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The Citizen, 1995-02-08, Page 1The North Huron itizen In the swim of things Captain Active (a.k.a. Dr. Maarten Bokhout, Medical Officer of Health for Huron County) participated with the staff and students of Brussels Public School in the finale of the month- long Families in Motion program. A variety of activities were scheduled throughout January to help families get active together. The school surpassed its goal for participation and was presented with a plaque. News Tightening county's belt may mean further cuts to road services See page 6 Sports Brussels Bulls captain named league MVP at - awards night See page 8 Feature Special section provides ideas for romance and tips for wedding planning Starting page 11 Hullett residents argue building By Amy Nellands Over 100 Hullett Township residents piled into the council chambers for the Hullett council meeting Jan.31 to express their opinions and to hear the council's decision on the controversial municipal council/administration building. At the meeting, the council decided to go ahead and build their own municipal building near Londesboro despite opposition from the many township residents in attendance. The present facility in the public works building is not wheelchair accessible. Many disagreed with building a new building of their own, feeling it was unnecessary and expressed their concerns as to where the money to build the building was coming from. In December,. the township received money from the Infra- structure program to go ahead and build the building. The $300,000 project will receive $106,917 in funding from the federal and provincial governments, while the municipality would have to come Many sectors of the Walton com- munity gathered at the home of Jeanne Kirkby on Feb. 1 in an effort to resuscitate the failing sta- tus of Walton Hall. Hall users have had difficulty raising enough funds to maintain the building so 11 concerned citi- zens discussed the options which were available. As an immediate fundraiser, the group of volunteers will host an old time dance, featuring Tiffins Orchestra, on Feb. 17. A follow-up meeting will be held to assess community support. "It will not just be the one-time attendance at the dance which will up with the other third themselves. Many residents in attendance felt that a new facility was not neces vary and thought that the • money should be used to upgrade the present building to make it wheelchair accessible. "We're spending money that we don't have," said Kitty MacGregor, a Hullett Twp. resident. Mrs. MacGregor wanted to know where the township was getting the money for their share and was concerned with an increase in municipal taxes. "Why are you giving it with one hand and taking it with the other hand?" Township Reeve Tom Cunning- ham said, "We have sufficient reserves to do what is required." "How can we spend money that we haven't got?" asked Bert Greidanus. "We should quit expanding and use what we have." Recently, an option was presented to the council fora multi- use facility with the Huron County Board of Education. Hullett Central Public School is getting ready for an addition to accommodate junior Continued on page 6 tell if the hall can remain open, but also the public interest shown by the number who come to the meet- ing," says Mrs. Kirkby. "We cannot rely just on the Women's Institute or a seniors' group, which would encompass many of the same people, to keep the hall operating. We need the support of all the community groups in the area and possibly the organization of new interest groups." The WI, Walton Sports Club and church interests were represented at the Feb. 1 meeting. The public meeting will begin at 7:30 p.m., at the hall on Feb. 21. Locals brainstorm to save Walton Hall Blyth man questions council's timing Rents to rise at homes On a cold February night the first meeting of Blyth village council since the controversial dismissal of the village clerk might have seemed like the warmest entertain- ment around, but the dozen people that packed the council chambers Monday night got all the excite- ment of watching a precision clock tick. Councillors quietly worked through a five-page agenda in 90 minutes (several delegations sched- uled to appear cancelled because of the weather) and only in public question period did the issue of the dismissal arise, when Con van Vliet questioned the timing of the depar- ture of former clerk-treasurer Helen Grubb, two days before the death of her sick mother. "It was not a very opportune time to dismiss a person when she had a personal tragedy," he said. Reeve Mason Bailey explained that due to an ongoing law suit, council had decided to change lawyers. They chose John Skinner, a Stratford-based lawyer "who none of us knew" but who came highly recommended as a specialist in municipal law. He advised coun- cil to dismiss the former cierk-trea- Without any debate, Brussels councillors stated at their Feb. 6 meeting they would not increase their remuneration for this year. Clerk-Treasurer Donna White informed councillors that PUC had voted themselves an increase of S125 for 1995 bringing them to S1,725 for the chairperson and 51,415 for commissioners. This still has them considerably lower than council for basically the same number of monthly meetings, sh - surer, Reeve Bailey said. "I raised the matter with him (of Mrs. Grub- b's sick mother) and he said you can't let that stand in the way of working for the people. "This man is not the council's lawyer, he is your .lawyer," he told the assembled audience. added. Ms White also noted that Brus- sels council's stipends arc lower than those of many neighbouring municipalities. Councillors unani- mously stated, however, that they were comfortable with the remu- neration they were receiving. There were some smiles when Ms White told them that new coun- cillor Joe Scili hadn't even realized that councillors were paid. "What we're getting is fine with me," said There were no further questions on the issue. At the request of acting clerk- treasurer Julie Wheeler, a closed meeting with councillors was held at the end of the regular council meeting. No topic for discussion was given. Councillor Scili. Reeve Gord Workman gets an annual stipend of 52,500, while councillors receive SI,800. There is also a small special meeting stipend. "We only have one meeting a month," said Councillor Greg Wil- son. "If we can stick to that and have only the odd quick special meeting I think it (the salary) is enough." Rental rates for the apartments at the Huronview and Huronlea homes for the aged will increase six per cent on May 1, 1995 in an effort to offset the cost of running the facility. The change will increase the rental for a one-bedroom apartment from S510 to S540.60 per month. In addition, residents pay $280 per month for health care services. It will he the first increase since the apartments were occupied in 1993. Under the old rate, rental provided $190,000 in revenue toward the $450,000 costs of run- ning the facility. Brussels council says no to raise