as bringing Borg-Warner to Goderich. Another member of the commission, Bruce Sully, called it a "mistake" when council took over the Borg- Warner negotiations from the com- mission after members had been working hard for two or three years on the project. Another committee ,of town council - the Architectural Conservation Ad- visory Committee bas had very little success with any of its recom- mendations to town council. The committee was appointed in 1976 and since its inception has had little or no support from the majority of elected members at the town hall. While town council members will probably argue they are all, well aware of thepurpose-" of this committee, it appears from some of the action 'taken around the council , table the members of town council have no conception of the goals. of the group, no comprehension of the group's dedication, and no particular feeling for what its members are at- tempting to accomplish in Goderich. One might even get the impression the committee was haphazardly "per- mitted" because the name, Ar- chitectural Conservation Advisory Committee, had a good ring to it and sounded sufficiently prim and proper to be just another friendly and har- mless concession to some of the people. Other of the town's committee = most notably of course, the Recreation and Community Centre Board - are hampered in their decisions by town council from time to time. The result is ineffectiveness which breeds discontentment and frustration among those members appointed by council who serve on committees. It is high time members of town council learned the first rule of suc- cessful executives - to delegate authority, to commit decision-making to representatives. Town councillors cannot begin to be experts in every aspect of the town's, business, nor can nine elected council members make consistent and just decisions. on all matters without relying heavily on the opinions of their apppinted co-workers. -SJK ZZhr Oolirc#th SIGNAL—STAR —0 — The County Town Newspaper 01 Huron —0 — P'banded, In 1848 and published every Thursday at Goderich, Ontario. Member of the CWNA and OWNA. Advertising rates on request. llnbserlptfons payable In advance 112.00 In Canada. $15.50 to U.S.A., *20.00 to all other countries, single copies LS cents. Display advertising rates available on request. Please ask for Rale Card No. 7: effective Oct. I, Ise. Second class mall Registration Number rid. Advertising Is accepted on the con- dition that, in the event Of typographical error. the advertising space oetupied by th8 erroneous Item. together wdth readonabie allowance tot signature, will nobbe charged far but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at die applicable rate. in the event of a typographical error advertising goods or services'at a wrong price, geode er service may not be soil. Advertising is merely an otter to sell, and may be withdrawn atony time. The Signal -Star is not responsible for the loss or damage of unsolicited mannserlpts or photos. Business and Editorial Office TELEPHONE 5244331 area code 549, Published by Signal -Star Publishifig Ltd.. ROBERT 0. SHRIER — president and publisher SHIRLEY .1 KELLER — editor EDWARD 1. BYRSKI — advertising manager Mailing A ddresu7 BOX 220, Goderich class Mari;reglstration number Coming and going By Jeff Seddon BY SHIRLEY LICELLER The life of a small businessman is never dulL There's nothing like living in a small town, operating a small business and knowing all your customers per- sonally. Sometimes it is precisely what you know about the people in the town that keeps life interesting and challenging. Of course, in this small business - the town's newspaper office - the, cbsillenge. is even more citing. Not only are our customers our neighbors and our friends, they are also the subject of our day to day duties. Writing news stories about the men and women we work with, play with, shop with, worship with, pay taxes with is about the most en- vigorating kind of mental exercise one can have in a day. And when one does it week after week, year after year, one becomes perhaps a little more hard -shelled and cynical then the average small business employee in DEAIR READERS That's probably why newspaper writers who have lived and worked in a com- munity for a number of years find- it so tempting to simply withdraw from the scene outside office hours. This hermit -like existence is yet another °kind of challenge. How does one keep from becoming a little strange? How does one remain a viable and integral part of the community 10 or 12 hours of a day . . . and still manage to find that rkeace and'quiet, that relaxed renewal of body arid - soul so necessary to a normal and healthy mind? That's the burning question this week, dear readers. Are there any suggestions? A large percentage of the work done by the editorial staff at the Signal -Star is with public boards, commission, councils and committees. Sure, these boards and committees are comprised of individuals who have chosen to step out of the . private sector and into the public Inaccurate info Dear Editor : I have just read your story of your February 17 edition concerr ing the approval granted by the Huron County board of education to the students of CHSS to build tennis courts,. I am frankly appalled at the nearly total inaccuracy of the story. The story states that there were two quotes for the project. $19,450 and $32,000, and that we at Central Huron limelight for a portion of each day or weeLor month. But the folks on these commissions and councils are also our neighbors, the parents of our children's best friends, the elders of our churches, the repairthen who keep our houses running smoothly, the professionals whose help and assistance we need the same as anyone else. How to. separate the public - servant from the private . citizen? Js .it. even ppssillte? Well, itian't gossible:for the - press to''separate the Ptiblic servants from the Private citizens unless the public servants are able to separate themselves from the private citizen. What does that mean, you ask. Look at it this way. The press can make every effort to cover a board meeting from a purelybusiness angle. The editor can make editorial comment after considering all aspects of the business transacted at the meeting. All this can be done impartially, ' impersonally and in the opinion of the editorial staff, as fairly as humanly possible. But unless the persons involved in the story are able themselves to believe and accept that their public duties have nothing at all to do with their private lives, then they are not likely to accept the premise that the press can separate the two things either. It is as simple as that. Every once in a while, this ,newspaper gets telephone :,Commend the -editorial staff en their courageous stand in some particularly con- troversial issue. Sometimes the editorial people feel, too, that it has taken courage to write what has appeared, but more often than not, the writers at the Signal -Star have simply analysed the situation from a business point of view and said what had to be said. The occasional caller contacts the writers to say how courageous it was to attack an individual . . . and that's where it gets a bit DEAR EDITOR picked the more expensive - one. The story is wrong on both counts. There were only two written quotations for the project, one at $19,450 and one at a little over $26,000 for the same work; there were in addition some verbal quotations received. The major error, however, lies in the fact that the Students' Council picked the lower price of $19,450 and actually handed around over two dozen copies of this particular proposal for Board members to read. The reference concernjng my statement that we picked the more expeniive proposal is out of context. The con- tractor Mr. Ray Mitchell (not mentioned in your inaccurate article) stated that his price of $19,450 could besreduted if his sub -contractor Mr. Levis applied only one rather than two layers of asphalt. Your reporter apparently could not be bothered reading the proposal Which was available - I would have given him one if he had requested it. Your reporter also ap- parently thought it a waste of time even to spell Miss Divok's name correctly or to find .out that my name is not Tim. This type of sloppy reporting does no service to your paper or its readers. It also ' will not make it any easier for our students to raise the additional money fer a very beneficial com- munity project because it appears from the article that they have irresponsibly opted for a far more costly proposal. Please, in the future, have your reporters 50 YEARS AGO 25VARS AGO The harbor is full of holes where ice has been taken from and unless some precautign is taken there is great &finger tO life. Every opening should be covered by brush or something elSe as a safeguard. Council agreed that attention should be given to this matter at once' to prevent any persoh from faiiing through the lee and into the :chilly :W'A*s of the harbor. • florae°, le for Centre Huron and one of the oldest inhabitants and best knoWn men. in Huron paSsed.,,, away in his 79 year, tomPaily and had been for in the affairs' Municipality and was .elected a, Member of the first cotinoll aftek:::the. incorPoratiOn Of the 4nilti5ft.;,, He Wait caunell., . Town -cohncil is making plahs to celebrate the 125 birthday of the town and suggested that the service 'elubs be tohtacted to help organize an Old Home Week and perhaps:the public could be inVolved in a public ,meeting deterMine the nature of the activities for the bamage was estimated litireximatelY $193060 'aft„ 167g2it:' "fire razed a large barn oh tiii# difficult. It is unli writer has made any to "attack an indi Instead, the writer h attempted to do the hand - to report fait accurately in newscolumns what place at a meeting, t all the viewpoints tog one carefully pr comment for the a� alt inr s Nf smi Hig en ce cell spc re th whI ie a nce gh te; Cc at i s lr ins y ed goli ar: R mc. Alas, it is. seldo objectivity is tru preciated as an art, a and plotted way of li rare that newspaper are understood for w are - servants of the not judges and assass defenseless private citi It is true, People read the news, partic it is about somebody e But when the news in wonder that news people steal silently after hours to the sol' their homes and famili check their facts before to press. Yours To CHSS Do you ha an opinion Let's hen from you s tol lin te of farm of Lorne Ritchie two miles south of Dungannon. The building and its contents that included livestock, grain, implements and a tractor were destroyed in the early morning blaze. Whetstone, chairman of the:, Youhg Canada Wiek Tournament„,' said .that, the third pieWee- hockey tour- nament would be held April fa Ida municipality was Po town council. A deleg snowmobilers prot council that the byls descrithinatory motorcycles were responsible for retilew, the matter' perhaps Update the made at the last me Mrw. betty Card* o,ordinator in er 61 bi