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The Goderich Signal Star, 1976-03-25, Page 1ii BY MARY ELLigN SALMON At a' Marcia 17 meeting of the Huron- Historic Gaol Board, jr,,Was gratefully noted that The Stilly Foundation had donated .$2,000 to -help with the refurnishing .and general repairs necessary for the. Gaol' and the Gover _.„.._..nor s House, The 'RotaryClub. has also Molted. in with a donation of . Thetourist.. season in the Couiity is.rapidly approaching and the•Governor's House hasto•.be restored. Money is desperately needed, to keep up with the prograzn and alstt to petnp1ete'the renovations and't"i• p -keep of thegaol. , Both the House and the Gaol have been declared Of- ficial Historical Sites.by. the Federal ` pavernment,• However, Mrs. Dorothy, Wallace, Chairman of ' the Refurbishing,Cornmittee says they've, never approached the Government for funds. , " • t, • The Government has'provitied a plaque It;stands'an the lawn and was unveiled the first week of July. The Government_ also sent someone to advise the Committee on how to restore the walls of the Gaol; Work Was done on the walls until 'December when weatherconditions in- tervened:: The Committee. iritends'to start work again:. .around April 1st.. • + `,• Just before Christmas,.a campaign for $25,000 aimed at • H'uron County residents was, nipped •in 'the bud. by the mail strike. "Mrs. Wallace said, "It just petered out. I don't -think a great attempt was made to reach people who had lived in Huron County before and had moved away Another campaign will be launched soon Mrs. Wallace. said .a :,new Committee has been formed with a view towards soliciting sufficient mon4 s to carr.y'otit the total aims of ,the Huron • Historic Ga Board's intentions. Without sufficient money they can onlygo sofar with their projects. Tourists are business in Goderich and tourists like historic sites. Dorothy Wallace explained w)iat the Gaol' means (continued en page 15\) looks lik. hike for :g. 1.29TH YEAR -13 dvcotion By Ross Haugh • affected by anybudget cuts Despite a . 'reduction of include ' salaries trap, about $400,000 in the proposed.' sportation,. plant ,main. • budget for 1976'for the -Duron:. tenance:etc. • County board of, education,. The provincial grant,•rates county ratepayers could face for' Huron county are : also `— a-twr increase as-High-as;'35 reduced. this, year. Dunlop percent. . ' • ;r• said the secondary ' grant During a- special meeting ceiling was reduced by 4;5 • Monday„ night, the board percent and the elementary au Cilie a pr, Cnt'catiir---by-r6-percent.' • budget. forinula.items' .along In supporting 'the' budget - with• most parts of an 'ad- cuts, Cayley: Hill commented, • ditional 13, point:;progratn,to "If this 'county and province further _lowee---expenditures_ ink=the._ econornicsituation In a. letter to. Goderich Town *Claimed' dated -March 18, -the Board of Governors pf the Alexandra •K'Marine and General Hospital has. stated that "if we. ar&to:rationalize. the cost of. heath care, change is inevitable". The board made the. statement in answer to a for thisyear. ' In opening'' : the lengthy ` • discussion; board`' -chairman - Herb •Turkhei in.. .said,: If we went without any restraints in spending we could end up. with. a 50 percent increase in: school Levies.. We.have•to'face reality. A lot of people: in the .countyjust couldn't afford Superintendent' of ' business '` affairs Roy Dunlop said the increase in levies could be • 35.8' percent but he added, "the big question mark is our operation. for:1975. The audit is now underway and this.'. could -make a bigdif£erenee." I•n, talking about.. the proposed . cuts, Goderich' trustee :Cayley Hill said, °`I would 1'ike;to4point out that we don't have really much to. play with as 75 percent of our total budget are fixed costs." This was verified la'te'r by .Dunlop, who said fixed.costs in 1975 for.' the secondary panel •were ' 78.9 percent and ector at for,tne eie 78.6 percent • • aFixed costs,'which are not is bad now, it's onlya picnic i as .toy what' can happen' this t£., trend continues•. We don't seem ter realize how serious it is." • ' : Trustee Marian Zinn ad- ded, "If we as: board- mem- bers don't make - the cuts, Semeliody-will do it for us." Budget chairman Jon Elliott of Blyth said the cuts. of 20 percent in.forrn`ula. items caused the most 'discussion - with representatives from the secondary , and: elementary school principles. Elliott ' continued, "We originally met with the two principal groups • and they generally accepted the first. 10 percent cut and we asked them to consider a second reduction of the same amount. I'm very dissap-. pointed that no action was 'taken to decrease their ex- penditures by another , 10 percent." were represented at .Mon-. day's meeting arid presented , (continued on page 16) Both prii'icipai associations letter ft -ore G•, oderich Towel Council' 'earlier •this moatkt;; requesting... ANT •• representatives to d13- everything oeverything possible, to co .operate with • Clinton hospital's request to tut beds and budget . in Goderich, Clinton's request came following news. , that their•.'' Capital would •close, unless issue, under ( e five •hospitals in I-lpron mbined' to effect; savings tial to.'those to be• r'ealiied. closing Clinton - "Public bspital. The entire , letter of •the exandra Marine . and eneral • Hospital. Board is ublished elsewhere in ,this _Editor.' The board town council. that it is Letters to the of AM&G told in their fetter ``necessary 'to examine the fact of needsto the .exclusion of desire or traditionalism". The board' admits that there is an excess. of hospital beds throughout Huron • County.. Memb'er5-' added` that '-the count•y's" population should.' remain, stable forthe next nine or ten' years, making the need for the extra beds questionable. The -board of governors at AM&G--said that ' the con- tinuance of active treatment services in_Clinton involved a major reconstruction: program.at the hospital. "To do this at a'time. when • we are knowingly over - bedded in the county seems to be ='a mis-appropriation of dollars earmarked for health services," the-- board of, governors • said in the'letter to council.. AM&G officials reiterated their proposal for'' the 20 -bed psychiatric unit proposed for a wing of the .present Gode•rr ich -Psychiatric Hospital. to •be 'moved` to' • • less inclined to: enter the unit if it 'is housed in the same• premises used by retarded persona. •- ' Peter MacEwan, finance ' chairman for A"M&G, said that Goderich has been hard hit by recent health ministry- cutbacks. He said that a suggestion to cut • 16 beds at AM&G tohelp Clinton would result in about 35 to 45 jobs being, lost at the Goderich hospital. Added to'`•the jabs .. lost by the ministry s order to close GPH April 1 1976, Mr. MacEwan feltthe total loss to ( continued on page 16) • It is • felt that' -such -• psychiatric services, .to - be utilized by the entire county, are pest located in the heart of the county. • Dr: Barry Deathe, medical • chief of staff at AM&G, said - the'oto os retention of .the The first draft of Goderich 20 -bed unit at the''' former townships .official plan has psychiatric hospital would be been'met with mixed emotion a "nedfc211y enightmare'd ; :. both ad :this •'week after :residents • mreceived copies- �. of the plan ins min J,Was ..me inait; _-.... speaking at Monday's press The 'draft, the result' of.' ce at the Goderichsvarttuby t1teSlu en County : 4 hospital ' . • Planning department`Tand Public o �gly 4 ,; ..,,;,� ..� , ... .. ,n. • : • ee'tr'ans transportation project of •Lions bus owner operator Bill Gautcher gets instructions taking a0.irittage of thebus, a,tr p bu em upthe Lions Club, are two of about 35 people who ride•the s from his�passet#ger-s-abetrt-when-aniLwhere�pick them staff-piaoto after they are. finished their errands. These senior citizens each Monday and Thursday morning. [' ] Lions bus a success The Lion's Bs now into itsevaluated to see if itis worth - ninth week of aperation in while continuing. Goderich, has enjoyed.almost instant success . With ' the ..:•., town's senior °citizens. The small 23 passenger bus, owned and operated' by Bill and ' Faye ' Gautcher of Bluewater Taxi, 'has been. pressed into' service by the Lions Club who are spon- soring a. free transportation The bus operates Mon day ,and Thursday mornings`from ten until two and according to Mr. Gautcher the four hour service has been well used by a considerable : number of. seniors . "The calls arejust about toe much to handle in the four hours," said Mr. Gautcher. service for the senior citizens. .'Phe van. owner said he has The transportation project,, received good co-operation now halfway through its trial from' his elderly passengers period, was inaugurated on who he adds dp not take ad - January 26 operating`'.. two vantage . of. the service but mornings a week until Aprilma their 30• when the project will be ke use of it to handle necessary errands. Bank to expand beris 91 love He said he'hassarr..anged a type of schedule' -with the passengers .thattn'eets their needs' .and -.keeps... him -from,. driving all over town. He: • explained that •• he knows where most of his stops will be and'when peopl..e',pho,ne for a ride he can tell them he is: going that way in about 15 minutes. They are quite' content to wait for h•im, . The service is absolutely free to the elderly. and is available as -much as they need it on the two mornings. A phone call arranges for the. bus to be at their doorstep to. • t7,1 a.. / • -- iHf. Hfttlht.9ANKpf 4Cyk 4 o, • mum 4.74A VIN. d Rib.: uroi d right, meets� Bert,.Rank ixaatn yS Dry G• a -da, ;alfway between the ' pert► owner trf Hilnbrt s a ., premiises of the twos uildiittgs. The me+etiti r; and hands'rake 1 the Dr. Death feels it would be input received from a series difficult for the Goderich ..of public: meetings -held in.• '6card of governors to operate 19P4, has been circulated to tyro'"hospitals :which a -re foatr Avery ;land avv rtei <- Art thee •.., d-atd tai era added that, tawnshi: to•tierta. miles apart. He P • some persons ' in 'need of to' a public meeting slated for psychiatric •rare might .be April 1 at. the I-Iolni.esville • Public School. • The purpose of the pxiblie meeting according to county planner Gary Davidson, one ••of theauthors,of the .plan, is to gauge public opinion on the' draft plan and to seek public input into further proposals for it before any decisions are: made..,• . "One of:the assuptions in planning ..is that you can• always make something• better, said Davidson who added that , the meeting is': • designed not to seek an agreement" but to try to make this plan better. The planner explained that the draft' plan sent to lank-' downers was to- allow them to digest, the proposals made by. the planning department and have any .questions theymay take them to their destination "and when tly are finished their business another phone call will get them tran- sportation home... Most of the calls' are for is radio dispatched for rides' to'the bank so the bus elderly can, pay their,bills or . quick service. cash, ,cheeks but quite a few 1t's the only.way. one_ bus are for shopping_trips'to The, can -handle the calls,'.' said Square or' the mal•':. Mr:.. Mr, Gautcher. Gautcher said he makes one S The van' has been used by as many as 54 people in one morning but •averages. about 35 fares per day. , Affec- tioately" 'termed the "Ugly. Duckling by its owner the He explained that the trip a -day to --/the mall drop people, phone for'the bus and ping his passengers. off and his wife Faye radios the bus about an Hour a a half later he • He • I'm on my way," is his dozen people each trip out.•c t ..16) • . (continued on page 16) .• returns to' pick them up. H with the message. have to be answered: He said 'said he averages about 'ahal continued on page on The Goderichbranch ofThe ' from general contracting, is settlem ^t was founded, Royal` Bank : of Canada. and expected to take the longest before. the Canada Company Hibbert's Dry Goods jointly to install. He said the bank,r)found a br fl. Seftfrom tlerwere e• announced tHi week a deal wrolccdu �al but itwill work ikrea `ibrl ,� the 'hill, and ` that willSgUare beet's history , p d t'he'construction-- • dev el,�prnt ,t . moved slowly Oil The Square and will ex around up West and Lighthouse Fiend facilities n y -Commenc g stake In 184' a • venturesome Harold Hibbert, 'owner •of the dry goods store, an planted at the southerly limit charactct n'• the' name of nounc,ed the sale of his to said.town lot, 63: feet from. The 0101.1 e�cid half cquired Lot othe block business . and location to the . the southwest angle, thence 934 tstrs l Royal Bank' -,of Canada. The, north...to a•post planted 9 feet. betwi•en Not•th and Hamilton ' ,sale ends�.over 50 year'`'s, of . from the northerly limit, of streets.• t 'ill these blocks Operation of the Hibbert said town.lot...” In 1842, when fronting h • Square consist of family business on. the' the first•deed to the "M'arket only two original Canada location and is expected tr)bE'Square" nda Harniltonbetween st eetsNorth - was time divided.) Rid held`the e 30: • r ,Jim written, ' the sur.ve-yor•s land until he died; in 1853, and description. provided . for :a willed it to his family, right-of-way in rear of future : doubtless hoping they would buildings. It. was in the deed find" the r,_•;il estate market covering' that slice of Lot 934 _ more active. There is no which later bebame the Royal evidence that he had erected. •Bank corner, and every. 'so much. as a shack. William •property owner in the block is • Swaffiold, one of the men who. d of "an alley or •cleared'thr. site for the first and the -.bank's i • g W.E. Elliott st'rra a5- - Goderich. "-Commencing at a • finalized on J Royal B Bird : s nounce plans for expansion of -his bank to cover fhe ground 'floors of both businesses. Mr. Bird said he • expected construction of the new offices to•begin in early July explaining that -the assure expansion .will result. in an passage or strip of land along - courthouse, recorded in the i'n.teriorlayout chang'fo.r,the ..the •rear from Hamilton 1850s thnlmileportedings henonthe the bank .... but • :n.o 'change. . in 1.4 t KLno'kitig at:the-busy block ...,. -North • street to Hamilton iiking format for the • • ,,branch, to •. �.tiow, with a solid line of b1i�Gk was -,-'iSarie`tf; stat' 'a' ltC •manager said. he Ext- ' parked .ears in front, it is thing op it it to picture the area It was in 1.871, 44 years after Manage ti1taneously an, pectcd construction to...last. ,'about, four or five. months `� 1t ends 'ilio out that, <r new < •rons'ttrnated: a deal between the two firita�that poYntln,ghe ' operation on. The S" uare and°•will result in the - is in the plans. }Ie said t pensi opera qs'7E+ctrl tjhb he pension of the Royal Bank offices stairiphoio7 • - va k, the : only p• difficu covered with- tree's and bare Dunlop• and, Galt founded the of''hiiildings, The fact is that it settlement, : that Samuel state. for 15. pverftei 1 acquired by ea remained -in that years after the Goderich deed 1,et 934.:Overfield was a _..� Square resident of. D, undas, base of• most settlers' route to the Huron Tract, and he perhaps' decided that a bit of Goderich real estate would be a good investment.- However, it -- turned out that. a .young barrister named Bernard Doyle, only two. .years in practice;"'iad an eye on the. Hamilton street; corner. He was occupying '„at the trine, 'an office in avage's neeixt block 'nbet'iveen Colborne and North streets. H. paid Overfield $1,950 for "13 t;a perches and, right of way.'' •The area was .083' of an acre. The price indicates that there must have been a building of some kind, ' Bernard Louis Doyle was horn in Dundas county, hut attended Grammar School 'here, read law with one of the numerous Goderich law firms and was called to the Bar in .• 1865. He served on the town council and was mayor in .1880=81... Appointed Junior .judge of 'Huron in 1883, he '•, became' Senior,. udt e.in 1902; He retired in 1016 and went t& ..Seattle, wherehe died in 1927 When he'brought ' the Hamilton strut - Corner, the. t : town's :law ,o'fficcs were i t:Ontiti'ued on page 16!