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The Wingham Advance-Times, 1984-04-11, Page 50 Win p eek' Township; Council lg Inrhitted to membership . in,thereeorganized Winghain Area Board and plans to locate a satellite Rice station infheTownshipof Howick. That la what Reeve Jack Stafford told ratepayers; at a spp. eciai meeting held in the Howick Community Centre on March g8. The meeting was called for the purpose of informing Howick residents about `fire protection as it now exists in the township and .14110. improve tint protection.:- Qutlining steps already taken to improve the township' -s, position as a Member of. the Wingham area and answering ratepayers' questions besides, • Reeve Stafford were: Howick Coup, Gordon Kaster who along with Reeve Stafford represents the township on the Wingham Fire Area Board, Turnberry Deputy Reeve Doug For - 1�11s�rl rilla���.lm _ 411 Horne Insurance Questionnaire • Does your current policy cover: - smoke damage from a woodstove or fireplace. - the extra expense of debris removal. - paint and or chemical spills. - damage to building by impact of auto. • Is your home covered for its full current replacement cost or just what you paid for it? ' • Can your agent personally handle claims up to $1000? (excluding theft) If the answer to any of these questions is no • . then it's time to call me! 1 STATE FARM WV, INSURANCE RICHARD GIBBONS 25 Alfred St. Easy, Wingham, Ont. 357-3280 Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there. State Farm Insurance Companies Canadian Head Offices Scarborough, Ont. pe; ` chairlihalnl, of t fire board; Wingham Eire Chief Dave Crothers,, and Gerry B. Sunaxrum of ILondon, a representative of theFire Marshal5s ffflce, Approximately 00 ratepayers attended the meeting which lasted nearly four hours. After listening to the platform speakers they had a barrage of questions dealing with the kind of fire coverage they can expect, to the cost of that coverage, the location of the proposed new satellite station, the volunteer fire fighters needed for the new station and possible alternatives. By the time the meeting ended ratepayers were in- formed: There will be no plebiscite held on the question of a satellite station for Howick — that decision will be made by Howick council; A new satellite station will probably be located in the Village of Gorrie; The cost of building a new fire hall for the area in Wingham, together with building the new satellite hall in Howick could end up increasing the municipal fife protection mill rate from 15 mills to 35 mills in a one-year shot; thereafter the im- proved fire protection could cost township ratepayers approximately $10,000 per year more than they are presently paying. History Besides Howick and the Town of Wingham`, the Wingham Fire Area "Board includes the municipalities of the Township of Turn - berry, The Township of Morris and the Township of Move uptofamous Arians QUAUTr Save up to $1250.00 lJmited time offer. Once you've experienced Ariens year-round groundskeeping. 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Wet the new agreement, based eu total assessments.., and h9'st lar;piroper>a•Y .located. from the fire hall (property within 24 miles is •cons dere Art have 100 per cent coverage and all remaining . property is considered to have 75 per cent protection) . municip- alities will support the Wingham Fire Area . as follows: the - Town of Wingham 36.2 per cent; the Township of Howick, 29.6 per cent; Turnberry Township, 17.8 per cent; Township of Morris, 8.7 per cent; `Town- ship of East Wawanosh, 7.7 per cent. Under the new aggree- ment the participating municipalities will also have equity amounting to the same percentages in. the new Wingham fire hall and in any new equipment purchased. Existing equipment is owned on the basis of per- centages set under the 1950 agreement. Under that agreement the member municipalities outside the Town of Wingham had no equity in the system even though they paid a per- centage of costs as follows: Morris and East Wawanosh Township, 18 per cent each; Turnberry Township, 23 per cent; Howick Township, 17 per cent: Wingham's percentage of costs under the old agreement was 24 per cent. "Nobody seems to know how these figures .were arrived at," said Reeve Stafford. When it was determined that a new fire hall was needed in .Wingham, members of the• fire area board took a dim view of paying a portion of the cost without having any equity in the building. It was then members decided to come up with a new financial arrangement. Under the 1950 agreement, after being a party to the agreement for 10 years municipalities could with- draw after serving 30 days notice, but 'received no equity. In April, 1971, that agreement was amended tment and therhad the kind of fire de ar Clifford Fire . �A fire rr-egs irhag—'3a- dam'fadtte l--DepartmealtrReev-e-St_._f srd-- "'a notice for .to:, withs#44 d.t gain -,the most potentially disastrous t emir o1 a' t 1a' -e . -fire; said Mr. Sunstrum, the with the towni3hp mei'b� ;,;,-,_ �' �. '.• Province of Ontario in 1952 still having . no equity. Now, . thepoorest o r - tion. with equity, withdrawal will Asked by 'aratepayer passed regulations to require not less than one full living near • Clifford if the standardize fire fighting budget year. township would continue to equipment and to allow fire Under the new agreement, purchase protection from departments to assist one the Township of Howick will Clifford for residents in that another under mutual aid pay the total cost and fully area, Reeve Stafford said : agreements. If a municipal - own its satellite station and that is council's intention. ity has its own fire depart will also pay its fire area "We've had a good ment, then mutual aid is share (29.6 per cent) of the working relationship with given on a no -pay basis. If cost of the new fire hall to be Clifford and we want to built in Wingham' Cost of the maintain that," Reeve Howick satellite station has Stafford said. He added the been estimated at $150,000, to township might also continue be debentured over a 10 -year to purchase some protection it at+ .9WIc#i eaGer•d n• Kaate><' a lid cil is studyin$,. h posoibf lits of Main the muniepal shed There pare no grants: to 0uild afire hall, he e9l0.1ed, but the township might qualify for an Ontario Neighborhood Improvement Program (ONIP) grant for a new township shed. Colin. Faster. said Count. Alex Graham • is assisting him in looking for a. site. While there was some -discussion about locating the proposed • station on the Howick community Centre grounds, or' in Fordwich, Coun. Kaster said he believes •'it -should be in Gorrie, pointing out the township road, equipment is also located in Gorrie which could be important if a fire call came during a blizzard. Mr. Sunstrum also spoke in favor of Gorrie, noting it was important to have the station located close to the largest source of manpower. When Reeve Stafford called for a vote of those who had put their names in for a volunteer fire fighter force, 13 indicated they would prefer the station be in Gorrie, and six voted for Fordwich. Better Protection Along with a satellite station, the Township of Howick would get one of the pumper trucks now housed in Wingham which would be used as a first response vehicle in Howick. "We are trying to provide Howick with the maximum protection at the lowest price it can be done at," said board chairman, Doug Fortune. Under the proposed satellite set-up, Reeve Stafford said, "No one within Howick will have less protection than they have now and 80 per cent will have better protection than that existing now.". Under "the • .present arrangelnefta- sof belonging to the Wingiltam Fire Area Board and'bilying protection for "various areas from the Listowel Fire Department, the Harristim' Fire :Depar- 7 / /�yji`. r r n i /q wry rg Grp -45 ' ���' �� %1� /..jay i.`�/���.., �.'/���.�u/.�Y�F�/'. ' �����.''.�.i.��f�..��.-i 6 �i.�/�i. / / i+:'S., �,; .,�.::. DISCUSS FIRE STATION—A public meeting was held recently in Howick Community Centre to discuss the possibility of setting up a satellite fire station to better serve the township. Participating in the meeting were, from left: Howick Coun. Gordon Kaster, a represen- tative on the Wingham and District Fire Area Board, proximately $38,000. Reeve Stafford said in future with the new satellite station in Howick in operation, the cost could be $45,000 per year. He stressed the fact that while Howick is committed to paying 29.6 per cent of the cost of building the new Wing ►aan fire hall as well as 100 per cent of the Howick satellite station, Howick will own the satellite station outright. "And the cost of operating that station year in and year out will be spread over the entire board — the same as the cost of operating the Wingham station is now." "We're really not talking two fire departments here," said Mr. Sunstrum, "we're talking one department with two stations. Mr. Sunstrum added, "It's not like you are getting a second hand department. Howick will act on a first response basis, backed up by Wingham. If the fire is too big once Wingham is there, then mutual aid ' will be called into play." Realizing no community however, a municipality has no department but instead purchases all its protection from neighboring fire departments, then that to their council," said Turnberry Deputy Reeve Fortune. "If council says there is no way we're paying that much, well to that ex- tent no one is committed." "If the cost is prohibitive we've got to be answerable to the taxpayers," Coun. Kaster said. "We have to bring the board's proposals back to council and if council overturns it, well two people aren't going to build it (satellite station) op their own." Wray Wilson of Fordwich wanted to know how much the cost of the proposals would add to a residential tax bill: Using Deputy . Reeve Gerald D'Arcey's house in Fordwich as an example, Reeve Stafford said taxes for municipal purposes would cost Deputy Reeve D'Arcey $145.24: The cost of fire, protection, without the Wingham or the. proposed Howick fire stations, would bring that amount up to $200. The cost of the fire halls (considering Howick's portion for the Winghafn hall at $80,000 and the first year _of_the .10-year._debenture for period, and the cost of the from the Listowel Fire municipality would have to _ Wingham fire hall is Department, but that the Pay the cost of mutual aid which Howick's portion greatly reQuestion Costs would be $80,000. boring fire departments. Ratepayer Ron McClem- "Those are outside Last year the township ent of Fordwich wonder - figures," Reeve Stafford spent a total of $25,247 on fire ed if the township coun- said, "we're hoping it will be protection. Howick's present cit is ready to commit a lot less than that." agreement with the Clifford Howick to the new fire area When a ratepayerasked if department costs the board agreement and the the area fire board is really township $7,500. - The satellite station, ``at any contemplating spending a Harriston Fire Department cost"? quarter of a million dollars charges Howick $8,000 per "As a council, we're on land and a building for a year and the Listowel committed," said Reeve fire hall in Wingham, Reeve department charges $4141. Stafford. "We agree in Stafford responded, "No Under the new Wingham principle, let's put it that damn way." Fire Area Board agreement, way, but the final figures are However, he'added the with the portion for Howick notavailable; land in Wingham will cost increased from 17 per cent to , "The board has two $60 000. 29:6 per cent, fire protection representatives from each As for the proposed- 'is expected to cost ap council and .are _answerable, Ontario Small Chums Courts They're often called the "people's courts: When you're involved in a dispute with someone, you don't need to have your problem wrapped in red tape or legal language- You simply want justice. And simple justice is what Ontario's Small Claims Courts lrc all about. They'll settle claims involving up to $1,00(. And they'll do it 'with a minimum of fuss and bother. You probably won't even need a lawyer. Learn more about'what Ontario's Small Claims Courts c,u� a YOU D0N'TKN IOUs. AmosiourioupoppolglIMININIOM do for you by attending one of our open houses on April 17th. Or get our free booklet by writing to: Small Claims Court, Communications Office, Ministry of the Attorney General, 18 King Street East, 12th Floor, Toronto, Ontario M5C 105. Ontario Small CL'tirns Courts When you don't know where to turn. Turn to us. Ministry of the Attorney General Ontario Roy McMurtry, Attorney General William Davis, Premier Turnberry Deputy Reeve Doug Fortune, chairman of the Wingham Fire Area Board; Howick Reeve Jack Staf- ford, also a representative on the fire area board; and Gerry Sunstrum of the Fire Marshall's Office. (Staff Photo) the Howick satellite station estimated to cost a total of $150,000) would bring the municipal portion to a total of $273.61. During the meeting Reeve Stafford also outlined the pay volunteer fire fighters would receive and en- couraged residents to apply for the position. "We would like to have volunteers throughout the township." Asked when council planned to have the satellite station in operation, Reeve Staf ford replied. "I would hope by the end of the year to see this . thing rolling on its own." • Asked if the township shouldn't have a tanker truck as well as a pumper truck located at the satellite station for additional water • supply, Reeve Stafford said the matter had been discussed and he felt some of the township's service clubs, such as the Optimists or the Lions, might take on the extra truck as a project. The training of the • volunteer fire fighters, said Reeve Stafford, would be done under the direction of Wingham. Fire Chief Dave Crothers. Fire Chief Crothers delivered a no-nonsense address on the subject. "If you're going to do it (volunteer service), you'd better do it because you're dedicated, or you're no damn good to me," he said. "You've got to be ready to go through hell ... You might be seared to do it, but by God you'll get in there and fight it. . If you work for me, you've got to be ready to lay 'your life on the line, but I won't ask you to do anything I won't do myself." - Fire Chief Crothers has been on the department 44 years and has one more year to go until retirement. Members of the volunteer department will be paid $20 for the first hour of service, $10 for each hour or part - hour thereafter; $10 per call answered, • $30 per week for telephone answering ser- vice, $7.50 per hour for maintenance work on equipment, $7.50 per hour per meeting attended and $15 per hour per training session.' Fire fighters will have full insurance coverage while on the job. • Converting shed to hall may be the solution 111 GORRIE — Howick Township Council discussed a proposal to use the existing township shed as a fire hall - for the planned Howick Township satellite fire station, at the April 3 meeting of council. The proposed plan calls for the building of a new six -bay township shed. Ap- proximately 62 per cent of the funding for the shed would be provided by the Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MTC), thus the MTC must approve any prospective site for the new shed. Road Superintendent Glenn Underwood said the Township changes insurance company GORRIE — Howick Township Council awarded the township's insurance policy to Ontario Municipal Educational Insurance at a special meeting held April 4. Besides the OME 1,roposal the township received only one other tender, from Frank Cowan Ltd., which has insured the township's property for the last several years. Council accepted the OME tender even though the premiums are $1,300 higher than those offered by Frank Cowan Ltd., which had dropped its price $2,500 from( last year, said Township Clerk -Treasurer Marvin Bosetti. The OME proposal offered "better coverage", said the clerk, and also allows the township to add equipment 'or new buildings to the policy without paying any ad- ditional premiums. This is an important consideration since Howick Council is considering the construction of a new township shed and a new fire hall before the end of the year. MTC requires at least a three -acre site for the proposed shed. The present township shed is owned jointly by the township and the MTC and the township would have to buy out the MTC share before they could use the building for a fire hall. Using approximate figures, council estimated they might be able to build the new shed and convert the old shed to a fire hall for roughly $30,000 more than it would cost to build thefire hall alone. It was suggested that part of the money to build the shed could be transferred from money already allocated for the township roads budget for the current fiscal year. This transfer would mean delaying for at least a year most zif the-- proposed projects for road . im provements within the, township, possibly scrapping the replacement of a township bridge and paving of roads within the villages. Deputy Reeve Gerald D'Arcey cautioned council against, over -extending it- self. "If you get too many irons in the fire, someone is going to get burned," said the deputy reeve. "If we get the fire hall finished and a new six -bay shed built for around $27,000 difference (compared to just building the fire hall) how can anyone complain about that?" countered Reeve John Stafford, e(;ouncit deferred any decision on the proposal until after the fire marshal has a chance to examine the shed and comment on its suitability as a fire hall. COMMUNITY CALENDAR ,ret/ INSURANCE BROKERS LTD. Insurance - All types. Home, business, auto. farm, life. WINGHAM 357-2636 GORRIE 335-3525 Thurs., April 12 to Wed. April 18 . Thurs. April 12' Senior Citizen Day at Delmore Maple Syrup Festival, 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Rummage Sale, Howick Lions, at Lions Pool, Gorrie. Annual Meeting, Tri -County Softball, Brussels Comm: Centre, 8 p.m. 1!'ri. April 13 Brussels Town & Country Tradefest, 5 to 10 p.m. Sat. April 14 Delmore Maple Syrup Festival, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Craft Show, Howick' Central School, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Brussels Town & Country Tradefest, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sun. April 15 Mon. April 16 Pre-Schoolers Reading Time, Wingham Public Library. Tues. April 17 liindergatten Registration, E. Wawanosh Public School, Afternoon. Ladies Fitness Course begins; F. E. Madill S.S. School, Tues. and Thurs., 7 to 8 p.m. Wed. April 18 Child Health Clinic, Clinic Building, Wingham, 9:30 to 11:309.m. ROXY HOME VIDEO Great Family Entertainment 241 Josephittte St., Wingham Phone 357'.3373 LI eat , eseleens alktivA. att.:2e 1241711,11