The Goderich Signal-Star, 1977-04-14, Page 4•
PAGE 4--GODERICH SIGNAL -STAR, THURSDAY, APRIL 14, 1977
Dangerous fun
It's spring. One can tell it's spring by
the number of bicycles on the road, day
and night; by the skipping ropes
twirling round; by the roller skates
humming on the sidewalks; by the
clickety-clacking of wagons and
tricycles and pedal cars. And there's
something new on the scene this
spring. That's skate boards...and they
are a new and terrible danger for
motorists in Goderich.
Farrah Fawcett Majors broke every
rule in the book recently when she used
a skateboard to escape a would-be
killer. And the Ontario Safety League
is not very happy about it.
On a recent edition of "Charlie's
Angels", Miss Majors manoeuvered
her skateboard through pedestrians in
a park, upset customers at an ice
cream stand, and clung to file back of a
pick-up truck as it travelled down a
highway. The sequence ended as
Falrrah collided with a parked car, flew
over the hood and emerged, unscathed,
on the other side. Still beautiful • her
coiffure was undamaged.
Real life skateboarders won't come
out as lucky as Farrah should they try
the same stunts. Miss Majors is one of
the most popular stars of the season on
television . . .but it should be
remembered that she is on television
and her skateboard escape was only an
act for the cameras.
Skateboards have been around for a
long time,, but modern technology has
taken over the toy and presented the
world with a new, light -weight, plastic
and fiberglass model, with wider
wheels and ballbearings..Safety league
staff members say skateboarders can
attain speeds of up to 30 mph on busy
city streets - and that's hardly an ideal
situation unless like Farrah Fawcett
Majors, it is all a big act for the
cameras.
There are safety precautions set out
by manufacturers of skateboards, but
as usual, they go unheeded by most
skateboard enthusiasts. Manufac-
turers note that skateboards are not
recommended for children under the
age of 14. When being operated, the
skateboarder should wear protective
clothing and an approved safety
helmet. As well, manufacturers warn
skateboards should not be operated on
public streets, or near traffic or parked
cars.
Skateboards are fun. They provide
healthy exercise. But they have no
place on the streets of Goderich,'
especially in the hands of children.
Even Farrah Fawcett would likely
agree. -SJ K .
Think it over
The budget has been approved and
the tax rate struck for 1977. Taxes have
taken a substantial jump in Goderich
and *citizens here will probably react
with disappointment and in some case,
deep concern. Nearly 30 mills more on
theix bills of the town will surely
bring hardship to a good many
residents, and not necessarily only
those on fixed incomes.
Anyone who took time out tosit in on
a few budget meetings knew the job
that was undertaken by those nine
elected officials. To pare something
like $200,000 from a municipal budget
which was already little more than
what is -often termed a "housekeeping"
budget was a near impossible task. It
was obvious there were few frills to cut
away ... and that if reductions were to
be made they would have to be in real
and ne.essary areas such as fire
protection, police protection, public
works and other community services
like parks, recreation and develop-
ment.
Fiance chairman Bill Clifford told
col, .ail they were "looking for big
hr' ,rs" to cut out of the budget. But
pig dollars weren't easy to find unless
one was willing to jeopardize subsidy'
dollars, reduce vital services and
perhaps even eliminate people from
the public payroll.
Mayor Deb Shewfelt suggested just
that. The mayor told council that in
some way, more money had to be cut
from the municipal budget. He felt that
one way to do this would be to
eliminate workers from the public's
employ .., and tie productivity more
closely to salary.
There are probably many people in
Goderich who would have supported
Mayor Shewfelt, at least from the
comfort of their livingroom armchairs.
But the men and women at town hall
'who were agonizing over the budget
weren't quite willing to make those
kinds of cuts - at least not this year,,
Putting people out of work is never
pleasant, but in a budget situation
where tax dollars must be raised, it is
even more dicey to reduce people's
ability to pay taxes by taking away
their livelihood.
Next year? What about next year?
Looking ahead, it isn't difficult to
predict that next year's budget
sessions will be even more tense than
this year's. Costs won't be down. If
anything they will have increased.
And debenture debtswillbe up, with
the addition of the Suncoast Drive
project; road construction costs will be
more like fixed budget items with the
town fully committed by 'that time to
the Highway 21 project; salaries will
have been adjusted upwards again;
and projects like building a public
works garage will be back on the list of
requirements, only this time at a
higher estimated cost and more
desperately needed than they were this
year.
There doesn't seem to be much.
immediate relief in sight where
education costs are concerned either,
although Goderich Trustee Cayley Hill
tried to convince everyone the board
members are making every effort
through long-term planning to stop the
upward spiral.
Looks like this year's tax bills will be
normal - maybe even a little less than
normal - in the next few years. And it
appears that if town council is to hold
the line on spending next year, the
people of this community will have to
settle for reduced services in many
areas.
That's something to think about until
then. - SJK
A
eobtrtt j
SIGNAL -STAR
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eimmilmsPRI
Spring's dangers
By Dave Syke
13Y SHIRLEY J. KELLER
It has been a long, long time
since I've been at the office of
the Huron Board of
Education, but actually when
I arrived there Wednesday
afternoon' with members of
Goderich Town Council,
somehow it was like "going
home".
I began reporting on the
Huron Board of Education
when it was an infant; way
back in 1969 when new
legislation made county
boards of education a reality.
Some of the faces, believe it
or not, are still the same. And
over the years, despite
disagreements and some
angry moments, a warm and
friendly bond has developed
between those members of
the board and this writer, It
was that kind of goodwill and
respectful understanding
which made Wednesday so
pleasant for me in so many
ways.
But as the Goderich
delegation arrived', there was
an air of defensiveness im-
mediately apparent among
board members.... and there
was a hurried discussion -
DEAR READERS
about whether or not the
members of the press should
be admitted to the meeting.
(Prior to the 5 p.m.
gathering, there had been
solid indication from the
Chairman of the Board; Herb
Turkheim and the Director of
Education John Cochrane,
that the press would
definitely not be allowed to
report on the meeting.)
As the discussion got un-
derway, and it was clear the
press would not be dismissed
from the board room, there
was still a bit of stiffness on
the part of board members.
Trustees and • their ad-
ministration were lined up on
one side of the board room;
awn councillors and the4r
dministration on the op-
posite side.
I'm certain that at this
point, everyone in that room
felt as though preparations
had been made for a battle.
+++
Unfortunately, a poorly
worded motion from
Goderich Town Council had
put the board of education
people on guardThat word
was "justify" the motion
being to invite hoard mem-
bers to town council so that
they could "justify" their
budget requisition which
represented a 24 per cent
increase over last year's
figure.
I, of course, attended the
meeting at which the town's
motion was prepared, and
while the motion did read
"justify", it was certainly not
the intent of town councillors
to ask the board members for
any justification. The intent
was merely to discover the
method by which the board
arrived at its requisition and
to get some reasonable ex-
planation for the additional
money that was to be paid by
the residents of Goderich.
But the damage was done
and the board chairman in
his prepared opening
remarks, made it crystal
clear that the board would not
attempt to "justify" its
budget to the town of
Goderich. The board
chairman 'further renainded
council members that the
board collects its taxes
through the municipalities
according to provincial
statutes "just as the county
council does".
What's more, Turkheim
said, while the board has the
right to collect its portion of
taxes from the municipalities
in four different lots at four
times of the year, through Co-
operation with the
municipalities money is
forwarded to the board only
twice a year from the
municipalities.
"In effect," said the board
chairman, "the
municipalities are using
school board funds interest
free for a part of each year.
+ + +
Two men at the meeting
turned the tide. First of all,
Goderich's finance chairman
Bill Clifford led off for town
council and seemed to set the
tone for the Goderich
delegation. He spoke quietly
yet deliberately, telling the
board the town's represen-
tatives were not there to fight
but to bring about increased
understanding and foster
better co-operation between
the two bodies.
Secondly,. Goderich's
school trustee Caffey Mill
used diplomacy and
approach to assurethe
elected members
hoard was indeed co
about the ' way tax
escalating; that he
sonally, is most con
and that plans are'.
attempt to bring
spending to a halt
jeopardizing the qu
education in HuronC
From this point
meeting began to I
Most people at the
seemed to relax
tension was relieved
progress could be
short, it- turned out'
excellent meeting wi
general information
.exchanged and many
from bothbodies s
need for closer liai
ween all three gov
agencies - the mune
the county school b
the county council.
+++
Two very real
were served at the m
Board members w
more reminded of
seeming "remotene
(cotinuedne
Invitation
Dear Editor:
May I, on behalf of the
Board for the Huron Historic
Gaol, thank you for the
publicity given to the plan for
restoration. Your attention
has already generated
significant public reaction
A• and this is exactly what is
needed to prepare a solid
foundation for future
decisions, 1 hope that letters
addressed to the Gaol Board
will also be sent as open
letters to your newspaper.
As a means of focusing
discussion, it is probably
DEAR EDITOR
worthwhile to review the
Board's objectives as
established in the first year of
operation (1974):
1. To preserve the historic
gaol and its unique ar-
chitectural design.
2, To restore the Governor's
house and re -decorate with
period furnishings.
3. To bring to the attention
of the public the history of the
settlement of Huron County,
4. To provide a cultural
centre for Huron County for
the expression and ad-
vancement of fine and per-
forming arts.
5, To utilize the former gaol
exercise yards for summer
theatre and outdoor
gatherings.
As you know, the Board has
given general endorsement to
the 'historic' component of
the plan; decisions on the
'cultural' component have
NOT been made.
In preparation for a
meeting with the Ontario
Heritage Foundation
(probably mid-May) it is our
intention to conduct two
meetings to generate further
input on the "Hill" document.
The first' is a small group
meeting with selected par-
ticipants from various in-
terest groups. This will be
followed by a public meeting,
•
to be held following the 7:30
business portion of our annual
meeting, May 4 at the
Assessment Building on
Gloucester Terrace. Details
appear elsewhere in an ad-
vertisement in this
newspaper.
It is important that all
interested parties voice their
praises and their critical
concerns. All we are asking
for is a constructive public
dialogue as a means of
reaching sound conclusions
for future decisions.
The significance of this
facility to our community,
our province, and our country
is not generally recognized -
we can not afford toe
process of piano'
refining its ultimate
service to our comm
For those whohave
concluded, that the
the gaol has been dete
may I suggest that
miss an opportunity
ticipate in the
decisions by failing
ticipate in the discus
is now being strugceu
Paul Carroll, Ch
More letters on
55 YI'.ARS AGO
The steamer Matthews is
awaiting the clearing of ice at
Georgian Bay to leave for
Collingwood to go into
drydock, and the Bayton will
go to Fort William to load
grain for the Western Canada
Flour Mill. A deputation to
Ottawa to press for harbor
improvements necessary to
meet the expansion of the
grain trade is likely.
At a meeting of the Public
Works Committee of the town
council on Monday evening,
LOOKING BACK
plans for the work to he done
on Victoria Street connecting
the provincial highway at the
north, and south end of town
were discussed at length, and
the recommendation to the
council will, be that the
roadway at the top of the hill
from Gloucester Terrace to
Newgate Street or East Street
or so far as the funds
available will provide for, be
torn up, a four -inch layer of
gravel be put down and on top
of .this a three-inch layer of
Tarvis material and 'sand.
This would make a real road.
For the demonstration at
the Hydro -Electric Store next
week there will be three men
here,' one from the Hydro -
Electric Commission, one
from the McClary Company
to demonstrate electric
ranges, and a man from the
Ingersoll Machine and Tool
Company to demonstrate a
medium-sized electric
ironing machine.
30 YEARS AGO
The A & P advertisement in
the Signal -Star- brought
response from a considerable
distance. This week, W.F.
Riley, manager of the
Goderich store, received the
following letter (in part) from
Islay, Alberta. "In looking
over your advettisement•in
the Seignal-Star re green tea, I
note that we have been unable
to get any out here in four
years. 1 thought I would send
you one dollar for a pound of
it. There may be enough left
to pay for the express. 1 see
you have olives as well. What
kind are they?".
An inquiry has been
received by Normae
Goderich Board of
from a light te�oce`
seeking a
Goderich• The,_
o
proposes to P
male and half f'
skill required. build
ready-made
Godes-46, a suite'
requested. sea
The I.
navigation ae,,
Goderich on
when twelve vd ls�
the harbor ani
day the first
season was roc°
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