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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Times Advocate, 2004-12-01, Page 1(519)235-1115 www.hurontractor.com EXETER R.`D' HAWKS vs PARKH I LL FRI. DEC. 10 8:3o p.m. South Huron Rec Centre TIMES -ADVOCATE Exeter, Ontario, Canada Wednesday, December 1, 2004 1.255 (includes GST) Providing the entertain- ment Friday night dur- ing the annual Exeter Lions and Lioness light- ing of MacNaughton park were (right)Anne and Eugene Hartman, along with some assis- tance from (left) Mark and Emily Hartman. Also adding her voice was Kourtney Webster, winner of the South Huron Idol contest. (At left) Michelle (left) and Nicole Russell were among the spectators enjoying the cere- monies. Organizers said this year, which was the eighth for the event was the best yet. (photos/PatBolen) This week's Times Advocate will have an added bonus... our annual Christmas Song Book brought to you courtesy of many local advertisers. Anyone requiring additional copies is welcome to pick them up at our office at 424 Main St. S., Exeter. Delegation speaks to council about downtown revitalization By Mary Simmons TIMES -ADVOCATE STAFF LUCAN — Lucan Biddulph council was updated on the Main Street Middlesex project at a meeting Monday night. Cara Finn, general manager of the Community Futures Development Corporation (CFDC) of Middlesex County, spoke to council about the downtown revitalization project and what will be needed to move forward. Finn said the objectives of the project include revitalizing historic downtown core areas in the county, community capacity building, business development and job creation. She said Main Street projects have proven successful in the U.S. where they have been implemented since 1980. Finn defined a Main Street community as one with a historical downtown core area which has been geographically defined by the municipality. The commu- nity should also have a plan and a vision for development, an active commercial and volunteer base vested in the project and the willingness to support the cause. The program will have a four point approach focusing on organization, pro- motion, economic restructuring and design. The project has $880,000 in county, provincial, federal and CFDC funds to use over the next three years. Through a partnership with Fanshawe College there will also be an opportunity to use the skills of students being trained in areas pertaining to components of the program. Finn said the next step will be for municipalities to provide a map of the downtown centre they wish to concen- trate on over the next year, a vision state- ment and copies of bylaws which affect the downtown. She said council should also provide a list of nominees to sit on committees for each of the four approaches. "We are the first county in Canada to ever implement such a program," Finn said, adding the project is being studied as a model for counties across the coun- try. "They're watching very closely, so it's important to do a good job," she said. The project will bring together individu- als and organizations who have been working on specific community projects and partner them with others for the ben- efit of their downtown. "It will help them to do their jobs bet- ter," Finn said. Mayor Tom McLaughlin said he wants to move ahead as quickly as possible. Council will work with the Lucan busi- ness association to define the town's downtown and list its priorities. Although they are not the same project, council and the business association will also be discussing the results of the recent business retention and expansion study and there may be some overlapping of ideas. Where possible, funding through the Main Street Middlesex project may be used to follow through on ideas initially generated by the study. A public meeting to discuss the study is planned for early January. Campaign of silence raises awareness for homelessness By Scott Nixon TIMES -ADVOCATE STAFF EXETER — If you say hello to Sonya McGoey and she doesn't say hi back, she has a good reason. The 19 -year-old South Huron District High School OPEN HOUSE student has taken a 40 - day vow of silence to raise awareness, money and food for a homeless shelter in London. McGoey stopped talking Oct. 25 and won't start again until Dec. 5. In that time frame, she hopes to raise $500. So far, she's raised about $100, mostly in food. Now living in Huron Park after moving to the area from Stratford, McGoey calls her cam- paign `Speechless for See AWARENESS page 2 Refre �� DEC. 4 9 A.M. - 4 P.M. ent. • NO TAX ON CLOTHING* • NO TAX ON ACCESSORIES • NO TAX ON PARTS or OIL THERE'S NOTHING LIKE IT. BOMBARDIER RECREATIONAL PRODUCTS INC.