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Home My WebLink AboutThe Wingham Advance Times, 1995-10-04, Page 1If you're not aubseribing to The Wingham Advance -Times, you're missing out. Use this coupon below and subscribe today! Name: Address: City: Prov • Postal Code: Subscription rates Canada within 40 miles (65km) ad- dressed to non tette: carrier address- es $27 plus $1.89 GST. Outside 40 miles (65km) or any letter carrier address $40 plus $2.80 GST. Ouside Canada $80 plus $5.60 GST USE VQUf CREDIT CARD Card No. ❑MLIEDa❑ ❑MMEEE1 Expl Date: Visa Master Card[_; Cheque enclosed rl Return To- WINGHAM ADVANCE -TIMES P.O. Box 390, 5 Diagonal Road Wingham, Ontario, NOG 2W0 L J Progress edition now out Copies available at A -T office After weeks of preparationthe first edition of Progress hits the streets today. Progress 1995 is a news mag- azine focusing on the business and agricultural successes throughout our region. While many exist, this year's edition features just a handful of the many accomplishments made through Huron -Bruce. Copies of the special edition have been inserted into this week's newspaper, and others are available throughout the community. We hope you enjoy this new: feature from us. We're already planning for the 1996 edition! Court case sent back to PO court The court case against a local physician and two nurses will make a return visit to Provincial Offences Court in November. Justice R.G.E. Hunter heard legal arguments from the three's agent Rusty McLay in Goderich on Oct. 2 in Provincial Court. Hunter said he didn't believe the case belonged at that level and returned the' case to POC for trial on November 10 in Gode- rich. Public skating rates increased Rates for public skating in Wingham will rise this season. Wingham council has decided to increase the fee to $2 per hour for adults, $1 per hour for students and 50c for children. An additional hour and half may be added on Sunday after- noon prior to Ironmen games. The Howick-Turnberry Fall Fair begins with the crowning of the Queen this Friday evening. Page 3 Living with HIV/AIDS can be a difficult process in a rural community. Page 6 i3 The Wingham Junior C Ironmen opened their season at home against the Bulls. Page 6 $�cY �s^�r�a,,...4�.zfi�z's»�3:: zr,,..,�'°°4%aExx'�::k'r'r�:,:,,x•z..:,`':,:••'';.. News Page 2 Editorial Page 4 Letters Page 4 Community Page 5 Sports Page 6 T.V. Guide Page 9 Classifieds Page 10 Horoscopes Page 14 Crossword Page 14 A LOOK AT m m AIDS is a 100 fatal and not prejudiced — yet many still don't understand it. Page 8 The Wingham Advance -Times is a member of a family of community newspapers providing news, advertising and information leadership Running...Kyle ��le Dore competed the tyke boys race of the Running on Time in Wing - ham cross-country meet held Saturday in at the F.E. Madill field. Kyle finished the race in 24th po- sition, out of 25 runners. He was guided around by the course by father Jim. • Town worried over Wheels Away debt Fear they could be liable By CAMERON J. WOOD The Advance -Times The Town of Wingham is afraid they could inherit the growing debt of Wheels Away is things continue to go they way they currently are. In a brief presentation to council 'on Monday night, Deputy Reeve Ron Beecroft explained funding from the province to the North Hu- ron Special Transit Corporation, or Wheels Away, has been dramatical- ly cut. In addition, future grants are in jeopardy, leaving the organiza- tion with a potential S25,000 oper- ating debt. a, Beecroft said that Wingham could be held accountable for the entire amount as they have entered into an agreement with the transit group as the host community. Wingham has agreed to fund the operating debt to a total of $2,500 for 1995. But the town could end up with the entire amount of the growing debt if the organization discontinues service. "I feel very disturbed that we could be looking at a $25,000 defi- cit," Councillor Bill McGrath said. More disturbing news presented by Coun. Archie MacGowan was that the bank has extended their op- erating loan to Wheels Away, creat- ing potential for a bigger deficit. Beecroft suggested council meet with Wheels Away, active user conlmunities and service clubs sup- porting the transit service to discuss its future and the possible shortfall in funding. Council is also seeking legal in- put on their responsibility if Wheels Away discontinues service. due`to lack of funding. McGregor named acting MO HURON COUNTY — Dr. James McGregor will be taking over the duties off Acting Medical Officer of Health for the Huron County Health Unit. Up until now, the Middlesex - London medical officers of health have been providing acting medical officer of health coverage, but were unable to keep it up because of an already full work schedule in their own health unit. Dr. McGregor is a physician and surgeon within the County of Hu- ron, working out dl' Wingham. He is a coroner for the Province of On- tario. He has served the Huron County, Ontario and Canadian Medical Societies in various capac- ities over his. career. Dr McGregor was previously Acting Medical Of- ficer of Health for Huron County for approximately a year during 1986-87. Union president makes dire predictions LISTOWEL—The president of the Ontario Liquor Boards Em- ployees' Union had some dire pre- dictions for the province, if the Harris government goes ahead with plans to privatize LCBO out- lets. John Coones, president, ad- dressed several concerns at a for- um for Union Zone 25, held at the Legion Home here on Sept. 20. Besides Mr. Cooncs, Perth MLA Bert Johnson addressed the forum and answered a number of questions. Approximately 20 per- sons attended the meeting which was chaired by Mike Sullivan of Tavistock, an LCBO employee now on a leave of absence to assist the union in its "privatization fight -back." Mr. Johnson said the govern- ment is currently studying the pri- vatization of LCBO outlets, a measure first announced by the Ontario Tories in their Common Sense Revolution publication in 1994. • The purpose of selling, or fran- chising, LCBO outlets is to use the money to pay down Ontario's debt which now totals $96 billion, Mr. Johnson said. At the same time, he advised the forum that he too has some con- cerns about privatizing liquor out- lets. One concern is the control as- pects of the selling of liquor, and the other is whether or not the province would get enough to war- rant selling such a "cash cow." Mr. Johnson said he would not be in favor of selling the outlets unless the government received an amount equal to at least five years of profit, amounting to approxi- mately approximately $3 billion. The study commissioned by the government will be made public, Mr. Johnson said, adding it would come under public scrutiny, and he hopes it will also involve the par- ticipation of the public. In outlining objections to selling LCBO outlets, Mr. Coones said the government is exploiting a number of myths about privatiza- tion. He based his observations on what has happened in other juris- dictions such as the U. S. states of Iowa and West Virginia and the Province of Alberta, following the privatization of liquor outlets. Rather than customers being able to purchase liquor at a lower cost, Mr. Coones said in Alberta, West Virginia, Iowa "and virtually all other jurisdictions where alco- hol has been privatized, prices have increased by an average of 15 per cent." Product selection is decreased after privatization, Mr. Coones said. "In Alberta, product selection dropped by 75 per cern as private retailers carried only the fastest selling products in order to maxi- mize profits." In Alberta, instances of teen abuse and alcohol-related crines , increased after the privatization of alcohol retailing, he said. Mr. Coones said in Calgary, some liquor retailers have build cement barricades around their outlets in an attempt to prevent robberies. Individual ligtq stores in Calgary have been robbed as many as six tines, he added. Along with alcohol related crimes, the instances of teens abus- ing alcohol have also increased following privatization of alcohol getaili,ng, in Albert,, he said. ECONOMIC LOSS Mr. Coones said it doesn't make sense for Ontario to consider sell- ing the LCBO for a one-time in- come of $1 billion, which amounts to the equivalent of Less than two years of profits generated by the LCBO. Over and above taxes, the LCBO in 1995 will generate ap- proximately $660 million in prof- its for the province, he said. Taxes are expected to bring in another $630 million in taxes. Last year the combined total was approxi- mately $L4 billion. Although the LCBO receives no budget or funding of any kind from government, Mr. Coones ad- vised the forum, "it has contribut- ed over $14 billion to government coffers in the past 10 years." Noting the province would con- tinue to get taxes following the sale of the LCBO, Mr. Johnson nonetheless said the sale of such a revenue -making enterprise con- cerns him. If the sale didn't generate enough money to make a meaning- ful reduction in the interest being paid on the debt, Mr. Johnson said he would be willing to speak against privatization at the govern- ment caucus and also would take that message to the minister. Mr. Johnson later told the Ban- ner, "I don't,know if we can afford to sell it (LCBO)." OTHER CONCERNS Other concerns voiced by Mr. Coones included: Dramatic increases in policing and health-care costs related to al- cohol which have occurred in ju- risdictions with privatized alcohol retailing. °The privatization of the LCBO will dramatically increase the smuggling of black market alcohol which already drains $800 million from the economy. Please see LCBO/2