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Times-Advocate, 1988-05-25, Page 1• � mes Serving South Huron, North Middlesex One Hundred and Seventeenth Year dvocate & North Lambton Since 1873 EXETER, ONTARIO, May 25, 1988 Price Per Copy 60 Cents S (tflhi4?"tA Uva flui RCS RESTAURANT • GRAND BEP'! /iEW THREATENED -- Sanders on the beach owner tJ erry Sanders looks out from the multi-level patio of his mique watering hole. Sanders could lose its beach view if Archie Gibbs is successful in winning a court case it vhich he claims ownership of the public beach at Grand Bend. OPP investigate three vehicle crash near Grand Bend EXETER - Officers of the Exeter detachment of the Ontario Provin- :ial Police were busy this week in- vestigating eight motor vehicle ac - :idents. Three vehicles were involved in a :rash, north of Grand Bend, Sunday. At 5.20 p.m. a vehicle driven by 1:1inton Almas, Brantford was .topped on highway 21 for traffic ;oing south into Grand Bend and vas struck from behind by a vehicle Iriven by Otwcn Franke, Stratford.. 'he Franke -vehicle was in turn truck in the rear by a vehicle °m - .ted by Darryl Gill, Grand Bend. The Franke vchicic was heavily lamagcd while those owned by Al- nas and Gill were only damaged lightly. Six persons.sustained mi - tor injuries. The same day at 3.40 p.m., a ve- ,icle driven by Lorcli Parsons, .ondon caught fire and suffered loderate damage while travelling m Highway 81 in Stcphcn town - hip. Monday afternoon at 5.30 p.m., n unknown vchicic travelling on luron road 5, cast of Mount Car - lel cut off a farm tractor driven by Len Ryan, RR 3, Ailsa Craig caus- ing an accident. Police are continu- ing their investigation. Sunday, May 15,a vehicle driven by William Forrester, RR 2, Zurich collided with a truck owned by Rowe Fuels onthe Texaco parking lot on Main street south in Exeter. On Monday May 16 at 11.45 a.m., a front end loader being towed southbound on Stcphcn township concession road 16-17 by William McStephen, RR 1, Crediton broke free of the tow cable and Icft the roadway. The loader rolled over a mailbox and struck a hydro pole. Ontario Hydro workmen were called in and were able to restore power to the arca. No damage was sustained to the loader. A vehicle driven by Timothy Long, Exeter collided with a parked car owned by Elizabeth Allen, RR 1, Exeter. Thc collision occurred on the Dashwood industries parking lot at 8.30 a.m., Thursday. Thc first of two Saturday, May 21 accidents occurred at 12.30 a.m. on Concession 4-5 of Hay town- ship when a vchicic driven by Shannon Hrudka, Hcnsall went out of control and struck a tree. No in- juries were sustained and damage to the vchicic was moderate. At 2.15 p.m. the same day, Ma- ric Silvcy of Allen Park, Michigan fell off a motorcycle being operated by Robert Silvcy while travelling on Highway 81. Shc was treated for minor injuries at South Hruon Hospital in Exeter. During the week, local OPP opf- ficers laid 103 charges under the Illghway Traffic Act, handed out 17 liquor related charges, two under the Criminal Code and two for im- paired driving. In addition, four driving licence suspensions of 12 hours each were issued. The R.LD.E. program continues this week on arca-roads. A woman's bicycle was found this week in Hcnsall. The owner may reclaim it by calling the Exet- er OPP at 235-1300. An unclaimed injured dog re- mains oat the Zurich Veterinary Clinic. it is a black 25 pound fe- male. it was hit by a car on High- way 83 at the easterly limits of Dashwood. Cheaper to post than remove USBORNE - Reeve Gerry Prout 'formed members of Usbornc Rincil of the results of a mccting ;, councillor Pat Down and road rperintendent Ken Parker had with ie Huron County engineer on lay 17 to discusslowering the - eep hill on concession 2-3 at lots . ) and 30. Thc engineer estimated that the 'b could be dont for about 50,000 using one's own equip- ent. As Usborne does not have e machines to do the job, the tsts to have someone else do the ork would be very high. instead, e arca will be postcd with signs arning di i vers of the hazard. Mere has never been an accident on the hill. Usbornc councillors sat as a com- mittee of adjustment at their special council meeting on May 17 to con- sider Jim Pfaffs request for a minor variance for relief from the maxi- mum lot coverage requirements set out in Ushornc's zoning bylaw. Pfaff wanted the maximum in- creased from 25 percent to 31 per- cent to accommodate an addition he has built on an existing building. Thc rcqucst was turned down. Donald Cole was awarded the tender for grass -cutting at the Thames Road ball park for the 1988 season at $80 per cut. His was the lowest of four "tenders submitted. The highest was. S125 per cutting plus another $30 for trimming. A bylaw was amended to give the new assistant clerk Cathy Skinner official status, and to increase the kennel licence for three or more dogs from $5 to $10. Council approved placing a cul- vert at lot 17, concession 4, for the purpose of establishing a lancway. Drainage superintendent John Bat- ten reported that a stone crossing in the Gardiner drain has been lowered to comply with a recent request from the owner of the property at S. Pt. lot 17, concession 13. Thc date for the reading of the Ausable River drain report was set for June 7, 1988 at 7:30 p.m. Court case may decide the fate of Grand Bend GRAND BEND - For Jerry Sand- ers, owner of Sanders on the Beach in Grand Bend, the future will be decided ,in a courtroom in Sarnia over the next two months. In fact, the future of the entire village of Grand Bend as a tourist town may be on the line. A land claim which has been an issue in the village since the 1920s will come to a head May 30 when Malcalm 'Archie' Gibb's goes to court in the hope of proving that he is the owner of the now public beach at Grand Bend. If Gibbs is successful, the beach could be close¢ to the public and developed with condominiums. That could ruin the tourist indus- try on which the village economy is built and it would bring an end to what is one of the most popular summer spots in Southwestern On- tario. The arca of beach in question is a 2,000 foot strip running from Grand Bend's Main Street to thc government pier -- the same section which fronts Sanders on the Beach. In the worst scenario, should Gibbs win the court case, Sanders could be left with no view, and no access to the beach. "I'm really concerned," Sanders said Tuesday. 71 don't know if I'm going to have a driveway into the -place... What do I do? Have people drive up to the back door and bring thein through the kitchen to the" dining room?" Sanders on the Beach, one of Grand Bend's most popular, eating and drinking establishments, em- ploys 120-180 people during the summer season, many of them stu- dents. The restaurant scats 514 peo- ple and is usually filled to the brim. All that, however, could be lost. "These positions would not be available if they should ever close the beach," Sanders warns. Hoping to sway the court case with popular opinion, Sanders has distributed a petition throughout the area. As. of Tuesday, he had 28 pag- es of signatures. The document states opposition to "any -claim that could alter or interfere" with the beach's "existing uses". The peti- tion is still circulating. - Sanders is concerned that arca business owners are not taking Gibbs' bid seriously. He notes that many people are adopting .a,"wait and see" attitude toward the issue. -Others arc simply unaware of the implications of the case. • "All businesses could be hurt -- severely," Sanders said, "1 honestly can't see this happening, but you can't just sit back and say what will - be will be." Sanders claims that there is an in- creasing move afoot to turn the beach resort into a retirement com- munity. Passionate about the cause, the Grand Bend businessman can't understand the lack of interest shown by many villagers.. • "Thais one of the most beautiful beaches in Onutrio and to lose it -- I just can't understand anyone letting it happen." Council opposed Grand Bend Reeve Harold Green said Tuesday council was complete- ly opposed to Gibbs' bid for owner- ship of the beach. "If we don't have the beach,- we might as well join Bosanquct town- ship," Green said, referring to the potential restructuring of Lambton County and the effects it would have on the village. "Because Grand Bend is the beach." While Grccn is - restricted from making any specific- comments about the case while it is before the courts (because the village is named in the lawsuit) he was willing to speculate on the outcome. 'My own feeling is 'that he (Gibbs) won't win. I don't know what his chances are. The village has been using it (the beach) as long as I can remember. I think we've got a good case and we should win." - Definitions needed The final decision may hinge on a Crown Patent, issued in 1836, which provides that all navigable streams, waters and courses "with - the beds and banks thereof" are re- served to the Crown. The term - "beds and banks" has yet to be de- fined by the government. There are also questions about flood plane regulations but, as yet, there seems to be no clear line on the property in question indicating where private property ends and Crown land begins. Sanders is under the impression that from the high water mark to the water is Crown land. He has obtained statements from residents and business owners on the subject of the high water mark. Long history Signs stating that the beach is the private property of the Gibbs family have been posted at regular intervals over the years by various members of the family. According to title documents, the beach property adjacent to Gibbs' Park Part of Lot one, Lake Road West Concession was deeded to Charles A Gibbs June 27, 1927. While the original deed was mis- placed in the 1940s, Harold Gibbs (the uncle of Archie Gibbs) ob- tained "certification of a copy of the original in the Ontario Registry Of- fice". Please turn to page 2 Stephen township approves contracts for1988 gravelling and construction CREDITON - Lavis Contract- ing of Clinton has been awarded the contract on the proposed pav- ing project at Huron Park. At a May 24 meeting, Stephen township council accepted the La - vis tender of S36.49 per Imperial ton for paving plus S230 for one - foot catch basins and $278 for two -foot catch basins. Depending on how much as- phalt is necessary, the totalcon- tract could be S252,680. The Clinton firm's bid was the lowest of four received. Additional sub- sidy is being rcccived from the Ministry of Transportation .and Communications for this project. C.R. Chittick Construction of Ildcrton submitted the lowest of three bids for the annual gravell- ing contract. Chitticks will crush, load, haul and spread from Prods Pit for $3.28 an Imperial ton and $2.27 per ton for stockpiling. Nine bids were received for the re -construction of one and one- quarter miles of Concession 16-17 road, north of the Mount Cannel road. Clarence Carter and Son of Lu - can will supply the clay at S1.95 per cubic yard; Jennisons of Grand Bend won the A' gravel contract at S6.25 per cubic yard and Corbctt and Young of Lucan provides the 'B' gravel at S2.21 a cubic yard. Council approved with condi- tions a severance application from Ronald and Judith Watt at part of Lot 10, Concession 16. The Watts wish to sever the present house from the balance Of the farm prop- erty. • The township's conditions in- clude rezoning to village residen- tial, having the barn removed and having the lot depth a minimum distance beyond a shed. McKenzie and Henderson of Ar- kona provided the lowest of four tenders for repair of the Khiva Mu- nicipal Drain 1988 for $13,348. Drain Commissioner Ken Pick- ering will be undertaking repair df+ the Webb municipal drain as peti- tioned by .Ray Wcbb and Adrian Kesler. Road superintendent Eric Fink- beiner was instructed to carry out spray patching of asphalt on Con- cession 2-3 road and'Huron street. Council will be participating in the GASEMO program whereby natural gas for municipal_ build- ings is purchased on a bulk basis. A used 1974 fire truck pumper has been purchased from the Strat- ford fire department for $40,(XX). Permission was given to the Centralia -Huron Park Lions to operate a leer garden for a July 22- 24 ball tournament at the Crediton park. Council proclaimed May 30 to June 5 as Environmental Week. A donation of $3,000 was made to the Grand Bend Medical Centre fund raising caunpaign. Refuge for homeless teens in Huron EXETER - Local tccnagcrs who find themselves without a home now have a place to turn to for help and shekel- rather than spending a night out on a park bench. A new Huron Safe Homes for Youth program has been established to provide help for adolescents in crisis situations where they- can no longer stay with their parents. Usually this occurs on a temporary basis as a result of personal or cmo- tiona1problems at home. "They spent thcir days and nights roaming our town sleeping on park benches," said Exeter Police Chief Larry Hardy about the homeless tccnagcrs he has dealt with. instead of this, Safe Homes for Youth af- fords a temporary place to stay with a volunteer family while things arc ironed out at home, or while coun- selling and help from social agen- cies are being arranged. Mayor Brlice Shaw, also in atten- dance at Friday's press conference to introduce the prograni, ..poke about his experiences with homeless teens. "I don't want to talk as mayor. I'd rather speak as principal of thc high school," Shaw said. ile recalled one weekend three years ago when ho and guidance counsellor Ric Gra- ham found themselves with no less than three students without homes. Shaw credited Graham with using that experience to push for a pro- gram that is finally coming to fight in 1988. Safe Homes uses a co-ordinator to collect calls from the youths them- selves, hospitals, the police, schools, or other organizations and to arrange for shelter with one of the program's volunteer families. Thc program's office is in space provided in the Exeter United Church, arid is equipped -with a phone and paging system for emer- gency situations. "Thc heart of the program is the homes in which the children will he helped," said Rev. Duke Vipper- man. Thc Anglican church was first to financially support the crea- tion of the program with a $5,000 donation from the Bishop's Social Action Fund. An additional S10,000 was raised from the South Huron community and this attracted the attention of the ministry of community and so- cial services who have provided an- other grant of S50,(XX). Candidates for the shelter will be screened to make sure they arc from the immediate community and arc not migrants froni other urban are- as. Families who do take in the homeless teens .will be reimbursed 512.50 per day. "Already a number of families have contacted us and we're really excited about .,that," n'ted Rev. Deborah Carter from the Centralia and West Zion Churches. Please turn to page 2 f SWEET GOODIES Sugar and Spice factory on Highway 83 page 5 BEATS ODDS Lisa Sutherland still coping with Cystic Fibrosis page 9 TALK ELECTIONS Clerk -treasurers meet in Exeter page 12 CCAT GRADUATION Centralia Collcgc•has 39 I lonours students page 7A GREAT SIIOW Outstanding in its field page 68