The Citizen, 2016-03-17, Page 1INSIDE
THIS WEEK:
SPORTS - Pg. 8
Locals continue their
hockey playoff push
GALA - Pg. 11
Huron Fed. of Ag. to
host anniversary gala
SCHOLARSHIP - Pg. 19
Blyth Festival, HAHN to
partner on new scholarship
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Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, March 17, 2016
Province commits $3.3 million to 14/19
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A historic day
Peter Smith, Project Manager for 14/19, said that Tuesday, March 15 will likely be viewed as a
historic day in the history of Blyth when it's reviewed decades from now. Deputy -Premier of
Ontario Deb Matthews was in Blyth on the steps of Memorial Hall to announce that the
provincial government has committed $3.3 million in its 2016 budget to help fund the ambitious
project that will revitalize Memorial Hall and create the Canadian Centre for Rural Creativity.
Looking on were three men who also spoke at the event, Blyth Festival Artistic Director Gil
Garratt, left, North Huron Reeve Neil Vincent, centre, and Huron County Warden Paul Gowing,
right. (Denny Scott photo)
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
Tuesday morning Deb Matthews,
Ontario Deputy -Premier, announced
that her government will be
investing $3.3 million in the Blyth
Arts and Culture Initiative 14/19
project, pending budget approval.
The announcement, made on the
steps of Blyth Memorial Hall, was
met with applause from the dozens
of community members and
stakeholders present.
Matthews, a London native, called
Huron County a second home and
recounted numerous trips to Blyth,
whether it be to buy suede jackets at
The Old Mill or to attend shows at
the Blyth Festival. Her happiest
times, she said, were always in
Huron County, as she owns a cottage
on Lake Huron.
With $3.3 million committed in
this year's provincial budget, which
Matthews said she's praying passes,
she hoped that the federal
government would also consider
contributing to the project in the near
future.
Festival Artistic Director Gil
Garratt was on hand for the
announcement just days after his
wife Gemma James -Smith gave
birth to their new daughter and he
thanked Matthews "profoundly" for
her government's investment in
Blyth Memorial Hall and the
numerous Blyth projects focused on
the arts.
He said that the investment
represents so much of the culture
woven into the fabric of Blyth, not
just the building that stood before
those in attendance.
The investment represents the
hundreds of thousands of patrons
who have been part of a Festival
show over the past four decades, he
said. It also represents the thousands
of artists who have laboured and
reached for greatness at the Festival.
On that note, he said, the Festival
will be producing its 200th show on
the Memorial Hall stage this
summer, which is a testament to the
support the Festival has received
from the public over the years.
Matthews agreed, saying that
something special is happening in
Blyth in terms of arts and culture and
there is no better place for such
opportunity.
What really encouraged her and
her government to invest in the
community, however, is the level of
investment that has already been
achieved.
Matthews recognized the Sparling
family by name and the family's $1
million contribution to the 14/19
project. With investment like that,
Blyth is serving as a shining
example of what a creative, rural
community can do.
"Blyth is a wonderful example of
what a thriving arts community can
do," she said, adding that the
community should serve as an
inspiration to others.
It's also important to point out, she
said, that arts and culture are not "on
the frills" of the economy.
Throughout Ontario nearly 300,000
people work in the province's arts
and culture sectors and that make it a
full and complete part of the Ontario
economy that needs to be supported.
It was for that reason, she said,
that her government was proud to
make such an investment in Blyth
and all it's doing.
Peter Smith, Project Manager of
14/19, said that when he first met
with Matthews, he could tell that she
was instantly interested in the
project and could see the passion
Continued on page 20
Council addresses major OPP questions
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
With policing costs consistently
rising and rural municipalities
feeling the crunch, OPP Inspector
Jason Younan faced some tough
questions speaking to Huron County
Council last week.
Younan, Detachment Commander
for Huron County OPP, spoke to
council at its March 9 committee of
the whole meeting after the new
OPP billing model has come under
fire from both the county and lower -
tier levels.
For the 2016 budget, many lower -
tier municipalities have seen double-
digit percentage increases to their
year -over -year policing budgets.
These increases come with no
increase in service levels, as several
councillors noted.
In addition, this will be the first
year without the rebate program
from which many municipalities
often benefitted.
In years past, the OPP has issued
municipalities rebates at the end of a
fiscal year if the municipality paid
too much for the policing it actually
received. That program, however,
has been discontinued and the OPP
will now keep that money at the end
of the year.
In interviews with The Citizen,
Huron East Mayor Bernie
MacLellan and Morris-Turnberry
Mayor Paul Gowing said their
municipalities would routinely see
annual rebates of approximately
$90,000 and $65,000, respectively,
every year. This year, however, the
plug was pulled on the rebate
program without explanation and the
money will now stay with the OPP.
MacLellan was the first to speak to
Younan, saying that between a
scheduled increase of nearly
$200,000 to Huron East's policing
costs and not receiving the usual
rebate of approximately $90,000 this
year, his municipality is simply
contributing too much money to
policing.
By adding those two figures
together, MacLellan said his
municipality is essentially facing an
increase to policing costs of 25 per
cent — additional payments that
bring with them no increased level
of service.
Bluewater Mayor Tyler Hessel
agreed, saying that of his
municipality's $7 million budget, $2
million goes to pay policing; a
number that has steadily been on the
rise, but without an increase in
service.
Ashfield-Colborne-Wawanosh
Reeve Ben Van Diepenbeek also told
his municipality's horror story,
saying that policing costs have
Continued on page 20
`Fighting 61st' hosts workshop
With several months of work now
in the books for The Fighting 61st
project, the actors involved are ready
to show some of that work off by
way of a public workshop Saturday
night.
The Fighting 61st, a dramatic
collaboration between the Blyth
Festival and the Huron Arts and
Heritage Network, aims to tell the
story about the 161st Battalion in the
First World War. The battalion was
comprised entirely of Huron County
residents, many of whom didn't
make it back to their home country
after the war.
While it's not quite decided where
The Fighting 61st will be produced,
work began earlier this year, with a
group of actors researching real-life
soldiers from Huron County at
museums, Legions and in the homes
of residents.
Blyth Festival Artistic Director Gil
Garratt is among the actors, who are
being led by Paul Thompson, a
member to the Order of Canada and
the creator of some of the most
memorable live shows in Huron
County history, such as The Farm
Show and The Outdoor Donnellys.
The group will be welcoming
members of the public to the June
Hill Room above the Festival's
administration offices on Saturday
night, beginning at 8 p.m. for the
workshop.
The actors plan on performing a
Continued on page 18