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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1989-08-30, Page 1INDEX ',, Dublin — A8 Sports — Al2, A13 Births — A17 Graduates — A17 Obituaries — Al 7 Seventy -1 I -greens. See ° ___....._ �_. _..-._ --- _ Program supports Alzheimer's. See page A19. _._.___._. su n tette Serving the communities and areas of Seaforth, Brussels, Dublin, Hensall and Walton Huron X ."ositor { Seaforth, Ontario HURON EXPOSITOR, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 30. 1989 50 cents a copy i Five minors see Friday night five minors from the Seaforth area were charged for being in possession of alcohol. "The accident didn't have much of an ef- fect did it?" asked Seaforth Police Chief Hal Claus in reporting the charges, (alluding to the recent death of Brad Taylor in a car accident.) "It's discourag- ing," he said. BATTLE OF THE BANDS Saturday evening Seaforth police were called to assist Goderich police in quelling what was nearly a riot at the Battle of the Bands concert in Goderich. ° liquor charges Nineteen police officers from area forces including Seaforth, Clinton, Exeter, Goderich and OPP from Goderich and Ex- eter were involved in the incident. Fourteen male persons were arrested on charges including liquor offences, assaulting police, obstruction of a police of- ficer, and causing a disturbance. A total of 16 charges have been laid and more are pending. The assault of a male and a female at the concert is also being investigated. A charge of theft is being laid in connec- tion with the loss of a police officer's New hall to be built i BY PAUL RUDAN HULLETT TWP - Should the township build a new community hall or should the old one be renovated, is the question being asked of taxpayers here. A public meeting to discuss the issue was scheduled for September 6, but it has been postponed. Township council is waiting for ratepayers to respond to the questionnaire which was enclosed in the recent tax bill, so they can find out which way the people want to go, "We're asking the taxpayers what to ' do," said Reeve Tom Cunningham. The township has put a $500 down pay- ment on six lots (the equivalent of a village nightstick which was later recovered. FIGHT Chief Claus reports two men were charg- ed Friday night when "a couple lads decid- ed to get at it". The fight occurred on John Street in Seaforth and resulted in an Egmondville man and a Seaforth man be- ing charged with "Causing a Disturbance by Fighting„ Early Sunday morning there was a similar disturbance on Main Street near the Commercial Hotel, but no charges were laid as Seaforth police were assisting Goderich police at the Goderich arena. Hullett if approved block), located on the east town limits of Londesboro, and the cost is $20,000. The land would be used to build a new com- munity hall, but the purchase in contingent on a public meeting. Reeve Cunningham said the old Londesboro Hall is not structurally sound and it may not be worth putting money in- to. However, he points out there are a lot of and pros and cons surrounding the issue and this is why council is asking the public for direction. The cost of the land is quite reasonable, he said. He added that the township is not in any rush to build a new community com- plex, but if they do go ahead with the pro- IE,SEAFORTH'FtREMN'•Sdiff EAKFAST-f, lsed 1. at;t t se It :80? p firemen -Ralph Wood, 1 reSideitt. Ofithro,Aireirtterilti. oiixr/and'Gt g Ri lllr4 hairrnan of Special Events, with ,a Cheque etotbeePfeseittf;a ilPetfle Seatoriha,.f3fiiit rtity Hospital Building ,Fund. Corbett photo. ject, he expects it to be completed by 1996 or '97. "It will be for all people of Hullett," Reeve Cunningham said. Once all the questionnaires are received, council will decide if a public meeting is required and they will set a new date for the meeting. OPP ware s of prize scam The Ontario Provincial Police is warn- ing the public to beware of a misleading advertising circular that promises major prizes, but doesn't deliver them. The circular, originating from a com- pany in Vancouver, B.C., was sent to a number of local businesses in the North Bay area, and indicates that the recipient is an automatic winner of a car, trip or a cash award. The recipient is Aced to 'call the com- pany to confirm receipt of the certificate; and is then asked to send money to cover the cost of shipping. The "prize" is ap- parently never received. Counties take responsibility Ontario's counties will be permitted to take on responsibility for solid waste management as a result of legislation passed July 13 by the Ontario legislature. The Honorable John Eakins, Minister of Municipal Affairs, said the legislation allows counties, with a two-thirds vote of county council representing a majority of the member municipalities, to assume all or any part of the responsibility for waste management within the county. Until now, municipal waste management has been the sole responsibility of lower tier municipalities in the county system. "A waste management system that meets today's standards is beyond the technical and financial means of many local municipalities in counties," Mr. Eakins said. "This legislation resolves the problem by allowing local municipalities to combine their resources at the county level to meet their waste management needs collectively." Mr. Eakins said two recent committees which looked into county government — the Advisory Committee on County Government and the Consultation Com- mittee on County Government — both recommended a county role in waste management. The Association of Municipalities of Ontario and most coun- ties that have taken a position on the issue also favor a county role. Looking back Soon the Town of Seaforth's affiliation with Mainstreet Canada will be only on a "past patient" basis. So now, at the end of the three year contract with Mainstreet Canada, is the time to look back over the past three years to see what they have cured for Seaforth. Tom Lemon, the man who was hired to coordinate the Mainstreet project in Seaforth, sees some definite progress. "The biggest effect of the Mainstreet project at this point has been getting strategies in place and getting visible things accomplished," says Mr. Lemon. The first of these accomplishments Mr. Lemon lists is work between the town's Economic Development Committee and the Federal Business Development Bank over almost a year in developing the aforemen- tioned strategies, so the committee now knows its role in the economic develop- ment of the town and "has an idea of what it has to be doing." Prior to the Mainstreet project an Economic Development Committee didn't wrist. A second accomplishment is the drafting of. the Streetscape Master Plan which will be used as a guide for the future renova- tion and revitalization of Main Street. Streetsea is a long-term plan to beautify on Mainstreet project the town. For a third benefit Mr. Lemon points to work done on private properties and businesses as a result of, or under the guidance of, the Mainstreet program. And a fourth main area of achievement Mr. Lemon sees is in marketing and market research in the area. He will be in town in September to help the Business Improvement Association (BIA) executive use some of this information to put together a marketing strategy. "We're going to really put down what the BIA can do to strengthen Seaforth's position in the market place." Besides a lot of the behind -the -scenes work which Mainstreet has either done or influenced, Mr. Lemon points to a number of what he calls "little visibles" which show payoff from the Mainstreet program: the Town Hall Front Porch, the BIA Christmas party which he feels was a big success, the recruiting of an occupant for the vacant former Genesco Plant, and media attention. Stories about Seaforth were seen on a full page in the Toronto Star, on CBC Television, and a number of times on Channel 10, and were done "on a theme of what a smaller community is do- ing to pick itself up and get some things done." THE NEW BUILDING on the Agricultural Grounds is going up quickly and seen here are Sam Smith and Lloyd Beuerman on one end of a steel frame and Laurie Fisher on the other as Keith Siemon uses a crane to lift it into position. When the building is completed it will be 60 X 154 and will house two show rings. It is expected it will be used for the toy show in December, and it will also be available for farm sales, display. purposes, or for whoever wishes to rent it. Cor- bett photo. Tax will hit electricity bills The nine per cent general sales tax pro- posed by the federal government will also apply to consumers' Ontario Hydro bills. Finance Minister Michael Wilson's pro- posed sales tax would be applied to most goods and services, including electricity, from 1991 on. The nine per cent tax would be applied on top of any rate increase utilities need to maintain electrical service, "We don't charge tax right now, but we'll have to charge, the same as oil and gas companies," if the tax goes through, said Lionel Lebrun manager of Ontario Hydro's area office in Clinton. Ontario Hydro generally asks for one rate increase per year, and the Hydro Board renders a decision on this' rate in- crease in late September. The Hydro Board is a check to ensure that the rate increase is usually kept at about inflation level. Ontario Hydro's Load Forecasting Department suggested the proposed tax could have a "slight effect" on the public's consumption. Consumers, seeing on their monthly electricity bill a nine per cent in- crease to cover the tax, in addition to their usual rate increase from their local utilities, might take notice and reduce their use of hydro. On the other hand, the tax is a favor to manufacturers, who will see a nine per cent electricity tax being added in place of a 13.5 per cent manufacturer's tax. So in- dustrial consumption is not expected to change much. Manufacturers account for more than one-third of all the electricity consumed in Ontario. The Mainstreet co-ordinator was also in- volved in getting the book "Seaforth Begin- nings" published by Boston Mills )Tress. The program "injected some new blood in- to the BIA", and "on the heritage side there's a lot more awareness of the poten- tial Seaforth has in its heritage proper- ties." Mr. Lemon says these are just some of the accomplishments that come to mind, and there are other positive things which Mainstreet can't take credit for -like Ross Ribey's rekindling of the Santa Claus Parade as, a major event in Seaforth- but which arise out of people starting to work together and wanting to accomplish things. It's hard to say what would have hap- pened without the Mainstreet program, certainly a number of things wouldn't be in place," Says Mr. Lemon. "Seaforth is such a great little town, and it has so much potential." When Mr. Lemon was promoted by Mainstreet Canada to the position of Regional Coordinator for the Central Region, Alex Shevehuela was hired to take on his position as Seaforth's Mainstreet Coordinator for the last year of the three year contract. "I felt really that my job wasjust to to e • -IAVF A BITE - Seaforlh EMA held a hot dog sale on Main Street Friday with pro- ceeds going to the Children's Hospital of Ontario. Here EMA manager Randy Powell and employee Cathy Carter who were serving the hotdogs have one of their own. Corbett photo. I