Times Advocate, 1997-08-13, Page 2Pa i' 2 Titres -Advocate, August 13, 1907
Regional
wrap up
Molotov
cocktails
hurled at CP
station
GOI)I:RI('ll - Police arc in-
vestigating'.i'Minher of Molotov
cocktail attacks in the (ioderich
brach .sea during. the past two
eeks and another attack that
oulul haw -devastated the CP
station, reports the (ioderich
Signal -Star.
At, lt;ast'two attacks took place
at the CP station rind a'third may
have been prevc.►ted .hy people
alhering fora reception on July
29 tn' the v'skint!. Consnunitics
,jn'Bluun► judgcs. A thirdattack
took 'place a day .earlier on ..the
heaelrroad.
In the SiLinal-Star. - Nilicc
Chief" (kut ge Lonsbary said 'the
persons revonsihle are facing
serious chares.
People fear
Huron
County will
become
toilet of
Ontario
GODERICH - A story in the
Godcrich Signal-StaL±statcs a
growing number of. people are.
concerned Huron, County inay
soon become the toilet of Onta-
rio. The concern comes .as the
number of intcnsivc livestock
operations increases -in Huron
County.
A `group of concerned Ash-
field Township" residents are
stan`ting to apply pecr.pressure to
local farmers. On July 30. at a
public meeting in Kingsbridge.
25() people gathered to hear a
w'arntng message being sounded
by a group called- PROTECT
(Presenting Recommendations
on Township Environmental.
Concerns Together).
Huron County pork Producers
Association " president Henry
Vtndcrhurgt was at the July 30
meeting and according to the
Signal -Star said pork producers
are just as aw are and concerned
about the Cm ironincnt as mem-
bers of the non -farming commu=
nity. Pork producers.arc working
hard to, work within environ-
mental guidelines and if manure
is spread properly and at the cor-
rect times. next to none of the
manure will get into the water-
course. -
Crop quality
excellent in
North
Middlesex
I'ARKHHIL.l. - The Parkhill
G.vettc reports combines. were
soaring like locusts through
western t.)ritario wheat fields
during the first Hick of August
.sal' North tliiddleses grain cle-
+.itot operators Inked what they
wete tc.er.ing.
Quality ut the Current crop oT
winter wheat is (tetter than aver-
age to evicellent and the yields
are average to hcttee.
In the G,vettc, Ken Wcrnham.
the • manger of Cooks elevators
in I'.0 khill said there are only
tin11 ,ices of fusarium: the
weather-tetated blight. that left
ne:rrly all of the 1996 hays est
unfit for the flour stills.
Some producers delivering to
crook; were reaping as high -as
83 bushels per acre. One year
ago. the Gazette was reporting
yields of 25 to 45 bushels and
there was some question wheth-
er the fusarium -infested product
was even 'suitable for livestock
feed.
Bunt, a fungus causing a
strong smell and ruining the
wheat for milling, has not been it
problem at the Middlesex eleva-
tors.
IN THE NEWS
Village suspends taxi
operator's .licence
The two-week suspension will require the operator
to .comply with all the provisions of the. bylaw
By Heather Mir
T -A Reporter
(',RAND BEND - "The village .of Grand Bend will
impose it two-week taxi licence. suspensitin following
what the administrator_ describes as "flagrant disregard
of the bylaw" by a local operator: - . . -
Council passed a minion during a special meeting:
held Thursday morning. to suspend the'village taxi li-
cence issued to A 8c M Motors. Operating- aS Lake-.
shore Taxi. as the result of a bylaw infraction over the
long weekend. The suspension refers to a failure by
the operator to -maintain insurance oncach.vchicle
as required" as laid'iuft in section 6 1 othe village's
taxi bylaw. Under section 8 of • ness, '
the bylaw. council has the au-
thority to issue. renewals, sus:-
pension
us=pension or revocation of " li-
cences.
According to bylaw cntOrcc-
meet officer Keith Crawford.
the Lakeshore vehicle oper-
ating last weekend .was not the
.one licenced ui do so by the
village and the driver was not
one of the two drivers insured to
.operate the taxi. • This is the
second insurance -related infraction the operator has
been suspended for and council telt action must he.
taken to ensure the "integrity of the bylaw Council
. discussed several ways to go about this including re-.'
voking the operator's licence and laying a charge for.
which the coun would determine a tine."
They just as: much defied us by. going and doing
what they wanted to anyway." said Councillor Barb
Wheeldon adding.".He's already laughed in our faces."
"All kinds of business ,people defy us." responded
Deputy Mayor Phil, Maguire to the suggestion of re-
voking the licence. "What makes this_different''"
"The big difference here." speculated Crawford:."Is.
that we have a fellow who: by soniebody...got heat up.
and I'm sure that's in the hack of everyone's.mind."
Noboxdy on council at Thursday's meeting wanted to
talk about the allegations that flew at last Tuesday
night's council meeting concilrning along weekend
incident in which a driver 1 , m another taxi service
was assaulted near the . Oakwood inn=- in Stephen
Township.
Mayor.Cam Ivey reminded council the assault is a
separate issue and -has no. hearing oq the bylaw infrac-
tion penalty under consideration:
Council -considered charging, the operator for the by-
law infraction however. as Ivey: put it., many. local
businesses feel "a ticket is just a cost of doing husi-
"The big difference
here is that we have a
fellow who, by
somebody, got beat
up, and I'm sure
that's in the back of
everyone's mind."
. The two-week suspension was sug-
gested as a means of getting the mes-
sage • across that the village is serious
about enforcing its bylaw.
•
Council -was also -concerned the vil-
lage could he held liable if an un-
insured vehicle were to he involved'in
an accident and the • municipality had
not shown •due diligence" in making
sure the bylaw requirements are met.
in addition to invoking a'. two-week
suspension. the operator will -be re-
quired to meet all the terms of the hs law before the li-
cence is reinstated. .
• Council -also passed a motion to amend the bylaw
eliminating sectiod 8.2 and any references to the ad-
ministrator requiring instruction from council .to en-
force the bylaw. The penalty section of the bylaw was
revamped to no longer make reference to a dollar fig-
ure as, the court will establish, any fine. As well. the
bylaw will require the taxi licence and driver's` photo
identification to be placed in a visible location within
the cab:
The .new draft bylaw will be presented at the next
regular council•meeting.
• ▪ 'EXETER WANTS ANSWERS FROM QUEEN'S PARK
Exeter is tired:of waiting for information on
the local financialimpacts of decisions made
by, the provincial government. This is year
-.two of a ttbv-year reduction in provincial
transfer payments -to the people of Exeter
totalling_ $250,000. For..1998. the province_ _will
eliminate the remaining '$ 307;870' in provincial funding with • the
cancellation of the Municipal Support Grant._ Provincial financial support
for roads'and other municipalities is.:a thing of.the-past. Adding to our
burden is the fact that. as of 1998; the County of Huron will have
eliminated its Urban Road•Rebate.support at a cost -to the town of $72.000.
This rebate was created to.recognize that Exeter has no. county roads.
The real problem. however. goes' much •farther than lost provincial •
transfers. As a result of the province's Who Does What" plans announced •
during "Mega -Week" in January, municipalities across Ontario -are facing
growing uncertainty about the costs and revenues .that they will he
managing.come January:1, 1998..
In Mas. the province announced.it would not go ahead with its plans to •
download long term health care and half of -the costs- of welfare onto
municipalities. but just- about everything else •municipalities deal with is
changing. .
One of the key concerns -is assessment and propertytax reform: The
change is two -fold. The assessment:system is.heing overhauled with the
Whole new method of property assessment. This'impact on Exeter should
be minimal as the present assessment system is already based on recent
market values. The provincial policy that municipalities use to set local tax
rates is changing as well. These changes are estimated. to cost Exeter
another $162.000. The first stage of new assessment legislation stias
passed in May and the -second stage. Bill 149. is still before the legislature.
But even once the new legislation is in place. municipalities williiot be in
any position to project ne\t year's revenues as the revised assessment
information Won't he read} until some time in the spring of 1998. As the.
reader will appreciate. these problems both complicate and,delay the 1998
budgeting:process,- - --- Concern is is not only on the revenue side of the, equation. Municipalities
still have not been given any information on what their new "Who Does
\khat" responsibilities will cost. For certain. there will he new costs. The
list of new municipal cost is a long one. Among the most serious concerns
for the Exeter area.arc the costs through the elimination of the Connecting
Link agreements 0%htch provided. for. the cost -sharing of Provincial
highways through the town). new police contract. the full cost of sewage
treatlnent,property assessment sewer and water inspections..and possibly
ambulances. Although the province has refused to provide actual figures.
the preliminary estimated additional cosi, for Exeter property taxpayers of
these issued are $213.000. The addition of responsibilities to the County of
Huron will also affect our tax rates. To explain. highways, social housing,
long -terns care, social assistance: libraries and tae Farm Tax Rebate are a •
few of•the:services/programs downloaded or affected by provincial funding
cuts. Exeter's share in these increased costs would be seven per cent. In
he event of amalgamation. the province's withdrawal from the Rural Farm
Fax Rebate Program would further cost Exeter taxpayers in. excess of
S100,000 annually.
It is very.difficult to summarize the overall financial impacts on Exeter of a
new provincial -municipal relationship. Indeed, the impacts on Ontario
municipalities, as a whole. is not even known as yet.
Exeter Council has said that without additional information from the
province on the financial impacts of the government's decisions and
without further discussion on how some of these changes will take place,
there is no way that council can provide any assurances that property taxes
won't go up in 1998. We are definitely going to have to do more with less,
but until we can start planning based on real numbers. there is little we can
do to mitigate against higher costs and lower revenues.
Council will continue to keep the town's ratepayers informed.
LAdopted by council Aug. 5 1997
.2
All ears
Cobbing around. Grand Bend's Andrew Oke, 9; looks after
this fresh com stand outside Dashwood's Hayter's Turkey
Products last week while his cousin, Adam Hayter, -10, is
out in the field rounding up more cobs.
Stephen to pay its share
STEPHEN TOWNSHIP - Council
passed a motion at its Aug. 5 meet-
ing to advise the Exeter and Area
Fire Department the township "will
plan to be in a position to pay for
our share- of the proposed new fire
vehicle in 1998."
The new truck is expected to cost
approximately $330,000 with Ste-
phen's• share totalling $16,500, Ex- ,
eter paying $204.000, Osborne pay-
ing $93,000
aying,:$93,000 and Hay paying
$16,500:
Lucan looking into backyard burning
By Craig Bradford
T -A Reporter
LUCAN - Complaints about big
backyard bonfires.have fixed Lucan
council's microscope on the issue.
Administrator Ron Reymer has
asked -a complainant to write a let-
ter to council detailing the incidents
and their concerns such as blowing
ash and smoke.
Reeve Rob Brady said- at last
week's council meeting he has no
objection to backyard bonfires but
he is against burning garbage that
can be -picked up at the curb..
Council directed Reymer to look
at other municipalities' bylaws gov-
erning backyard fires, the first -step
in drafting Lucan's own by-law. Ex-
eter has a total ban on backyard
fires
"1 wouldn't want to go that far
unless absolutely necessary." Brady'
said.
Several complaints
since fall '93 about a
dog barking, _loud par-
ties and obscenities
coming' from a Harold
"If we're going to fine them we
don't want to go to court and lose."
he said. "No one wins then."
If convicted, noise byldw offend-
ers face up to a $1,000 fine, though,
most cases involved a much .lesser.,
fine, A .Lucan bylaw enforcement
officer has never issued an ob.
sessive noise ticket. • •
Council also received complaints
abouthorse manure on Kent Street
(no action taken) and weeds at the
-former Grand Central lot. Council
directed village staff to contact the
Grand Centrallot owner about the
weeds so either they can trim them
or the "village can be given per-
-mission to do the job. Brady said
no weed inspection is .necessary
since the weeds aren't "noxious.''
Other Lucan council notes: .
Main Street work -
The Ministry of Transportation
(MTO) has approved the $,120,000
, worth of work on Main
Street council will ten-
der. The provincial
money, an annual grant
called the connecting •
link allocation, is much
"These
people are
pretty upset
that no
Street home have action has less than the- $500;000
thefo
council to give
go ahead for bylaw -been taken.„ he d oadt. Then work
t
enforcement officer should begin by mid -
Stan Flood to issue an obsessive ,September and be finished by the
noise ticket •for the next offence. end of October.
there. Waste week
Councillor Rosemary Gahlinger- Nov. 3-9 will .be declared0as
Beaune said neighbors are tired of "Waste Reduction Week in Lucan
the racket and have even called in but council wilt not dole out $500
the OPP at times, •
www.bra.org.
• Let it snow'
Council accepted MTO's $4,800
quote for winter maintenance on
Main Street from Oct. 1 to March
30.' Public Works superintendent
Doug Johnston said the village
-couldn't do a similar level of ser-
vice cheaper. The maintenance in-
cludes sanding, salting and snow
plowing. Reymer said the village .
does winter maintenance on the rest
of Lucan's streets at a cost of about
$14,000 for calender year '97.
The taxman cometh
Lucan ratepayers can expect re-
ceiving their '97 municipal tax bills
sometime this week after they were •
mailed on Friday.
Wanted
- Those interested in sitting on a
Neighborhood Watch committee
can call organizer Norm Steeper.
Council endorsed Steeper forming
a small committee and.will suggest
some possible members to him.
"Once a Neighborhood Watch
program is up and running it mush-
rooms." councillor Rosemary Gah-
linger-Beaune said, since block
captains can be appointed and add-
ed to thecommittee from "various
streets until the entire community.
including interested neighborhoods
in Biddulph Township. is protected
by the community policing pro-
gram. .
Brady said he�wants the" com-
mittee to be operational by Sep-
tember with representation "from
different Lucan neighborhoods.
You light up my night
A r�iiident near Elm Street Park
who has complained about minor
.vandalism on their ,street will be
filled in by village staff about .a
cheap deterrent — installing secur-
ity sensor lights.
to $1.000 the Recycling Council-of---
"These
ouncil-of-
"These people arc pretty upset Ontario wants each municipality to
that no action has been taken." she kick in to support its activities.
said. Not web waste
Reymer said handing out a fine Bluewater Recycling has a new
hinges on whether someone will web site. Those interested in find -
testify in court to make the charge ing out more about recycling and
stick. Bluewater's programs can log on at
Exeter supports bid to name
highway The Dashwood Road
EXETER Exeter Council recently joined Stephen
and Hay townships in supporting Dashwood resident
Jim Hoffman's efforts to have what is known at High-
way 83, west of Exeter's town limits. named The
Dashwood Road. .
He attended Monday night's council meeting to
voice his support for keeping the Dashwood. name
alive during the current 911 road naming process. in
view that police villages arc likely to become ob-
solete.
Hoffman, who operates the Dashwood ambulance
service, sited other situations where the road name is
not continuous. such as along Highway 4.
In Middlesex County. the road is known as Rich-
mond Street. then changes to London Road in Huron
County and. is known within Exeter municipal limits as
Main Street.
Under the re -naming for 911 emergency services,
Highway 83 is called Thames Road until it reaches the
Perth County boundary.
Hoffman said this name is appropriate within Exeter
and east of the town limits where the Thames river
tributary Tuns and the Thames historical arca has been
established. However, west of Exeter to Lake Hurop
has been known for many years as The Dashwood
Road. '
"I don't think we were properly named," said Hoff-
man adding, "The (road) names change quite often." •
Hoffman said although he may be late in starting dis-
cussion about the naming but only recently noticed
other instances where the road name was not continu-
ous.
Council was not in complete agreement with Hoff-
man's suggestion. • .
"I can see a reason to have a consistent name." said
Councillor Tom Hughes.
Other councillors did support the initiative and a mo-
tion was carried to support Jim Hoffman's attempt to
have the road named The Dashwood Road.
"It does seem to make sense to name it the Dash-
wood Road," said Cgltncillor Robert Drummond.