Loading...
Clinton News-Record, 1984-04-18, Page 13 _ qi q�{ THE BAY Fit QLD BUG! E 3U gents —No. 16 Wednesday, April 18, 1984 Town hall extras concern council By Shelley McPhee CLINTON - Extra costs at the town hall restoration project are concerning some councillors. Approval of extra work and extra expenses resulted in a heated debate amongst councillors at their April 16 meeting. The two areas of issues concerned hardware, hinges and new office equipment. - The building committee reported that brushed aluminum hardware had been originally planned for the town hall, but brass fittings were suggested, to compliment the hall's traditional look. The brass hardware would also blend in with the three brass chandeliers, to be located in the lobby, council chambers and upstairs auditorium. The bottom line on the brass hardware choice, was that it would cost an additional $1,500. Building committee member, Mayor Chester Archibald, was opposed to the extra costs. He noted, "These extras are what's putting us over budget. Somewhere we have to head in." Extra costs estimates on the $1,150,000 town hall -library project have not been tallied but the mayor warned council that the project would run over budget because of unexpected costs. He noted that the slate roof would be costing an additional $7,000 and drywalling would amount to an additional $12,000. Councillor Rosemary Armstrong supported the proposal to purchase brass hardware. She said. "It's a shame to.start scrimping over $1,500 after we've spent this much." Councillor Jim Hunter also supported the extra cost, noting, "It would be nice to have a showplace that people would remember. It's the little things, the touches that people remember." Cost for the brass hardware, did not include fittings in the police station, but included the general offices and staff washrooms. Council agreed that it was unnecessary to have brass hardware in these areas. They felt that money could be saved by using brass only in the areas most frequently used and seen by the public. It was suggested that brass hardware be used in areas to compliment the chandeliers. A motion stating this was passed, however Councillor Charlie Burgess commented afterwards that he was opposed to this spending. He stressed, "This is getting out of hand by about $100,000 to $200,000." He suggested that council should reach into their own pockets to pay for these extras. Councillor Armstrong reminded - Councillor Burgess, that councillors are also taxpayers, to which Councillor Burgess replied, "they're paying from my pocket." Councillor Burgess was also adamantly opposed to a motion to purchase seven new desks and 13 chairs for the new municipal offices in the town hall. The purchase price is, $7,430, From Ball and Mutch Furniture, the lowest of sil tenders. Other tenders were Skeoch Business Equipment, Godericb, $7,500; Grayhurst Business Supplies, Goderich, $7,795; .A., p.uelph _firm, ,18A6If peat*Furniture, Clinton, $9,499; HurBushinessMachines, Clinton, $3,766, fore chairs only. " The tenders were sought to replace and add to present desk furnishings. The new office furniture will be used in the town hall municipal offices. The equipment currently being used by the municipal office staff will replace old furniture in use by the town police department. Although Mayor Archibald noted he was concerned about extra spending, he explicitly supported the furniture purchase. He told council that he firmly,,believes in cutting back, but felt there was a legitimate need for better desks for ; the police department. Councillor Burgess reminded the mayor of a earlier statement when the project was first commencing, that"the townliall project would not include new furniture purchases. Turn to page 3. Farm fta alities increase in Huron County . By Rod Hilts The increase in farm -related fatalities} the area , over -the- last six months hag prompted the 'Huron County farni ai Home Safety Association to hold a serninar in an attempt to educate area farmers about the prevention of accidents. The seminar entitled It Hurts. To Be Careless will be held April, 26 at the Family Paradise Hall located at RR 4 Walton from 8 p.m. to 11 " p.m. Guest speakers at the seminar will be Steve Matisz, Farm Safety Consultant and ' John Marshall from the' Goderich OPP. John George is organizing the seminar. According to Mr. Matisz, one person died in a farm -related accident in Huron County in 1983. Over the past six months three people have died. Bob Stirling, the Chairman of the'Huron Farm Safety Association, described the increased number of accidents in Huron County as "a tense situation." "We feel frustrated. We don't know where to turn. You don't need it until it's too late (information about farm safety). You can't legislate it, you have to educate it," Mr. Stirling said. Mr. Stirling • explained_.,_ that, "the government can't legislate to keep safety equipment in place on the farm. He said farmers can go to work without necessary safety equipment and 'iio one will stop them, unlike industrial safety in factories. In 1952, Mr. Stirling, a Goderich Township farmer, met with an unfortunate accident when he was thrown off a hay wagon. A pin slipped out of the wagon he was on and the tongue dug into the ground. The accident left him with a broken hip and he was confined to a bed for one year. "I went through 20 years of hell before my hip was better. After that accident I felt that surely I could spent some time helping people realize how important farm safety ' is," Mr. Stirling said. Mr. Stirling is serving in his third year as Chairman of the Huron County Farm Safety Association and has spent 10 years total with the organization. He noted that province -wide statistics "nw that the 15 to 25 -year-old bracket is the 'dent prone. He stressed that the to help reduce the number of and fatilities is through education ness. ccidents are hurried and some are fatigue. It's a bit like Murphy's tan it will happen," he said. Between the period of 1975 and 1981, Huron County rated number three in Ontario for the number of farm -related fatalities. Huron County had 17 fatalities, northern Ontario had 19 and Grey County led with 23 deaths. The April 26 seminar at Family Paradise Hall will feature two tastefully done films that show how accidents are caused and how to prevent them. Following the speeches from the two guests, a question and answer period will follow. Underwood ' Farms will make a presentation on their silo gas rescue equipment which they are presently using. "Farming is the third most dangerous., industry next to mining and forestry. We're losing too many people on these farms. Huron County fatalities and accidents on farms had been declining but in the last six months the concern is if this keeps up, we'll be in the topbracket," Mr. Stirling said. . 0n1*rid t l i. 1 coni iu c down14, CI TON - A resolution from the City of Vanier, requesting a pi les Quo, bas been defeated by Clinton i* ell. The•; resolution was presented to council at their 'April 2 meeting, It aed Premier Wiili;gtti� Davis to�procla Ontario otiidally tulingya*. "Franco.- Vanier ltion stated Onterinns have -demanded *cognition of theirlaaguage in Ontario e .. o for 117 years," It noted that many Ontario Municipalities have already declared thems themselves officially bilingual and Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau has also requested this. The resolution asked Premier Davis to, "give the required leadership and display of good faith towards Franco-Ontarians and to prove his adherence to the great principles governing good and just government, by li council 4liyl,rll0. Province of Ontario offs The reeelutiot► was sent to an munleipalitie5 la the.province. Clifton comma viewedthe resolution from two sides. Councillor..arliea Burgess said he would support a b al Ontario when he could, "go into qu c, ask a question in English and be anatvelredhiPngliah." 'Quebeeshould treat the English there as they' want the French to be treated here," he said. Councillor Jim Hunter took a different stand. He suggested that English, as the majority, should offer a hand of friendship to the French minority. He suggested that supporting the resolution would be a first good move. Clinton street reconstruction approved CLINTON - A total of $49,444.15 in street reconstruction costs for 1984 was approved by town council at their April 16 meeting. The contract was let to Levis Contracting of Clinton, the sole tender on the work. Street reconstruction this year will include work on six streets. They are: Matilda Street, from Walker to Bond Streets, $21,777.55; Rattenbury Street, from Shipley to North Streets, $3,901.70; Princess Street, from Shipley to North Streets, $6,207.25; Mary Street, from Isaac td Orange Streets, $7,803.40; Maria Street, from Victoria to King Streets, $6,207.25; Mary Street, east of North Street, 60 metres of top coat, $3,547. While council only received one application for the work they all agreed that there would be no need to re -tender since the contract price came in only $444 than the engineer's estimated cost of $49,000. Ausable future Clinton council will submit a written brief to the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA), outlining their suggestiongs for future development of the ABCA conservation park. The proposal came about after the ABCA invited council to attend upcoming public meetings, being held to discuss the authority's watershed planning for the next 15 years. Councillor John Deeves, Clinton's representative on -the ABCA strongly recommended that council make .a submission. =He noted that soon it may be too. late for Clinton to make major suggestions to the ABCA if a proposal, to reduce the 35 member board, is carried out. This could mean that representatives onthe fringe areas, like Clinton, Goderich Township and Hullett Township could be reduced to one member. ' He also reminded council P that the recommendations are part of a 15 year plan and any suggestions should be made now. Council agreed with Councillor. Jim Hunter's suggestion, that the ABCA consider developing the recreational facilities at the conservation park, located on the Bayfield River at the, town's south limits. Clinton will ask the ABCA to consider damming a portion df the river to provide a pond for canoeing and fishing. The CHSS Senior Redmen came out a 2=0 winner in their high -flying Huron -Perth soccer home opener played Monday afternoon against Exeter. Pictured are two Clinton players converging in mid-air on A full house au .fence gave a stand .g ova on to the junior c:io r at Wesley -Willis Church for their musical play, staged at their April 13 variety night. The performance, entitled Babble and Babel was directed y ''nary Hearn and featured local musicians as well as the senior choir. (Shelley McPhee photo) an Exeter defender. The Juniors came out on the short end of a 3-2 score against Exeter. (Rod Hilts photo) own finishes year with surplus CLINTON -. The financial audit for the Town of Clinton in 1983 shows that the town's general account finished the year with a small surplus of $8,645. Accountant Bill Vodden, of the firm Durst, Vodden and Bender told Clinton council at their April 2 meeting that while revenues and expenditures ran ' close to budget, the surplus wasn't as large as in 1982. At the end of 1982, Clinton had a general account surplus of $26,092. However greater expenditures in 1983 reduced this surplus to $8,645. Additional funds were spent in several areas but of greatest interest to many councillors was money spent on the town's biggest project, . the town hall -library complex restoration project. Mr. Vodden reported that in 1983 construction costs of $653,653 were paid on the town hall complex. This was financed by several means. The town hall restoration reserve fund provided $279,466. Wintario grants received were $222,818 and the Ontario Heritage Foundation grants received were $125,000. The remaining $26,369 expenditure on the project was paid by the town's general fund. Councillor Charlie Burgess asked, "At the end of 1983, what percentage of the town hall project is completed?" ' Mr. Vodden said that the contract let by the town to Gilvesy Construction amounted to $1,150,000 and at the end of 1983, $638,000 had been certified to the contractor, leaving a remaining balance of $512,000. Councillor Burgess asked if the project was staying within budget and Mr. Vodden pointed out that it was difficult to assess this. He said that when the contract was let, finances were estimated through grants and any extra costs could be levied on the general tax bill. He said that staying within budget would depend on what extra work is done. Mayor Chester Archibald noted that the contractors have guaranteed that they'll stay within budget, excluding the extra costs. Town hall restoration expenses ' also reflected on the council and administration and police costs to the town. While these stayed close to the 1983 budget, they increased significantly from 1982. This Clerk Cam Proctor explained, was partiallyilue to the rental costs for temporary municipal office . and police quarters, during the restoration project. While council and administration costs came in lower than the budgeted $166,000, the $161,569 total spent in 1983 was significantly higher than the $138,496 costs in 1982. Similarly, the policecosts rose from $218,861 in 1982 to $232,176 in 1983, but came in under the budgeted figure of $239,098. Clerk Proctor indicated that in some other areas it is difficult to accurately budget the amount of money that will be spent in a year. Such is the case with the street reconstruction and public works costs. In 1983.a total of $128,313 was spent on street reconstruction in Clinton. This was up from $93,685 spent in 1982 as well as above the 1983 budget figure of $115,000. Similarly the public works budget was set at $153,834 but in actuality $162,781 was spent in 1983. This however was lower than the 1982 total when works costs amounted to $166,164. In some areas, the actual money spent was lower than the budgeted estimates. Street lighting in town cost $28,050 in 1983, less than the $38,541 spent in 1982 and less than the 1983 budget of $35,000. Clerk Proctor said that a major portion of the street lighting budget covers operating and maintenance costs and the remainder is for new purchases. In 1983 no new street lights were purchased, therefore the total costs came in lower than budget. Budgeted expenditures also differed from actual costs in areas were funds were transferred to other areas to help offset higher or costs. In 1983 the town estimated that $45,000 would be spent on sanitary sewer extensions and improvements and another $49,348 would go towards the planning and development of Clinton's industrial site sanitary sewers. . Councillor Burgess asked where this money went and Mr. Vodden explained that it went to offset other areas where expenditures were higher than ,estimated, like the town hall and street reconstuction costs. In his general analysis of the auditor's report, Councillor Ross Carter noted, "The things that went over budget, went over big." Councillor Carter also noted that from 1982 to 1983, Clinton's taxation revenue increased by slightly more than $16,000. However the $621,969 taxation total in 1983 fell short of the anticipated revenue budget of $632,604. Residential taxes were $5,000 less than expected, $375,294 being collected in 1983. As well tax write-offs were higher than the 1982 total and the 1983 budget estimate. In 1982, tax write-offs amounted to a $3,710, loss for the town. In 1983 the deficit was budgeted at $4,000, but in actuality, tax write-offs amounted to $8,508. Mr. Vodden explained that the town has little control over this loss. Huron seniors elect 1984 officers It took six years to get the supplement for pensioners, Mrs. Joyce King of Tottenham, first vice-president of the United Senior Citizens of Ontario, told the delegates and members attending the ninth spring rally at Brussels last Thursday. She urged everyone to be an All-Star member of Ontario and assist in getting a, better deal for all Senior Citizens. She stated that there are 44 USC zones in the province and that two-thirds of the members are women. She told the interested seniors that everyone benefits from All-Star memberships and urged all to have a memorial book in the different clubs. Sixteen clubs from Goderich, Exeter, Brussels, Bayfield, Grand Bend, Clinton, Londesboro, Blyth, Seaforth, Hensall, Zurich, Dashwood, Holmesville, MacKay Centre (Goderich), Auburn and Dungannon, all reported their activities during the year. Percy Blundell of Goderich, president, was chairman and the secretary was Mrs. Kenneth Johns of Exeter. The spring rally was hosted by the Brussels and Blyth Clubs and was held in the Brussels Legion Hall. Reeve Calvin Kreuter of Brussels welcomed all delegates and members to the village and the Reverend Douglas Zehr of the Mennonite Church gave the devotional period. During the afternoon session, James Lawrie of Blyth, accompanied by Mrs. Ella Richmond, sang Irish and Scottish solos. Delegates supported the resolution to the Ontario government todo away with the driver's test that all citizens must take when they reach the age of 80. Their idea is to get a doctor's certificate that says health and eye sight are good and that this would be sufficient to get a driver's licence. The nominating committee composed of John Hesselwood of Blyth, Mrs. Beth Knox of Londesboro and Kenneth Johns of Exeter presented the slate of officers which were accepted. They are: past president - Percy Blundell of Goderich; president - Mrd.. Irene Davis of Hensall; first vice president - Barry Gandier of Zurich; second vice president - Gerald Exel of Brussels; secretary - Mrs. Irene Johns of Exeter; treasurer - John Deeves of Hohnesville; and assistant - Bert Fear of Blyth. Door prizes of boxes roceries were won Tiyary ofAildns of Exeter and Celia Edgar of Clinton. A 4