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The Citizen, 1989-12-19, Page 22PAGE 22. THE CITIZEN, TUESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 1989. Blnth Council Briefs Study to shed light on street light costs A study of streetlighting for the village of Blyth will be undertaken in the future to see how much money switching to high-pressure sodium lighting could save the village. Clerk-treasurer Helen Grubb told council that the village has been installing dusk-to-dawn yard lights instead of regular street lighting and the cost of operating the lights is much higher than the high-pressure sodium lights in use in many municipalities. The cost of power for those lights this year has been $925 a month and next year will increase to $1,244.77. By comparison, the cost of power for the sodium lights would be $382 a month. In addition, she said, maintenance costs on the current lights are running at $28 per light because the bulbs and globes are expensive and easily damaged by vandals. She said Clinton PUC officials estimate the cost of purchase and installation of the sodium lights at $330 a light. They estimate a pay-back period of three to four years. Councillors commented the high cost of the current lights might make it worthwhile to re­ place them. Councillor Dave Lee said the yard lights might be sold to area farmers. “It’s unfortunate we didn’t stumble on this information soon­ er,” Reeve Albert Wasson said. He noted the village had just purchas­ ed in the last year, a large number of the yard lights. More information will be provid­ ed to council by Mrs. Grubb.***** Blyth’s public buildings did not stack up particularly well in an inspection by the Public Institu­ tions Inspection Panel of the Mini­ stry of the Attorney General. A report sent to the village said the Blyth Municipal office needed a Blyth council questions if zoning change needed Continued from page 1 holding up the building permit the Websters needed to expand their operation. This issue is clouded by the fact that although part of the Webster farm is in Blyth, the major part is in Morris Township and the building permit must be issued by Morris. Further, village’s desig­ nated planner with the Huron County Planning and Development office is Cynthia Fisher while the township’s is Wayne Caldwell. Reeve Wasson told council that he had tried to track down the current state of the problem at the planning office earlier that day. He talked to Ms. Fisher and she had talked to Mr. Caldwell and to Morris Building Inspector Leo San­ ders and had been informed there was a very good chance the family could get its building permit by altering the Code of Practice re­ quirements in this special case. He had been led to understand, he said, that the building inspector was waiting for more information from the Websters. But Stephen Webster said he couldn t understand what more information was required since he’d given everything he was asked for. Reeve Wasson said that the village doesn’t want to hold up the family from expanding its opera­ tion but at the same time it wants to see as much residential land kept that way as possible for possible future growth. Council, he said, had the job of working in the best interests of the village and as such would likely be against a zoning change. The problem, said Councillor Dave Lee, is not with the zoning designation but with the lack of a building permit. Somewhere along the line the permit seems to have “fallen through the cracks” of the various bureaucracies from the Ministry of Agriculture to the township building inspector to the county planning department. “Maybe you have to go back to square one and find out what went wrong”, he suggested. Reeve Wasson said he felt council would have to have a written document from the Morris township building inspector that the problem holding up the build­ ing permit was indeed the village’s zoning on the property. “We need written information in order to consider doing what we don’t want to do”, he said. The Websters promised to try to get a written letter from the building inspector and present it to council. new building with more space and a fire proof vault. The public library was small, old and unkempt. Blyth Public School was reported as well maintained but until the current expansion project was completed would be short of space. The Blyth and District Commun­ ity Centre was reported as very unkempt and dirty for a relatively new building with the washroom in unsanitary condition and drain plugs not in working order and two lights burned out in exit signs. Councillor Lee said thaf when the report on the arena was discussed the caretaker was very upset. He said the building had been heavily used the night before with both action in the arena and in the hall where a bingo had been held. He estimated 400 people had made use of the building. The inspection came early in the morning before the staff had had a chance to begin its clean up. The Health Inspector in his last report had reported only the need for electric hand dryers in the washrooms with everything else being satisfactory. There was concern as to what will happen with the committee’s report. Mrs. Grubb said the report is sent to the Attorney General’s office. The inspection is to police the caretaking of public buildings, she said. Councillor Steven Sparling was philosophical about the situation: “Any public building is subject to it (inspection). You have to take your lumps along with the roses.”***** Council agreed to support a resolution from Huron County that calls on the provincial government to retain public ownership of the lands along the abandoned CP Rail line from Guelph to Goderich. The county, and other counties and regions along the route, has called for the land to be kept in public hands in case it is needed in future for a utilities corridor. Many landowners along the way have been pushing to have the land turned over to the adjacent land­ owners or for any other purpose but so the ownership would be kept by the province in case it’s needed in the future. ***** When is a business not a business? When it processes pro­ ducts grown on its own farms, according to the Huron-Perth Regional Assessment office. Council was told that according to the Assessment Office, the G. L. Hubbard Rutabaga plant in the east end of the village shouldn’t be charged a commercial assessment but should be assessed as a farm. Councillors were astounded at the decision. Councillor Dave Lee won­ dered if that meant a company like Howson and Howson could declare itself a farm because it owns livestock and farmland. dje * *** The problem of controlling under age drinking at events at the Community Centre continues to plague the council and the Com­ munity Centre Board. Councillor Lee reported that there had been questions about the policy at the arena after one tournament dance had used a liquor permit that allowed minors on the premises. The policy had been that only permits that excluded minors would be allowed. Councillor Lee said for the event in question, his wife had obtained the permit and been told by LCBO officials that she should be getting a permit that allowed minors because otherwise, if one minor got in, the permit would be violated. It would be better to have a permit that allowed minors but were careful policing stopped minors from drinking, the official said. But this advice was just the opposite from what the board members felt they had been told by Ontario Provincial Police in a meeting to deal with the problem of minors drinking at such events. “I’m sick of this,” Reeve Was­ son said of the confusion. Council agreed to seek more information from Clinton, where a new policy has been accepted to see if there needs to be a change in the policy at the arena. Stuff a sock in it ••••Hof Hof no Stuff it in Aa 6 Enclosed is my payment of S3.00 Please send Townsman To Name Address City Box429. Blyth. Ont NOM 1H0 Postal Code Box152. Brussels. 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