Huron Expositor, 2000-02-02, Page 1•
rebruary 2, 2000
Si
(includes GST)
Local weather
Wednesday --Mainly
cloudy. Flurries High -5.
Thursday --Mainly cloudy.
ttg...\1 Flurries. High -2. low -12
Friday—Periods of Tight
41'� snow. High 0. Low -8.
' Saturday --Cloudy with
sunny periods and
scattered flurries. High -2.
Low -9.
From Environment Canada
In brief
Town
•
tries
to find
out
who pays
for cops
called to
board
meetings
The town doesn't know
yet who will pay for calls
• to the OPP for a police
presence at two Avon
Maitland District School
Board meetings.
The board meets in its
offices at Seaforth
District High School and
twice. called for an OPP
presence at meetings
relating to the possible
closure of local schools.
Deputy Reeve Bill
Tealle, the town's.
representative on the
police services board,
said on one of the
occasions, police were
called out of Clinton to
come to Seaforth, leaving
Clinton without a police
presence.
"That seems a little
excessive." said Mayor
Dave Scott. the subject of "
one of the calls to the
OPP.
The first time police
were called to a meeting.
it was after Scott refused
to be quiet when the
board would not let the
public speak because of
its meeting format.
Scott tojd them they
would have to call the
police before he would
be quiet and, during a
board recess, the police
were called.
Tealle said the OPP did
not have an answer at the
last board meeting as to
who would be
responsible for those
costs.
The town currently has
a contract with the OPP
who provide policing
under certain conditions.
Having additional
police present at two
school board meetings, in
the municipality, may fall
outside what the town
pays for in its OPP
contract.
By Scow Hilgendorff.
Take Heart
Huron takes to
the Ice...
Pegs $
Pape 1
Mosaic bdge
nttrrbetsc e
Pape 1!
Scott Hilgendorff photo
A little advice...
Sarah -Jo Kinsman helps four-year-old Jessie, both of RR 2 Staffa, with his balance and offers a
little advice on how to handle his skates at the Take Heart Huron skate held Sunday in Seaforth.
Skunkfest
inworks...
seriously
By Scott Hilgendorff
Expositor Editor
Some jokes by the mayor around the council table about
the town's skunk problem has raised a real stink.
So much so, that Skunkfest 2001 is being planned.
Seaforth Business Improvement Area was joking about
the idea after Mayor Dave Scott, this fall. made some jokes
about having a skunkbashing festival to help eliminate the
town's skunk problem after a letter of complaint was
received.
Scott's joke was, made in reference to his repeated
suggestion that the town should be putting together an event
to mark 2000 this year but he wasn't getting any interest.
Susan Halfpenny, BIA chair. said they were talking about
needing a new event for the town in the summer and they
had been joking about Scott's comments. •
"Finally, we decided, no body has one, so why don't we,"
she said of the idea of having a skunk festival.
However, the festival is actually being planned for 2001.
Halfpenny said they want to be able to do a good job with
the project and don't feel there's enough time to plan a
whole festival between now and this summer.
But between now and then, they plan on little projects to
start getting the community intrigued by the idea and build
some anticipation for the event.
Brainstorming at a recent BIA meeting has led to
numerous suggestions for the event from holding a "skunk
hunk" contest to passing out black ribbons tbat say, "I got
skunked at Skunkfest."
There are suggestions of having hair dressers creating
black and white hair designs for people and having everyone
dress in black and white for the event.
The BiA wants to approach the Optimist Club to see if
they would be interested in cohosting the event.
"The committee was really keen on doing some event that
would really set Seaforth out," said Coun. Heather Robinet
to council in a report last week about the BIA meeting,.
She said they were intrigued by the idea of a skunkfest
and want to, put a lot of planning into it.
Reeve Lin Steffler said after Scott's comments were
published in The Huron Expositor. she almost immediately
had a local resident at her door telling her what a good idea
he thought it was.
"Think stink," said Scott.
How James Cooper died remains mystery
By Scott Hilgendorff
, Expositor Edtor
How James Cooper died and his
body came to be in the hack of a car
in Egmondville remained a mystery
-Tuesday as police continue to wait
for a pathology report.
An autoposy on the 38 -year-old
Peterborough area man failed to
reveal to police how Cooper died.
He was found in the back seat of a
car belonging to Michael Luciano,
38. who was charged last week with
the second degree murder of his wife,
Colleen Richardson -Luciano, from
Vaughan. near Newmarket.
Her body had been found last
weekend in a dumpster in Toronto
and York Regional Police revealed
last Tuesday that Luciano had been
charged in Goderich although how he
came to be in that community has
also not been released.
Richardson -Luciano was stabbed
to death.
Detective Inspector Clancy
Grasman of the OPP's Major Cases
Division said how police proceed in
this investigation will be greatly
effected by what pathology reports
may reveal.
Media spent last week interviewing
family members of Luciano, Cooper
and the Egmondville woman who
rents the home where the body was'
discovered. speculating on the
relationships between Cooper.
Luciano and his wife but police have
released no information regarding the
circutnstances surrounding
Richardson-Luciano's or Cooper's
deaths.
Police continued to protect the
scene at 49 William Si from the time
the body was- discovered by an
officer responding to a call at the
home until last Thursday when the
On-line high school courses
get international attention
By Susan Htindertmork
Expositor Staff
On-line high school courses from the
Avon Maitland District School Board are
receiving "keen interest" in Asia, Europe
and the United States. trustees heard at last
week's board meeting.
Laurie Hazzard. distance education
coordinator and vice-principal of Seaforth
District High School, told the board that its
"virtual learning centre." being created in
partnership with the Trillium Lakelands
District School Board in Lindsay. is hoping
to offer a minimum of 16 courses this fall.
"And, i stress the term" minimum," she
said, adding that the board's distance
education department is also discussing
joint ventures with boards in London. and
Lambton-Kent and the University of
Western Ontario.
"We're trying to create partnerships so
we can bring the world to our kids," said
Hazzard.
Several trustees praised Hazzard for the
initiatives being made in distance
education. •
"This is good news considering
everything we're going through," said
trustee Atje Tuyten.
"it's gratifying to present something that
improves programs and services. it's an
example of what the central office does."
said education director Lorne Rachlis.
Last July, the board offered four distance
education courses, including English
literature, biology. leadership and algebra,
courses that were created by "incredibly
motivated and dedicated teachers" in the
Avon Maitland district, from whom the
board is in the process of buying the
courses, said Hazzard.
semi tiny, Pope 1t
OPP's identification unit finished
collecting potential evidence and
assessing the scene.
Officers have interviewed people
in the neighbourhood but Grasman
said area residents could still expect
to be contacted by police.
An officer had been called to the
home in the early morning on Jan. 23
for a call of an unreleased nature
when he discovered the Cooper's
body in the back of the car.
Grasman said it could potentially
take a few weeks before OPP receive
a pathology report which they hope
will reveal how the man died.
Momentum grows
for provincial lobby
against school closings
Momentum is gathering
for a provincial lobbying
effort by the Avon Maitland
District School Board and
other local groups and
governments after one
meeting with the Huron and
Perth federations of
agriculture and a planned
meeting Feb. 15 with district
municipalities.
The board last week
endorsed a resolution by the
Huron and Perth federations
and will circulate it to school
boards across the province.
And, two more rural
organizations will be invited
to the Feb. 1 S meeting with
Huron and Perth
municipalities concerning
school closures.
Trustee Abby Armstrong
suggested at last week's
board meeting that the Rural
Ontario Municipal
Association (ROMA) and the
Ontario Rural Council be
invited to discuss common
areas of concern with the
school board.
"These groups are
important specifically with
communities trying to
preserve their schools using
a community argument,"
said Armstrong.
She said that inviting
ROMA, an organization to
which all local municipalities
See BOARD, Pep 2
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