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The Citizen, 2012-02-02, Page 20PAGE 20. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012.Vandals deface, damage Brussels buildings Buildings throughout Brussels bore the scars of several nights of mischief in the form of spray paint and damage. Shown are, clockwise from top: a gym wall at Brussels Public School which had several statements painted on it. The gazebo at Brussels Public School was damaged earlier last week when the spindles were kicked out of it. Cinnamon Jim’s, a restaurant in downtown Residents of Brussels were faced with wanton destruction and disfigurement of their community on Monday morning. While reports of vandalism came in early last week that included spray painting and the destructioin of property at Brussels Public School, the defacing of the village had just begun as soon Brussels Public Library and other locations were “tagged” by spray painters. Some of the spray painting at the public school was signed A7X however the anarchy symbol, a capital “A” with a circle around it could be found at three of the locations; the public school, the library and Cinnamon Jim’s restaurant. The public library also had profane language scrawled across one of its doors. At the school the spray paint refered to the vandals “being there until the end”, which could be a comment as to the pending closure of the school. Other messages at the school included crude directions for the creation of a homemade incendiary device and a epitaph hoping “Reveverend” who lived from 1981- 2009 could Rest in Peace (RIP). The slogan “God hates us” was also written on the building. The Ontario Provincial Police were investigating the vandalism and had no comment as of press time. Continued from page 15 infrastructure, split evenly between the water and waste water systems, the municipality is likely looking at $9 million worth of upgrades to the water system in the next 10 years and $4 million worth of upgrades to the waste water system in the next 10 years. The upgrades over the next 10 years, Scandlan said can simply be traced back to the age of the system. He said that are inevitable repairs. The municipality’s water system dates back to the 1930s, Scandlan said, and the waste water system dates back to the 1940s. Scandlan said that while that may sound like a long time ago, he says it’s nothing compared to some of the province’s oldest cities like Toronto or Hamilton with systems as old as 110 years in the ground. “They’re still pulling wood pipes out of the ground in Toronto,” Scandlan said. The proposed schedule would raise the municipality’s annual water rate from $687.42 in 2011 to $702.51 in 2012. The annual waste water rates would go from $580.17 in 2011 to $592.51 in 2012. The gradual increases, Scandlan said, have been key to the economic health of the system. He referred councillors back to when Central Huron first amalgamated, saying that the water and waste water rates hadn’t increased in over five years, leaving the municipality to raise its rates by 50 per cent that year to keep up with rising costs. Where Central Huron’s rates are projected to be at the end of the proposed 10-year schedule is at a rate that Scandlan believes most municipalities will like to reach at the same time. The difference, however, is that Central Huron began years earlier, making for a smoother and more gradual increase. “Gradually I think this is where everyone is going to land,” he said. “You should be pleased. Very proud.” After the municipality approves the water and waste water financial plan, it will have to be advertised locally and posted on the municipal website where it can be viewed by residents. The process eventually wraps up with a final report. Scandlan said that if Central Huron submits its report to him within two weeks, the municipality will be in good shape to meet the March 12 deadline. The plan will be further discussed and reviewed at the municipality’s upcoming budget meetings. CH facing $13m in water, sewage costs in 10 years Barnim ‘blindsided’ by rural school exclusion at ARC Central Huron Councillor Brian Barnim said he was blindsided by a recommendation at the Accommodation Review Committee (ARC) meeting dealing with several area schools. Barnim said that a parent recommendation suggested that both Colborne Central and Holmesville Public Schools be closed with the students being moved to Victoria Public School in Goderich, which had been closed previously for health and safety issues. Barnim said the recommendation suggested that it would be a good option to ensure that students were not dispersed. However, the option would disperse children from Central Huron, sending children from Holmesville Public School to Victoria Public School in Goderich or Hullett Central Public School in Londesborough, depending on where they live. Barnim has been arguing that parents should be left with a “rural option” at the end of the ARC process, whether it be Colborne Central or Holmesville Public School. Throughout the ARC process, however, he says he thinks that concept is being lost. “They’re missing the big picture,” Barnim said. “Where’s the rural option?” Barnim also said that people are now not keeping the students’ best interests in mind when negotiating. Continued from page 17 the bin picked up without being charged for the service for the entire year. He did say, however, that it has been tough getting the facts about the co-collection situation out to people. He said many people he speaks to still think that taxes in Central Huron are being increased as a result of waste and recycling co- collection. “A lot of people out there still think we’re increasing taxes,” he said. “You can explain it 15 times and they still won’t understand it.” Metzger said that while people might feel that the municipality offering people a default option (that they have to cancel if you don’t want it, rather than calling if you want to participate in the program) was still the right way to go. “We did the right thing,” Metzger said. Mayor Jim Ginn, who has said that he would opt out of the program because of his own personal waste needs, made the call to opt out a few days before the meeting, saying that the person he spoke to was pleasant and that it took him no time at all. “It didn’t take me 20 seconds to opt out,” Ginn said. Councillor Alex Westerhout said he had been contacted by two residents, proving the split thoughts on the issue. “I’ve had two calls, one was ‘what the heck are you doing?’ and the other was that they wanted it to start tomorrow,” he said. Opt out quick and easy: Ginn By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Out damn spot Brussel, bore a smaller “tag” on the back of the building. One of the doorways at Brussels Public School had three words and an idenitifier “A7X”, possibly signifying the author and Huron East employee Gary Earl wasn’t having much luck in getting spray paint off the Brussels Library on Monday morning. (Denny Scott photo)