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The Wingham Advance-Times, 1987-05-12, Page 01,F Council seeks appraisals on all townmowned lands Following a lengthy session with its solicitor at a meeting last Monday evening, Wingham Town Council will ask for appraisals on several town -owned properties, including the Josephine Street ball park. Council met with John Skinner of Stratford for almost one hour discussing possible legal matters. When council resumed sitting after the in -camera session, it was agreed to obtain an appraisal on the town works shed, the ball park and David Street, in fact, all town -owned properties not in use. Council also directed that an amendment to the town's official plan and zoning bylaw be prepared to redesignate the ball park to C-1 (core commercial) from open space. "So the public is not alarmed," said Mayor Jack Kopas, "tire ball park use can continue under a C-1 designation." Councillor Bill McGrath added it does not mean council intends to seli the ball park, members merely are studying all the options. A C-1 designation would permit the establishment of a junior department store, the mayor said in an interview following last week's meeting. The town has been approached by a Western -Canadian developer, Don Sedgwick, who had expressed in- terest in locating such a store in Wingham at the south end of town in a flood -plain area. Council found it could not allow Town property taxes increase this year by over 11. per cent The average home owner in Wingham will pay approximately $110 more in property taxes this year than in 1986. Town council gave its approval to the tax increase and its 1987 budget at a meeting last Monday evening. What this means in dollars and cents is that a ratepayer who sup- ports the public school system and who has a residential property assessed at $3,000 would pay $1,137 in taxes this year, compared to $1,021 in 1986, or an increase of 11.4 per cent. A ratepayer with a similarly as- sessed property, but who supports the separate school system, would pay $1,152 in property taxes in 1987, an increase of $1,036 from last year or 11 percent. The total amount of tax dollars to be raised in the Town of Wingham this year is almost $1.8 million. The biggest single increase comes in the amount to be raised for elementary separate school purposes, ail in- crease of 15.7 per cent to $23,555. The town's requisition to the County of Huron will increase by 13.4 per cent, to $180,272, up from $158,850 in 1986. Wingham will raise $861,400 for its own purposes this year, an increase of 13 per cent from 1986 or nearly $100,000. This year's levy to elementary public schools has increased by 8.5 per cent to $405,051, or almost $32,000 more than 19%. The amount to be collected for public schools has increased the least, four per cent, to $290,883 from $279,631 in 1986. Mayor Jack Kopas noted a new taxation category has been added Woman's gift is displayed at Windsor Castle The current display at Windsor Castle, the main residence of Queen Elizabeth II, has a special display for a quilt made by a Wingham woman, according to a recent report in the Kitchener -Waterloo Record. The story says Doris Bushell's colorful, hand -made quilt, edged with trilliums, hangs in a special place of honor in the palace, dominating visitors as they enter the exhibition. The framed quilt, presented when the Queen visited Canada in 1984 during Ontario's bi-centennial celebrations, depicts the province in days gone by with a little red school- house, a woman churning butter and maple trees tapped for syrup, to name a few. Other Canadian items on display are a small, wooden totem pole from the mayor of Nansimo, B.C. and a figurine of Wankan Tanka — the Great Spirit of the Sioux Indiana — in a feathered head dress, a gift, from the people of Manitoba in 1984. Ad deadline this Friday The deadline for classified advertising to appear in next week's issue of the Advance - Times is this Friday at 5 p.m. The display advertising dead- line is Friday at noon. The advanced deadline is required because of the Victoria Day Holiday on Monday. this year: $16,086 for secondary separate schools. In arriving at its 1987 budget for town purposes, Mr. Kopas said council's finance and management committee did some "horrendous pruning", chopping hundreds of thousands of dollars from initial spending estimates. Councillor J. K. McGregor, chairman of the committee, said the group had to make tremendous sacrifices that none of its members wanted to make, but did so in the best interest of the town and its tax base. Mr. Kopas said he is glad to see several projects, such as the library, out of the way before council must worry about "scrambling to service the debt on debentures", made necessary by the upcoming Howson Dam and sewage treatment projects. One department which was espe- cially hard hit was public works, WORSHIPFUL BROTHER Fred Lewis passed on the gavel of power to Worshipful Master Doug McBurney at a recent ceremony at the Wing - ham Masonic Lodge. Mr. Lewis hand crafted the gavel he presented to the new worshipful master. , County council hires medical officer of health By Alan Rivett The Huron County Board of Health has hired Dr. Maarten Bokhout, a Newfoundland doctor, as the new medical officer of health (MOH) for the county, council was advised at Its regular meeting on May 7. Goderich Township reeve and chairman of the board of health, Grant Stirling, made the an- nouncement prior to the reading of the board's report at .the council session. Mr. Stirling said hiring Dr. Bokhout would be effective as of Sept. 14 this year. As for the terms of the hiring, the board of health offered a starting salary of $70,209, at the top of the county's salary grid, sir well as regular employee's benefits and moving expenses to a maximum of $12,000. The offer also was based on a five-year renewal coiiwact. The MOH position in the county has been vacant since the dgwrture of former MOH Dr. Harry Ceislar in July of 1986. Dr. James McGregor of Wingham has filled in as the acting MOH. According to Mr. Stirling, the new MOH was offered the position in early April after an interview with the board in March. "We were quite impressed with his presentation at the interview. fn communication with him In April, he agreed to come as the MON for the county. He also knows about the health system," he said. Dr. Bokhout, 35, received his medical training in Ontario baft working on a two-year contract wipt the Newfoundland provincial government in public health. He has a master's degree in public heaft. d said the mayor, who reported in an interview after last week's meeting that no road work will be done in the town This year. However, the town does intend to go ahead with developing a parking lot at the south end of town and Farley Lane. Council also has committed $150,000 to the new Wingham library, he said, the big project this year. Mr. Sedgwick to locate in the flood plain, said Mr. Kopas, but it is ac- tively looking for an alternative site for the business to locate and the ball park has been suggested as one of those sites. For many years, Mr. Kopas said concern has been expressed about the location of the main street ball park an about the real possibility that a child, or an adult, could be seriously hurt there rushing to retrieve a ball or running across the street. He said there is sufficient space at Riverside Park to locate another baseball diamond and save the main street for commercial or even residential development. Another problem has presented itself to council: quotations are due later this month on a new washroom complex at the Josephine Street park. Mr. Kopas said the project will have to be put on hold until council decides on the future of the property. Fire call is cancelled Firefighters from the Wingham department were called out to assist the Brussels brigade last Saturday ` afternoon, but the call was cancelled when the firemen got to Belgrave. Doug Carr, one of the Wingham department's captains, said the call came at 3:30 p.m. Saturday to Harkness Victorian, Millworking in the old Morris Township shed at Lot 15, Con. 5. The Wingham firemen had been called to assist the Brussels department, which already was at the scene, said Mr. Carr, however the call was cancelled. No further information on the blaze was available at press time. In a separate incident last week, the Wingham department was called out at 12:03 Monday afternoon to the Wingham Motel. Mr. Carr said a malfunction in the alarm system was blamed as there was no fire. HURON -PERTH MEET — Young athletes from the F. E. Madill Secon- dary School in Wingham were the top over-all point getters at the Huron -Perth Conference Track and Field Meet held May 5 and 6 at Goderich. Here Darlene Kikkert passes the baton to Tanya Sakasov in the junior girls' 4 X 100 relay race. (Madill Mirror Photo) Durham resident charged in Ayton teen death Wroxeter man A 23 -year-old Durham resident, wring the past month. first wild shoots turkey in hunt who lived in Hanover until about four weeks ago, has been charged with first degree murder in the death of 14 -year-old Jacobins He told a press conference Monday morning that hundreds of statements were taken in the "difficult investigation. People we received commendable assistance during the hunt and calls to the wild half kilometres north of Hanover, on t 111-A t ' fl, A Wroxeter man will go down, in the history books as the first person to shoot a wild tut'itey in a controlled hunt in Ontario since the early part of this century. , Kevin Townsentl was a very happy fellow last Monday morning when he took his 20 -pound tom turkey into the Ministry of Natural Resources check station at Napanee. The hunt was held in the Napanee- Peterborough district. A spokesman for the Napanee MNR office, Terry Humberstone, said Mr. Townsend took his prize into the check station at 6:10, a.m., just one-half hour after the hunt started. While he gained the distinction of being the first hunter to shoot a wild turkey, Mr. Town- send then had the rest of the day to kill as hunters are allowed only one bird. Mr. Humberstone said wild tur- keys are extremely wary and wily creatures. For example, out of the 500 hunters who took part in the first week of the hunt, only 44 birds were turned in by last Friday and the hunt ended Saturday. Another hunt is being held this week. To qualify for the hunt, those in- terested had to participate in a draw. Hunters lucky enough to be chosen in the draw then had to write an examination and participate irr a seminar designed to teach them the proper methods of hunting wild turkeys. The hunter must be totally Statement presented to PUC Members of the Wingham P Utilities Commission have called utility's 1986 financial statem "pretty encouraging". The 1988 financial statement presented at last Thurs evening's PUC meeting for commission members' c sideration. On the water side, there was a income of $54,000, reported Ve Hodgins, PUC treasurer. Howes there is a decrease in the hydro Income, dropping to $91,000 fr $102,000 in 1985. Manager Ken Saxton said the r son for the drop in the hydro into Is because the PUC's largest c suming customer, the Westi Foundry, went on line as a dir customer of Ontario Hydro as July last year. But he said decrease in net income is not significant as had been expected. Mayor Jack Kopas said the figu presented fre "pretty encour Ing". They dhow the PUC definit is not in "deficit situation", he a and it has Increased its equity ol the past year. camouflaged, said Mr. Humber- " emina Carman of Ayton. The teenager's partially -clad body a o m e community were very helpful, however, even the stone, even to the barrel of his gun. was found in a ditch beside Bentinck young people." He said he had The hunter remains stationery Township Sideroad 5, two -and -one- - received commendable assistance during the hunt and calls to the wild half kilometres north of Hanover, on from various police agencies, turkey; _-Qne.- W*s wa .thatw,.-_.U#r Ab P. She die.0krQJWw_9,09,�gvp, . 1?artirly Hanover and Durham,, bearded, tom turkeys are the only blasts - one to the head and the Y dupe ritendent Murray Peer ones eligible for the hunt is that one other to the shoulder. called the investigation a "jigsaw male can service several females Police arrested Richard Scott puzzle" that has been pieced and therefore the population is not Johnston of Durham on Sunday and together since the teenager's body adversely affected. charged him with first degree was found. Blake Evans of the Wingham murder. He was scheduled to appear Known as Jakie, the murder MNR office said wild turkeys were in Owen Sound Provincial Court, victim was last seen about 11 p.m. virtually extinct in Ontario due to Criminal Division, Monday morn- Saturday night when she was over -hunting by the settlers and rnlietective "wandering around Hanover, clearing the forests where the birds Inspector Howard talking to quite a few people". It has dwelled. Williams from the Criminal been determined she was killed However, efforts in recent years Investigation Branch of the Ontario where her body was discovered, by the ministry and the Federation Provincial Police, Toronto, headed sometime during the night. of Anglers and Hunters to replenish the investigation. Twelve in- Police put out a call to talk to the wild turkey stock in the province vestigators from Number Six drivers of a brown full-sized North seem to have paid off as the MNR District, OPP, initially assisted American car and a white or cream was able to hold the first controlled Detective Inspector Williams. The pick-up truck both seen in the area hunt this year. number levelled off to eight officers between 11 o'clock Saturday night and 7 a.m. Sunday, seeking in- ' formation. The press conference police said. was told Monday that Mr. John- # ston's car, which met the descrip the enta: rte: tion, has been seized and is at The h Winnipeg, Manitoba on May 10, 1972. She was the daughter of Kate Centre for Forensic Science in ,x Carman, chief librarian in Hanover. Toronto undergoing testing at the present time. Nominated to The accused is married and has b' one child. There is no clear in- dication if he knew Jacobina Car- men but Detective Inspector Williams said there was "only a ?F� casual acquaintanceship, if any". s� =, Police, are not sure of the motivation , for the murder, and the murder Pu .. n weapon has not been found. E ?� Police divers were busy again A=, _ " Monday morning, checking the .,' I Saugeen River west of Hanover with the hope of finding the 12 -gauge > w 1 shotgun. Although complete tests have not - w been received from The Centre for Forensic Science in Toronto, there is �x no indication that drugs played any part in the homicide or that the victim had been sexually assaulted, ' police said. # Jacobina Carman was born in the enta: rte: h Winnipeg, Manitoba on May 10, 1972. She was the daughter of Kate F ,x Carman, chief librarian in Hanover. was day Nominated to KEVIN TOWNSEND of Wroxeter hot a wild turkey In the first controd- ed hunt hsid In the province Since the tum of the century. (Photo by R. StaphPlon) hospital board Turnberry Township Council has nominated Anna Marie Kieffer of RR 1, Bluevale, as its representative to the board of governors at the Wingham and District Hospital, If Mrs. Kieffer is elected at the June 18 hospital annual meeting, she will succeed Hans Kuyvenhoven, Turnberry's representative for the past several years and a past chair- man of the hospital board. Although Mrs. Kieffer has been nominated by Turnberry council for a position on the hospital board, she must he elected by the membership at the annual meeting. Other nominations, if there are any, also will be accepted from the floor on the night of the meeting. However, only Turnberry residents may nominate township representatives. A .4