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The Goderich Signal-Star, 1987-03-18, Page 1139 YEAR - ll GODFRICH, ONTARIO, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 18, 1987 GO CENTS PER COPY Co ncil.re eive.s master pl r por Plan still s f1. 19 7 budge weight training areas, sauna, whirlpool and locker rooms. Lack of a diving board and deep end, Were two complaints which several ques- tioners put forward to Stevenson. One of whom suggested the shallow pool could be dangerous for young swimmers. 'I've never seen any healthy kid who's not going to want to dive intu.the pool,—she stated. Stevenson explained the architectural drawings I published Feb. 18 in the Signal- Star) were "just a concept." "Nothing is written in stone y'et," he said, adding that changes to the design can still be • made ..to • accomodate public con- . Turn to page 2. . BY PATRICK RAFTIS The fate of the master plan for recrea- tion in Goderich and accompanying feasibility study is now being deliberated . at the committee level, following presenta- tion to Goderich Town Council Monday night. . A motion to receive the plan and study, which recommends the immediate con- " '"struction of a multi-purpose aquatic centre and fitness complex, and refer them to the Recreation Committee for further study was passed unanimously. More contentious, was a motion by Coun- cillor . Peter McCauley: to have- the Ad- ministration and Personel Committee re- • consider request for $20,000 to be set aside - for implimentation of the master plan in the 1987 budget. Thel20,000 was not includ- ed in the $5.6 trillion 1987 budget provi- sionally approved by council at .their March 9 meeting; because the majority of council felt they could not. commit money to a.plan not yet presented to council. ' '•'Was the intent of the motion to re -open budget deliberations in general," asked 'Councillor Glen Carey, who recommended the motion be referred, the council's next ' budget session,"because that's where it's going to end up." • McCauley .replied that the motion was riot intended to re -open the entire' budget.' issue. However 'Mayor Eileen• Palmer pointed out that the matter. of .the budget. - was not yet "closed." "The mill rate has not been set," she said. ' The motion was passed by a 5 3 margin, -• • • with -Councillors Jim. Searls,' Stan Profit and Carey opposed. The feasibility study was referred to the Administration Committee to investigate the availibility of grants for the project. . • and...- maks--re-comrnetrdatiorrs--back---to ---` ' council. . GRANTS AVAILABLE Provincial grant funds fo'r capital recreation projects have, not been widely available in 'recent years. However; . Melanie McLauglin, area consultant for the Ministry of Tourism and Recreation said a new Capital Grants Program could • make approxinrately$710,000 available for Stevenson and Associates, who prepared the construction of the aquatic complex. the plan and the feasibility study. The estimated cost of the project is $3.6 It offered a wide range of reeotnmenda- million. Under the program, for which tions including development of long terms criteria was announced March 12, a goals and objectives for recreation in $500,000 grant is available on. the first $1.5 Goderich. million of an eligible project. A 10 per cent However, most of the interest during a grant is available for the remaining $2.1 question period following the presentation million, adding an additional grant of centred upon the proposed aquatic corn - $210,000 for a total of $710,000. plex arid specifically, the concept of a - Also available are 50 per cent grants "lesiure-oriented" swimming pool. from Wintario lottery funds for some of the The recommendation' calls for the con - equipment that would be needed to furnish struction of a 25,000 square foot complex the complex, said McLaughlin. on the old football field adjacent to the high ONLY A CONCEPT school oBenetStreet. t.ftould include - The -Ian 'was'presented to-ntmbe=s }f an regnlnpeSleiepool with three .council and about 50 members of the public 25 -metre competition lanes, four squash by John Stevenson,.of the consulting firm courts, a raquetball court, fitness and if le st len fro ,: vehicle Goderich Police report a number of thefts from vehicles, which appear to be related, occurred around town during the night of March 11-12. During one of the thefts, a 22 -calibre rifle and some ammuni- tion was stolen from a vehicle parked on Tilt Street and later used to fire two shots through display case window at Squire Gifts shop on Bayfield Road. Police found the rifle the following morning, after the thief, or thieves abandoned it near St. Mary's School. '.'Someone could have been hurt," said Chief Patrick King, who advises motorists not to leave firearms unattended in their vehicles.. During the night, stereo equipment and cassette tapes were stolen, from vehicles in varrus areas of town, including Essex, ,Jones, Lawrence, Warren and Tilt Streets and Strang Court. The Chief said such thefts are a major problem for all police forces and warns motorists should lock their vehicles "even if they're just left in the driveway." • He also said motorist, should use an engraver to mark tapes and equipment for identification in case of theft. An engrav- ' ing pencil is available for this purpose at the police station. Serial numbers from stereo equipment should also be recorded by the owner-, said King. Domtar may contribute cash to offset deficit The Town of Goderich, facing a $7,000 deficit in the operation of Snug Harbour Marina in 1987, may be getting some finan- cial assistance from a "good corporate neighbor." Domtar.Sifto Salt Mine Manager Gaston Brousseau presented a proposal, which could see the company contribute around $7,000 to help offset an anticipated deficit, .this year, to the Parks and Waterfront Committee at a'recent meeting. The operation of the marina has .been subject of debate' lately, because a com- bination of high water levels and pollution (salt emrhission from the mine) have caused a drastic decline in boater use. With the decreased u,Se ' by boaters, .operating the marina has been a money- losing proposition for the town. Even so, it, recently turned down a proposal from a group of Snug Harbour Patrons' who of: fered to take over the• operation themselves. Salt ernmissions from the Domtar opera- tion are considered one of the reasons for the decreased use and mine officials have been working with council and the Parks and Waterfront Committee on solutions to the problem. .Brousseau has said that while the mine is working hard reduce em- misions, they cannot realistically be eliminated as the mine produces over three million tons of salt per year and "ernmissions are inevitable." Under the reduced scale proposed ,of operations planned for 1987, total expen- diture for parks staff labor will be approx- imately $17,000, while expected revenues will be around $10,000. The committee con- cluded it would not be possible to close the harbor as it could end up becoming an un- controlled, free marina. Brousseau suggested an agreement bet- ween the town and Domtar which would see Domtar providing financial assistance toward marina operations and Domtar be- ing acknowledged through signs and on agreements with boaters. Boaters would also be made aware the marina is located in an industrial harbor and some emir- ' sions may affect the condition of their boats. Public Works Commissioner Ken Hunter is preparing an draft agreetnents for con- sideraton by the committee, Domtar and council. "The idea ,is for them i Domtar) to con- . tribute toward the deficit and that a figure would be struck that would be,negotiable each year," said Hunter. The 23nticipated payment by Domtar for 1981 would 'be $7,000. "Hopefully, once the high water goes down there will no longer be a deficit," said Hunter, adding that relations with Domtar on the subject have been "very amicable." "They're being good corporate neighbors," he said. Puppets at the library About 50 children packed the downstairs room at the Goderich Public Library Monday afternoon to see a puppet show by (at right) Marian Doucette, information services co-ordinator for the Huron County Public Library, The pup - pct show, entitled "Gone Fishin"', featured a number of puppets; some. story telling and a lesson in origami, the Japanese art of paper folding. Above, some of the children helped Doucette with one of the puppet stories. The show was one of a number of activitie sponsored by the library during March Break. On Friday, Doucette will be conduc- ting a puppet workshop for children aged seven to 11 -years - old. Pre -registration is required and can be made by call- ing the Goderich Library. (photos by Lou -Ann Hopei ouncil want increased security at centreyoung foroffenders Correctional 'Services. "The ministry have • concluded their report and their findings dovetailed with ours." said DeGrandis Friday. DeGrandis said he could not release specific measures for publication, as such reports could compromise security. Howeb'er, he did say security -tightening measures could include additions and modifications to the existing perimeter fence and "re -deployment of manpower." Already underway. rsthe installation of a closed-circuit television monitoring system and an intrustion alarm system' "As far as meeting with council is con- cerned, Fm always prepared to sit down with them and discuss the situation," said DeGrandis. Goderich Town Council plans to petition the Ministry of Correctional Services to improve security at the Bluewater Centre for Young Offenders, in reaction to the escape of two centre residents March 5. • -"t am concerned for residents of Goderieh being subjected to the un- necessary fear and apprehension because of inadequate security at the Bluewater Centre." said Councillor -Bill Clifford, in making the motion to petition the ministry to "take the necessary actin • to correct this•situation." The two fugitives escaped from the cen- tre by scaling the 17=foot wire fen, e which surrounds the institution around 8 p.m. and made their way through fields fo the edge of Goderich, a distance of about five for fire hall siteproposedAlternate kilometres. They eluded capture for over 20 hours before being apprehended, driv- inga vehicle stblen from a Goderich home, by police in London around, 4:30 p.m. -on March,6. Both fugitives appeared in Young Offenders Court on March 9, and were each given an 'additional oneayear sentence. Council has also requested support from Goderich Township Council for their resolution and plans to ask Bluewater Cen- tre Superintendant Carl- DeGrandis to at- tend a meeting to discuss the situation. Additional measures to prevent escape 'are already being implimented at the cen- tre in response to internal investigations conducted by Bluewater ('entre staff and the.lnvestigative Branch of the Ministry of Weekend ate tourney at GDCI 1 An alternate site will be used for the con- struction of a proposed new fire hall, should a plan to build an industrial mall on Suncoast Drive be followed through by two Goderich businessmen. Goderich Town Council accepted recom- mendations from the Fire Committee, en- dorsed by the Economic Development Committee, to move the fire hall site from Lot 9 ( the corner of Suncoast and MacEwan Drive ) to Lot 9A, which fronts on MacEwan but not Suncoast, should the mall developers decide to purchase the site originally designated for the fire hall. The decision was made at the March/9 meeting of council. Jeff Fisher, of Fisher Class and Mirror, and Rob Sherwood, of Sherwood Express bus lines are considering the construction of an industrial mall which would initially house three businesses, including Fisher Glass and Mirror, with the potential to ex- pand to six or more. They presented the proposal to council Feb. 23 and requested council recon3ider the placement of the fire hall, so they could purchase i.ot 9 While the MacEwan site ( Lot 9A ) has the same services as the original site ( Lot 9 and could be considered suitable for a fire hall, it has no direct access to Suncoast Drive and therefore does not offer the ex- posure to the public which would be needed .by businesses located in the mall. The fire and economic committees agreed on the alternate site, provided the lot is enlarged by adding a 10 foot strip of land from the easterly edge of l,ot'9 and a 33.5 foot strip. from the north portion of lot 10. They committees also stipulated if the Fisher -Sherwood proposal does not pro- ceed, Lot 9 remain designated. for the fire hall. 3 an injured in crash Sunday . A 38 -year-old Belmont man was injured Sunday when the vehicle he was driving went into the ditch oto Hwy. 8, just outside Goderich on Sunday evening, around 8:30 p.m. The car, driven by Lennard Turner, of Belmont, struck a tree then landed on it's roof, causing $5,000 damage to the vehicle and major injuries to Turner. Turner was taken to the Alexandra Marine and General Hospital. The east gymnasium at Goderich District Collegiate Institute will be site of the first Goderich Karate Tournament•this Saturday. The one -day tournament, hosted by the, Goderich Shotokan Karate Brotherhood, will feature between 50 and 80 participants from five Orate' clubs. Steve Lonsdale, instructor for the Goderich club, said teams from Exeter, Holmesville, Kincardine, Mitchell and Seaforth have accepted an invitation to at= tend the event. . . Age of contestants ranges from 10 years and upward: • Saturday's tournament at GDCI starts at i9 a.m. and runs through.to 4 p.m. Board e velo. s team approacr The Huron County Board of Education has taken•communications as one of its major aims during it's term. of office. It passed motions to: "develop an awareness of the positive aspects of the , school sy-stt,tn within the Huron County Board communi ty" and • "develop a cooperative com- munications program to enhance. the knowledge and understanding of the Huron County school system." A Corhmunica-. irons-Committee,-composed-of.rnembers of.._ all employee groups and media represen- tatives, formed was a result The Committee has met regularly to develop a communications program. To help achieve that goal. the Committee will use the Total 'Team .Approach PRogram provided by the. Onta.rio,Public : School Teachers' Federation. In this program Dr. Bill- Banach, a leading marketing con- sultant• from the USA. will help the Com- mittee create a plan of attack for com- munications in the Huron County system. The Huron County Board will devote a day and a half, April 2=3 to complete their task with assistance provided by the OPSTF - Huron District. r)r. Banach will be used as a consultant if the Committee needs fur- ther assistance. • However, the Economic Developfrrent Committee did not go along with' a Fire Committee proposal to apply the proceeds from the sale of 1,ot 9 to Fisher and Sher- wood to the fire hall reserve fund. The committee felt industrial land sales should be used for the purpose of developing in- dustrial land as has been past policy. "I don't iil47e to see money derived from the sale of industrial land that go into a reserve that isrestricted to another use." said Councillor John Stringer at the March 4 Economic Development Comrnittee meeting. Council. after accepting the committe reports with the recommendation to change the fire hall site, defeated a motion to place proceeds from the anticipated land sale in the fire hall reserve. Reeve Harry Worsell and Councillor Glen Carey supported the motion, while Mayor Eileen Palmer and Councillors .Jim Searls, Bill Clifford, John -Stringer, and Peter Mc-. Cauleyapposed it. Deputy Reeve John Doherty and Councillor Stan, Profit were absent from the meeting. While the construction of the mall is riot yet a certainty, the developers are op- timistic about the prospect. ' "I feel with the residental growth we've been experienc g, there has to be, an in- dustrial grovtt, as well as a service growth," said, rt,lsi*er, ,t) 1N'SI[J T --,f Ni jr\ r) _ y PeeWee hockey The. Goderich Lion's Club 38th annual Young Canada Week Peewee Hockey Tournament began its nine -day run at the Goderich Memorial Arena Friday and will conclude Saturday, March 21. For weekend hockey. action,. see the Sports section Child -reach program A new program for moms and children is being offered in Goderich until the end of June by Family and Children's Services. Called "Child -reach", the program offers a children's activity program and a seminar -type program for moms. For story and pictures on "Child -reach", see the front page of the Community section. N utrition 'month March is Nutrition Mohth. But accor-' ding to Huron County Health Unit's nutri- tion consultant Cathy Thomson, eating right/is something that should be done dai- ly throughout the year. For her comments about proper nutrition, see the front page, of the 'Community section. '