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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1979-06-14, Page 1Shopping plaza Godericht approved BY DAVE SYKES r_eder;cs. t, ... . eau -mil agreed witlra motion- of otionof planning board to proceed with the rezoning of land on Highway 21 to accomodate a mini shopping plaza. Planning board passed a motion at its regular meeting last week recommending that a one- ' acre parcel of land on Highway 21 adjacent to the Suncoast Mall be rezoned to permit the development. The development proposed by London businessman, Larry Morris calls for a 6,000 square foot, six -unit mini plaza geared to take- out type operations. There was some concern expressed over the effect the plaza might have on existing mer- chants in the core area but councilors felt the mini -mall would offer a different type of ser- vice. They: supported the planning board motion for rezoning and will ask the Huron County Planning Department to prepare the necessary bylaw. Councillor Elsa Haydon was not impressed with expedient manner in which the matter was dealt with at planning board. "I was an observer at the planning board meeting and they looked at the proposal for 10 minutes and passed a motion," she said. " Personally I think they acted in a careless manner." Reeve Eileen Palmer told Haydon there was nothing careless about the way in which planning board handled the matter. "It was not careless but a clear-cut, clean proposal,—she said. "We found no fault with the proposal and accepted it subject to the plan conforming to all the restrictions." Works Commissioner, Ken Hunter, explained that detailed .plans will be forwarded with the rezoning bylaw. Palmer added that planning board was assured that because of the type of trade proposed for the mini -plaza, it would offer no competition to existing merchants in the Suncoast mall or in the core area. Sweepers indecent? BY DAVE SYKES Goderich Reeve Eileen Palmer believes that town street cleaners are keeping indecent hours. Palmertook exception to the Works and Engineering Department's schedule of cleaning core area streets and highways early Sunday morning. She grilled Works and Engineering foreman, Stan Meriam, at a regular meeting of council Monday on the necessity of cleaning town streets at 6 a.m. Sunday morning. "On Sunday I saw the sweeper out at 6 in the morning and is it necessary ?" she asked. " It's unecessary noise and the men are paid over- time." Meriam told Palmer his crew just keeps the streets clean and if council didn't want them clean then the sweeper would not be used Sunday morning. Palmer replied that it simply wasn't an appropriate time to be cleaning the streets with the sweeper. Councillor Jim Searls asked that costs for sweeping the streets and watering flowers` Sunday mornings be prepared for council's scrutiny. Mayor Harry Worsell explained there is generally a . mess around the Square and radiating streets Sunday morning . from the previous nights activity in the area. Councillor John Doherty said he was on The Square Sunday morning explaining that broken whiskey bottles and papers littered the sidewalks and roadways. Meriam affirmed Doherty's eye witness account claiming there is generally broken glass around the Square following Saturday night activity. "There was lots of broken glass around and we like to clean things up before traffic starts Sunday morning," he said. "People often call us about the mess." Council learned that it takes approximately three hours for the sweeper to clean the core area and two other men are employed to water flowers. Street cleaning will continue on Sunday mornings. 132 YEAR -24 THURSDAY, JUNE 14, 1979 White elephant? by Shelley McPhee Goderich Township residents are not being consulted on whether there will be a hall or not, but are being asked for suggestions on where it will be located and what it should contain. At a• meeting in Holmesville last Wednesday night a crowd of 85 people learned that Goderich Township is going to have a hall. Gerry Ginn, chairman of the recreation committee stressed this point and noted that some structure would be built, even it is only large enough for office space. People are not overly concerned on whether how the building can be affordably constructed. The sudden decision to built a hall came over a year ago when over $192,000 was left to the township from the estate of the late Pearl Woon. It had been the wish of Mrs. Woon and her husband John that the money be used to built a township hall in the couple's memory. The money may pay for some, or all of the building, depending on its size. Last fall Mr. Ginn told residents that with Wintario grants and money from the Ontario ministry of culture and recreation a $325,000 structure could be built at no cost to the taxpayers. However, a freeze placed on Wintario funds and shortage of financial support availalbe from the government may almost certainly effect the previous plans. Although the township will still apply for some provincial grants it is possible that Goderich Township's 2,300 residents may have to help pay for the building through their property taxes. More importantly than the initial costs, some Goderich Township residents are concerned that maintenance and upkeep.of the hall could become a financial burden on the municipality. Speaking at the meeting Wednesday night, Mr. Ginn went into detail on such costs at various other public halls that have been studied. He noted that a hall in Kirkton showed a profit of $11,854 last" year while a hall in Elma showed a deficit of about $6,000. He pointed out that Elma residents planned their deficits by letting local service clubs use' the hall for fund raising events so they could make profits of anywhere from $5,000 to $10,000. It was suggested that a building costing $100,000 be constructed, with the rest of the- money, hemoney, $92,000 kept for future investment into the structure. Mr. Ginn opposed this idea saying that. the Woons should be remembered well for giving their life savings to the township and should be financially backed if neccesary. There are several possible locations for the hall, with the favored site being the one on 12 acres of land, adjacent to Highway 8, which the township owns and is presently developing as a sports area. Some residents feel however that the traffic load would be too heavy here and would disruapt the quiet village of Holmesville. A building large enough to accommodate 500 people with banquet facilities, dance floor and aplace for sports is the favored concept. Mr. Ginn has stressed the need for such a hall in the area since there are no big ones in Clinton or Goderich, the closest being Hensall or Blyth. "I think that large halls are -thriving," he said. Other suggestions included building of tennis courts, roller skating and miniature golf. "They (the Woons) loved daming,and I guess they'd want a dance hall," one resident com- mented earlier. The where, when, what and hows regarding the future of the Goderich Township hall remain undecided until they have received c lose consideration from the township council and the recreation committee. Undoubtedly residents are grateful for the generous donation of the Woons, but they don't want to be un- necessarily saddled with 'a financial white elephant in the future. Council leaves watering bylaw BY DAVE SYKES In view of the town's limited water storage capacity as brought council's attention in a fire survey, the watering bylaw was again briefly discussed. Councillor Elsa Haydon said she was con- cerned about the low water levels in Goderich and in view of that, council should not tamper with the water restrictions presently being imposed on residents during the summer. " I am satisfied to let the watering bylaw stand this year since the water storage is not sufficient,"Haydon said. "The PUC is working towards rectifying the situation." Councillor Jim Searls said he was in full agreement with the imposition of the bylaw and that it should also apply I to the. town of Goderich. "The bylaw officer should also fine the town if they are using water unlawfully," Searls said. "There is no reason water should be running down the street and into the gutter." Haydon informed Searls that the town was exempt from the bylaw and suggested that metering the use of water would eliminate overtime pay for the bylaw officer to enforce the restriction. " We should be metering the water inevery house," Haydon claimed. "Then the heavy users would have to pay." Councillor Stan Profit said that water restrictions in Goderich was an established fact because of capacity of the present tower. "Metering has been discussed in the past," he offered. "There is no need for a big in- vestigation." One councillor claimed that , in other municipalities who went to metering the consumption dropped by as much as 60 per -cent at first and then levelled off to an average consumption reduction of 15 per cent. The PUC has planned a new water tower at the edge of town. One moment please Anyone who had been wondering if those mounting monthly long distances telephone charges were worth the price would have been able to assess the situation much more ac- curately Saturday through Tuesday in Goderich. On those „days only 11 of about 28 trunk lines serving the Goderich area were in operation, and, it was almost impossible to make a long Opens house 1 The citizens of Goderich took advantage of an invitation by the Sports Committee to tour the newly completed grandstand and athletic fields at Agriculture Park, Friday. Those whdd toured the grandstand, were asked for their comments and criticisms about e the facility and recreation direQtor, Jim Moo , re orted they were favorable. (photo by Dave Muffitt) distance call out of town. Busy signals were the order of the day. The result was angry callers and harrassed operators. By Tuesday, Bell crews had repaired most of the damage and things were just about back to normal. On Wednesday morning, a Bell spokesman said full service had been restored. 35 CENTS PER COPY Getting the worm on is a man's job. Darren Langhorn,4, of London gives his sister, Tara,a helping hand with her fishing line as the youngsters tried their luck in the Nine Mile River in Port Albert on the weekend. The two Londoners reported a few bites but they left empty handed. (photo by Dave Sykes) Trucks and sleep don't mix BY DAVE SYKES A Goderich citizen charged that truck traffic along Elgin Avenue is keeping residents awake and questioned the absence of law enforcement along the route. In a letter to council Monday, Ted White claimed that truck traffic along Elgin Avenue caused considerable noise pollution at all hours • of the day and night and are responsible for many traffic violations. White told council in the letter that he ap- praoched the same problem several years ago and that relative peace along the route lasted 'about a week. He asked that council urge police to keep a close vigil along the route and that truckers be asked to drive with some con- sideration for others. Mayor Harry Worsell said the problem of noise along Elgin Avenue was not a new one to council but that few solutions have been of- fered. Reeve Eileen Palmer said writer of the letter was a knowledgeable person, and asked that a copy of his letter be passed 'on to the traffic committee, the police commission and the Ontario Police Commission. Traffic Committee chairman, Jim Searls, said his committee has received several complaints about the truck traffic along Elgin Avenue in recent months. "We have considered lowering the speed limit along the route but to my understanding that would creat more noise with shifting of gears," he said. "There doesn't seem to be any other route in town." Searls suggested that perhaps Goderich Elevator could be approached about having trucks only run at certain time of the day. In his letter White asked that each trucker be given a letter asking them to be more con- siderate of residents and that laws be strictly enforced. He also suggested the town post speed limit and drive with care signs along the route or as a final resort, reduce the speed limit to 25 miles per hour. Fire survey distressing council BY DAVE SYKES There was no great surprise among council members Monday as they learned that the town's water capacity is insufficient to provide maximum consumption and fire flow rates. That bit of old news was contained in a letter to council from Fire Underwriters Survey a company that conducted a survey of the fire defences in Goderich in 1978 and then updated the survey in May of this year. The survey recommends that the town ex- pand its water storage facility to meet maximum consumption needs of the com- munity as well as provide adequate fire flow. In the letter, D.F. Cowie that existing facilities provide �a measure of fire fighting Capabality but clearly stated it was in- sufficient. In tests at a number of locations in town, Cowie stated the available water supply was insufficient in the event of a major fire. He suggested that a programme to strengthen the water distribution system in the weak areas should be considered. The survey also strongly suggests that the town employ a full-time fire chief. "The fire department appears to be well organized and under competent supervision. However to strengthen the important functions of training, fire prevention inspections, pre -fire planning, apparatus maintenance and supervision of firefighting, consideration should now be given to the appointment of a full-time fire chief." the letter stated. The survey was critical of the department's use of a 1949 pumper and suggested that a modern pumper of at least 840 Imperial g.p.m. pumping capacity be purchased and placed in service. The 1949 pumper could be used in reserve duty. In its recommendations the survey strongly urged the town to investigate increasing the water storage capacity. There was also a suggestion to improve deficiencies in fire hydrant coverage by in- stalling additional fire hydrants so Che average area covered by any hydrant does not exceed 110,000 square feet ' for commercial, in- stitutional and industrial areas. It was recommended that a programme of hydrant service and maintenance be expanded and that a sufficient number of valve's be in- stalled so that a break or failure will not affect more than 500 feet of mains in commercial districts or 800 feet of mains inl residential districts. The final recommendation of the survey said that consideration should be given to improved frequency of inspections to allow review of commercial, institutional and industrial establishments at least twice a year and dwellings every two years. The survey and its recommendations were referred to the fire committee. for con- sideration. Road report The detour will remain as it is for the next two weeks. Local traffic has been allowed to enter business establishments, but some high- way traffic seems to be by-passing the detour routes and following Bayfield Road. Bayfield Road businessmen requested two lane traffic on Bayfield Road during the weekend. The request will be accomodated whenever possible, and in any case, traffic will be restored to Bayfield Road before the July 1 weekend. The Contractor plans to move to the section of Britannia Road between Victoria Street and Gibbons Street as soon as the grade is restored as far south as Suncoast DrlIi!ve and traffic rerouted to the originalhighvV y. This is ex- pected to be in about two week's Mime.