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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1979-10-18, Page 1The Lancaster is still sitting 'near the main runway at the Goderich Municipal Airport but the Canadian Warplane Heritage Foundation saysit will still attempt to lift the plane out this fall. A Canadian Armed Forces Chinook Helicopter was employed in June but it failed to budge the Lanc. The helicopter is, currently on manouevres but will attempt a second lift. The Lancaster is scheduled to be restored by the Foundation in Mount Hope. (photo by Dave Sykes) Sign posting not enough If you've just been caught speeding on the Bayfield Road between the town's southern limits and the spot the speed ,changes from 50 kmh to 80 kmh this may be your lucky day. Goderich town council learned Monday night that posting that -section -of Highway 21 as a reduced speed area is not enough. The town must request the ministry of transportation and .communication# for an 'Ontario -Regulation to • reduce the speed limit on that section of high- way. In a letter to council M.H. Seely, head of the traffic section of transportation and com- munications, told council an Ontario Regulation had already established the speed on that section as 80 kmh. He said posting any other speed limit is not enforceable and must be removed. . The town posted the reduced speed limit upon completion of the widening of Bayfield Road. • Seely also told council the turn arrows painted on Highway 21 at intersections' at Britannia Road and Victoria Street had been painted yellow. He said the accepted 'Canadian standard for those markings is white as outlined in the Manual of Uniform - Traffic 'Control Devices 1976 edition. Council sent the matter to its traffic com- mittee to bring a recommendation back to , council. Lipncaster s i ; ld e lilted this fall BY DAVE SYKES The Lancaster, now just a wingless shell sitting on the fields of the Goderich Municipal Airport is still destined to be moved to Mount Hope this year. The Canadian Warplane Heritage Foun- dation, who acquired the plane from the Goderich Legion over a year and a half ago, is determined to proceed with plans to move the vintage aircraft to its Mount Hope base this fall. An earlier attempt to move the plane with a Canadian Armed Froces Chinook helicopter was aborted due to excessive weight. That attempt on June 14 failed although the ,wingless Lancaster was estimated to "weigh only 14,000 pounds and the Chinook was reportedly capable of liftifng 25,000 pounds. Chinook pilot, Major Ed Booth, claimed the helicopter could lift the weight and was capable of flying with 20,000 pounds in tow but estimated the Weight of the Lancaster at 25,000 pounds. The manoeuvre was a full military exercise and quite costly. In July, Foundation president, Dennis Bradley, said the aircraft simply weighed too much to be transported by air and con- sideration was being given to overland tran- • sportation methods. He..-._c'1armed further stripping of the aircaraft for weight reduction might do irrepairable damage. Foundation manager Stan Hambleton this 132—YEAR 42 Council BY JEFF SEDDON . Goderich town' council unanimously sup- ported the Livery Theatre project Monday night and told tile: Goderich Performing Arts Foundation it may offer more than moral support if the foundation requested so later on. A delegation 25 strong met with council to ask for the town's support before the 'foundation kicks off a fund raising drive. Foundation spokesman Dorothy Wallace told council the group felt it was imperative •for council tb endorse the project if the fund raising was to achieve any success. . Wallace said it would be a "sad fact" if the town failed to endorse the project adding the foundation would have a "very tough time" raising money. She said all the ground work the foundation felt' was necessary for the success of the fund raising had been done. She added that the group -felt timing was very important. Wheels are still rolling Meals on Wheels will continue to be delivered to worthy recipients•for a while yet despite the ' fact the service's three key people are resigning at the end of October. A small but enthusiastic group of Goderich citizens met in the assessment office Friday evening to ensure that 15 Goderich people every day will' receive a hot, nourishing meal prepared by Alexandra Marine and General Hospital's kitchen and dietary staff. Dr. Brian Lynch, Huron County's medical officer of health, was chairman for the evening. He offered his office as a temporary headquarters for Meals on Wheels until the regrouping is completed. He said anyone who was unable to attend Friday 'evening's meeting, or would like to know more about the service, could telephone the Huron County Health Unit office in the county building. If Dr. Lynch is unavailable, the director of nurses Miss Catharine Walsh will take the calls. Anyone wanting to volunteer for . an ad- ministrative role or as a driver may also telephone the Health Unit. Dr. Lynch said the Meals on Wheels service has been operating for six years. During that time it has served 18,000 meals to Goderich citizens who otherwise would find it difficult to prepare a nourishing diet. The MOH made it quite clear the service was not designed specifically to feed the hungry or the poor, but rather. to ensure proper nourish- ment for <people of any age and income who for whatever reason, might not be getting the required nourishment in their meals. Recipients pay for their meals,in most in- stances from their own resources. The cost per meal is $1.50. There are provisions through the county social services department that ensure that no one will go without the meals because of inability to pay. Muriel Stokes, driver co-ordinator for the Turn to page 22 • Bu i der charged under code BY JEFF SEDDON Robert Gibbons will appear before a justice of the peace Friday charged with ignoring a stop work order placed on his development of a proposed bar and restaurant on The Square. The stop work order was issued September 28 by Ken Hunter, chief building official for the town of Goderich. Hunter ordered the project halted claiming Gibbons violated a section of the Ontario Building Code by not providing architectural drawings and specifications for the building and did not retain an architect to supervise the architectural, mechanical and electrical parts of the building. Hunter issued a building permit for the project in the summer to allow Gibbons to get on with the job. The building official explained that it is normal procedure to issue a permit for a job on the strength of architectural drawings and'specifications for the foundation. ' He said that practice allows developers to• begin construction while architects prepare drawings for upper floors. Hunter said the foundation of the building was drawn up under the supervision of an ar- chitect but no drawings were provided for the ground floor or second floor. Work is well under way on both levels of the Gibbons' building. Fines for ignoring a' stop work order call for a maximum penalty of $2,000 or one year in jail plus a maximum of $100 a day fine for every day the stop work order is ignored. . Gibbons has yet to explain what exactly the project entails. The only information made available was that the building would house a bar in the basement portion, a bar and restaurant on the first floor and commercial space on the second floor. itThe charges will be heard in justice of the ealbe court Friday. week -confirmed that the Lancaster would be lifted from the Goderich Municipal Airport by the Chinook but, plans have not been finalized. • "We have plansto lift this year but we just can't say when," he said. "The Armed Forces deal is still on and we're just waiting for a date. " Presently the,Chinook is on manouevres in a joint venture with the United States and is unavailable. When it is free Hambleton said a second attempt will be made to lift the Lanc out. Eric Grove, who was responsible for the first lift but is now not associated with the Foun- dation, said he was "disgusted and upset that it is sitting there and rotting." Grove indicated that the plane could not stand up to the poor weather conditions in its present state and should be moved as soon as possible. Once the Lancaster is moved to Mount hope it is to be fully restored at a cost of $100,000. It will beprestored in the colours of the 419 Moose Squadron with the code VR -A. Andrew Mynarski won a Victoria Cross trying to save the life of a tail gunner while the plane was going down. The crew survived the crash with the exception of Mynarski. The Lancaster was built in 1945 and served with the Search and Rescue unit in Torbay Newfoundland until it was decommissioned in 1963. The Goderich Legion Branch 1b9 purchased the plane for $200 and it was flown here from Dunnville, Ontario. THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 1979 .35 CENTS PER COPY ers support •to Stable "The longer we leave the building the way it .is the more interest will be lost," she. told council. The foundation delivered a lengthy study it had done on the Livery Theatre and had that study outlined by its author Robert Bailey. The study was commissioned by the foundation to attempt to find out if imagined support 'of 'the theatre could be documented. • • Bailey told council his efforts preparing the study confirmed the hopes of the foundation: He said he. had interviewed over three dozen groups and discovered not only did those groups feel the project was worthwhile but -expressed -keen interest in using the building for their own events. He quoted statistics. from the study sup- porting the project and told council he had made every effort not to allow those statistics to an" particular advantage. He said the foundation asked him to use only realistic figures and he had done that. Wallace told council that since the study had been completed groups not consulted prior to the study had voiced support for the project. She said the project's popularity was "picking up adding that some groups have gone as far as phoning to book the theatre for their own use. Wallace stressed the point that all the foundation wanted from council now was moral support. She said there could be a number of areas the town and the foundation could "work together" to cut expenses...• Reeve Eileen Palmer told the foundation that she "supported the project • 100 percent" but • wanted to point out some areas thatcould lead to problems. Quoting figures from the study Palmer told the foundation it may have been a little high estimating some revenues from potential users of the theatre. She said her experience with the towns MacKay Hall suggested estimates of some revenue sources may be high. Palmer added that the senior citizen's housing unit about to go under construction on West Street will .provide many•services for seniors that the Livery Theatre is proposing which may have the affect of reducing some revenues for the building. But Palmer said the "crunch" may come with a proposal in the district heritage con- servation plan for The Square which calls for restoration at the Victoria Opera House on Kingston Street. She said.the heritage plan proposes restoring that facility pointing out that in a municipality ,the size' of Goderich there is "only so much demand and so much supply" for culture. "There's not enough for both," she said. "It's either the Livery Theatre or the Victoria Opera House." Councillor John Doherty reminded council it had given support in principle of other projects in town despite some potential problems. He said council had supported the arena project and the grandstand project before talking money adding the foundation did not want • money. Doherty said the foundation could come Turn to page 22 • Town donates to tornado fund BY JEFF SEDDON Goderich town council flatly refused to delay its decision on how much money it would donate to the Oxford Tornado Relief Fund.any longer. Monday night council defeated a motion to hold the matter. of the town's donation to the relief fund in abeyance. Instead the town will send the tornado victims $3,000 The issue of hoW, much to send to the Wood- stock area victims of the tornado has dragged on for months. Council sent the request for funds to its finance committee for a recom- mendation and decided Monday night it did not like what that recommendation was: Several months ago the finance committee said it was considering a policy for council to consider which would immediately establish how much the town would give to Woodstock and any other municipality seeking relief from a disaster. The -committee reported the policy was being reviewed and should be back to council soon. ' Monday night the committee recommended the town hold the matter in abeyance and recommend to the -provincial government that Turn to page 22 • A Goderich developer will appear in court after development on The Square. Chief" building' citing a violation dna sec being charged with ignoring a stop work order official, Ken Hunter, ordered the project halted Building Code. (photo by Da . placed on this proposed bar and restaurant ' a Mon of the Ontario e Sykes) so