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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance Times, 1995-09-13, Page 3?WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 13.1885 �rk begrns.on airport runway y JIM BROWN The Advance -Times Wingham Municipal Airport committee chairman Ian Moreland felt as. if he had just won a champi- onship as he wanted to jump up .and down for joy last Wednesday morning. After 18 months of planning, long meetings and numerous phone calls, work on the airport was started last Wednesday morn- ing. "All the hard work, dedication and frustration has finally paid off," said Moreland. It was late 1993, when then Western Foundry president Dick LeVan approached Wingham Town Council with the airport proposal. The final piece of the puzzle was received last Tuesday at the regular meeting of Morris Town- ship council. Committee member John Schenk presented a cheque for $12,854.70 to the township for the deed to the road allowance at the North 1/2 of Lot 10-11 of Con- cession 1, from the Town of Wingham. The approximately five acres of property will provide an access road tq the airstrip. With the ac- quisition of the road allowance, the Town.of Wingham now owns a total of 468 acres in the town- ship. However, only 6.88 acres of the total acreage would be used for the airstrip. The' airstrip will be 4,000 feet in length and 75 feet wide and will be paved by the end of October. There will be a double -wide en- trance/exit with three rows of trees. A row of trees are being moved to along the east side of en- trance/exit. "All of the farmland will be leased," said Moreland. "The rev- enue will more than offset any def- icit, if there is one, to operate the airstrip." • • Moving trees...Airport committee chairman WIan Moreland and ccommittee member John Schenk watch as a crew from Reay's Tree Planting Service Ltd. moves a tree at the entrance of the airport development. Morris Township council had passed a road closing by-law in May, pending approval from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs. That approval was received and council then met in -camera at the beginning of last Tuesday's coun- cil meeting to determine the price of the road allowance. When LeVan first approached council with the idea back in Oc- tober 1993,' then councillor Schenk as chairman of the finance. committee thought it was just a dream. Cuts mean .By HEATHER MIR Special to the Advance -Times "At first, I thought the idea would not fly," said Schenk. "But, the more I got involved with the project, the more I felt it would really benefit the Town of Wing - ham." Neither the town nor the com- mittee proceeded with the project blindly. "We did not go into this project with our eyes closed," said former mayor Moreland. "We did a lot of research." He added that they were encour- aged when the MTO had reported 8 less per student CLINTON - According to Director Paul Carroll, the Huron County Board of Education expenditures so far are "on track" but added the board must proceed with caution. The July 21 Queen's Park update announced $1.9 billion in cuts and reductions to be achieved by the end of the province's fiscal year. The. Ministry of Education and Training has been given a $4Q million in -year capital expenditure reduction target as well as an $80 million in -year operating expenditure re- duction. Given these targets, the $8 funding reduction per, pupil for 1995 and further reduction of $8 per pupil in 1996 is only a token start to further cutbacks and reduced funding. The impact of this unbudgeted $8 cut for both elementary and secondary translates into a $73,423 shortfall in the Huron board's 1995 bud- get. Through careful management the director does not anticipate the board will have a serious problem making up the shortfall. The cuts have a greater effect on low assessment boards such as Huron. Carroll said the reduction is "meaningless' for large boards such as Metro, which do not rely as heavily on grants for funding their pro- grams. "We can't forget we have a. tough year coming up. 1996 is going to be a pretty awful year in terms of fi- nance," Carroll said. In addition to grant reductions, the Ministry is also reducing capital spending. Cuts have been made after some projects have already started. More of these clawbacks are possible between now and the end of the year. The Huron board has been fortunate as a late ap- plicant for Junior Kindergarten funding to have re- ceived $1,846,000 in allocation. Only $260,000 re- mains unclaimed. Another $356,000 in top -up fund- ing has been verbally approved. The funding has allowed an update of the elementary facilities at many sites including Huron Centennial, McCurdy, Clinton, Wingham and Exeter. The board has released a projected budget for 1996 with a zero per cent expenditure increase. Pro- jected spending is down slightly from the 1995 bud- get estimates. "That still doesn't address our problems with grants," Grey Township/Blyth Trustee Don McDo- nald said. To meet government reductions, „the board must find more cost efficient means to deliver services and innovative ventures. As budgets become tighter, the public will hear more about school business ven- tures such as summer computer camps and comple- mentary partnerships between schools and, private sector businesses. B ridge pro the committee to negotiate with Coun. Doug Layton said. "I think CN to see if the rail company is' we are -really blessed. I think we interested in providing financial have something here." assistance to develop the bridge The committee is examining into a walkway. McGrath said the the possibility of using recycled committee is approaching CN to plastic for the pathway across the see how much it will cost the bridge. McGrath said the life ex - company to remove the bridge as pectancy of this material out - specified in a 1994 land purchase weighs the cost of using a wooden arrangement versus the cost to platform. leave it in. Members of the community The committee has the support trails committee are expected to of Wescast Industries. Part of the make a financial presentation to proposed trail will cross Wescast council at the Sept. 25 meeting. land. So far the local firm has in- The total cost of the project is dicated a willingness to allow a estimated at $59,486.42. This in - trail across their property and con- eludes a $20,000 portion for labor nect the Eco -Park trail on the east assuming none is volunteered and side of the Maitland River to the a $5,000 contingency fund for fu - trail on the west side, creating a ture maintenance. The recycled full loop. plastic deck and runners figure in "1t looks like a good idea," at $11,500. Continued from front page Councillor Bill McGrath, who sits on the recently council - endorsed community trails com- mittee, presented an update to council on the bridge and request- ed a special meeting for Septem- ber 25. Council must decide by then whether or not they will seek another deadline extension on the bridge to allow the committee to continue their plan, or virtually kill the whole project and let the deadline pass. McGrath told Machan that the committee has no intention of seeking municipal funding. He told council the committee has a "fantastic" fund raising plan and will make a complete presentation to council on it. Part of the current plan calls for that an airport was going to be es- tablished in the area. Moreland added that Morris Township council has been co- operative in their approach to the committee. Schenk noted that the township council was very conscientious in their approach to the issue, and knew what questions to ask. Moreland said that the town has always supported an airport, the Cruickshank airport. Now the town is getting a bigger and better airport. "We are attempting to sustain local industries, with this airport, and also encourage other ones to come to Wingham," he said. The former mayor said they are trying to improve the economy of the area, and it is frustrating to have "one individual attempt to turn industry off from coming to the town." The Sept. 6 issue of The Ad- vance -Times carried` an in-depth story on Morris Township resident Debby Himmelman, who is lead- ing a crusade against the airport. Canadian Agra and Royal Homes have both thrown their support behind the airport project. . Municipal councils from the area are also in favor of the venture. Morris and East Wawanosh Township councils were both re- quested by the Wingham Econom- ic Development Committee to send a letter of support for the air- port project to the Town of Wing - ham and to Huron MPP Helen Johns. Moreland said that it has been proven that a municipal airport will bring in hundreds of thou- sands of dollars to the area. "We are trying to build a better future for , the children of the area," he said. , Schenk said that as a former councillor, this is one project that there was no negative side to in re- gards to the town. "I had no reservations about go- ing ahead with the project," he said. THE WORM JIDYAVCFTIMES Local man joins oppos!tion fight Petition in the making battle, she says, adding she is grati- fied to team that perhaps she is not alone in her views. A Wingham man has offered his support to Debby Himmelman in her fight against the Wingham Mu- nicipal Airport development. Jim Coultes, a long-time Morris Township cattleman, has come for- ward with his opposition to the $2.9 million development. The con- tract for phase one of the airport was awarded at a special meeting of town council last month and work commenced last week. While Coultes, like Himmelman, realizes that the airport project is going ahead, he wants to make his opposition known. He also believes there are many people out there who do not agree with the proposal and are not aware of the heavy tax" burden being placed upon the citi- zens of the town. Coultes says he is particularly concerned about seniors on fixed incomes, who have seen their taxes steadily increase. "This (opposition to the airport) is a common feeling among the people, but they are scared to speak," Coultes claims. He also says he is concerned about the fact that prime agricultu- ral land is being used for the airport development and that no environ- mental assessment has been held into the impact on the environment. Coultes has written to Huron MPP Helen Johns with his con- cerns about the airport develop- ment, but now is prepared to go one step further by getting signa- tures of those opposing the use of tax dollars to construct the airport. The province agreed earlier this year to fund the airport up to 80 per cent with the Town of Wingham and Wescast Industries contributing the remainder. The petition will be, forwarded to Johns. The fact that someone else ap- pears to have joined her in oppos- ing the airport is welcome news to Himmelman, whose story appeared in last week's edition of this news- paper. 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