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The Times Advocate, 2004-11-17, Page 88 Exeter Times -Advocate Wednesday, November 17, 2004 Operation Christmas Child Stephanie Dean, Ruth Ann Dean and Heather Amerongen were some of the vol- unteers at the Exeter Pentecostal Church Saturday collecting shoe boxes to be shipped to children who would otherwise not receive any gifts this Christmas.As part of Operation Christmas Child, 1,090 shoe boxes were brought to the church from area groups including Zion United Church, Brucefield United Church, Exeter Pentecostal Church, Grand Bend Church of God, Hensall United Church Youth Group, Usborne Public School, Lucan Public School, Hensall Public School, St. James School, St. Boniface School, Precious Blood School and South Huron District High School. (photo/Mary Simmons) South Huron District High School recently collected nearly 400 shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child, an effort which donates toys, school supplies, hygiene items and clothes to children around the world suffering the effects of war, ter- rorism, disease, famine and disaster.The school has participated since 1995 and teacher Dave MacLeod said there's a good response from students every year. Pictured in front from left are Nick Allen and Jordan Taylor, while in back from left are Ryan Sedlak, MacLeod, Michelle Piper and Alice McLean. (photo/Scott Nixon) ABCA general levy to increase by 3.5 per cent By Mary Simmons TIMES -ADVOCATE STAFF AUSABLE BAYFIELD — The proposed 2005 budget for the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA) will be circulated to member municipalities for their consideration and recommenda- tion. The second draft of the proposed 2005 budget was presented to the board of directors at a meeting Friday. It includes a general levy of $472,503, a 3.5 per cent increase, and a project levy of $354,775, a 23 per cent decrease. Approximately $8,500 in increased revenues will be collected through revi- sions to the 2005 fee schedule for plan- ning permits issued according to provin- cial regulations. The ABCA charges $600 for staff to conduct a plan review for multi -lot developments of one to three units and $1,500 for those with more than four units. The board decided to charge $650 for a full application for one unit, $1,000 for two to four units, $2,000 for five to 15 units, $3,000 for 16 to 45 units and $4,000 for development plans with more than 46 units. Minor applications will still cost $150 and intermediate applications will go from $350 to $400. General manager Tom Prout said although ABCA employees do not review many applications for more than 15 units, they require more work and take up time for staff. Prout said the authority would also like to get away from issuing blanket permits for developments since individual own- ers may not know the terms of the per- mit and may violate it years after it was issued. When staff members have to look into violations, revenue is not collected for the conservation authority. The increased charges were made to allow the authority to recover more of the real cost for the services it offers. Changes were also made to the project levy at the board meeting. Since funding through the Ministry of Natural Resources did not come through for Klopp Commemorative Woods Development, the board decided to leave it off the 2005 budget. Alternative fund- ing will be looked into for the 2006 bud- get. The Rock Glen Conservation Area is budgeted to receive new playground equipment in 2005. The board included $12,500 in its project levy towards the activity area. Prout said the playground equipment at the site is more than 20 years old and is a safety concern. Outdoor activity kiosks for young children will be installed to teach them about the conser- vation area's fossils and the environ- ment. Simple playground equipment will replace what is there. The board also voted to remove the old equipment immediately. Huron County council wants resolution to cross-border billing By Pauline Kerr SPECIAL TO THE TIMES -ADVOCATE GODERICH — Huron County will send a letter to the Minister of Health and Long Term Care requesting a resolution to the ongoing issue of cross-border billing. Since the county assumed operation of the emergency medical service (land ambulance) in 2001, Huron has provided assistance to neighbouring municipalities as required. Using data from the central Ambulance Communication Centre, those neighbour- ing municipalities were invoiced for calls. Letters were sent in April advising neigh- bouring municipalities of calls the Huron County ambulance service had complet- ed in their jurisdiction, and requesting information on the number of calls they had completed in Huron County. County Treasurer David Carey said that according to ministry figures, Huron County has been responding to about $375,000 worth of cross-border calls per year. In later discussion, David Lew, manager of Land Ambulance Operations, said the total owed Huron is approaching $1.2 million. He stressed that the figure represents the difference between what Huron County owes other municipalities, and what it is owed. Huron County received several letters back questioning the accuracy of the fig- ures and suggesting there was as much as a 30 per cent error rate, according to a report by Lew. During the Oct. 7 meeting of Huron County council, Lew said Huron is one of the few counties in "a positive position", and the others weren't pushing for a res- olution to the issue. "This seems to have fallen off the table," said Warden Bill Dowson. Council was told one municipality that is also owed money, Renfrew, is taking the city of Ottawa to court. Apparently Renfrew is owed in excess of $1 million dollars. Renfrew billed its neighbours for cross border calls in 2001 and all of them paid — except Ottawa. The next year, no one paid. County staff are looking into the matter. Coun. Dave Urlin of South Huron, the former county warden, was asked for some background on the issue and said, "The municipalities around us owe us money ... we had some nasty meetings last year." Chief administrative officer Larry Adams said the issue arose during a recent conference he attended. Adams said it was a "hot topic". He said some counties have acknowledged they owe money to other counties, and have arranged to pay. Council was somewhat divided on their attitudes toward the issue. Some say things are moving in the right direction while others feel it is getting to the point where Huron should be looking at legal action. POLICE BRIEFS Citizen's call leads to arrest of impaired driver SOUTH HURON — On Nov. 3 around 11 p.m. an officer received a call from a citizen reporting a suspected impaired driver near a fast food busi- ness on the Main Street of Exeter. A plate number and the direction of the vehicle were provided. Officers came across the grey 1999 Jeep on King Street in Hensall. The vehicle was stopped and the driver was arrested for impaired driving. The 25 - year -old South Huron man was taken for breath tests, which indicated he was over the legal limit. He has been charged with impaired driving and driving a motor vehicle with over 80 mgs. He will attend court in Exeter Jan. 27. Male charged with assault LUCAN BIDDULPH — An 18 -year-old male faces several charges after allegedly instigating a domes- tic dispute on Whalen Line. On Nov. 13 at approxi- mately 7 p.m., Lucan and Exeter OPP units attend- ed the residence in response to a 911 call. Police say the male went to the house to confront two relatives. During the dispute, the male alleged- ly broke two windows in the shed, shook a 48 - year -old female, and punched a 15 -year-old female. When police arrived and attempted to arrest the male, he resisted. An officer received minor injuries. The 18 -year-old Lucan male was charged with two counts of assault, resisting arrest and mischief under the Criminal Code.