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The Goderich Signal-Star, 1979-03-08, Page 3GODERICH SIGNAL -STAR, THURSDAY, MARCH 8„ 1979 --,-PAGE 3 Planning board stands by dental clinic BY JEFF SEDDON Concerns that proposed dental clinic on Cambridge Steet would create a heavy traffic problem did not sway Goderich,planning board Tuesday night. The board stood by its original decision approving the clinic and sent a recommendation to council to pass the necessary bylaws per- mitting the project to go ahead. About ten people from the residential district represented a group of 20 residents opposed to the clinic and met with the board to try to have the clinic stopped. Chris Kiar represented the group and told the board the residents saw no reason t8 locate the clinic on Cambridge Street when the lots proposed for the building also front on Huron Road. Kiar asked the board to look beyond the fact that the proposed land use is for a medical practitioner pointing out that the four lots owned by one of the dentists front on Huron Road as well as Cambridge Street. The clinic received planning board's ap- proval early in February and was sent to council to have the- necessary bylaws passed. Dr. Richard Speers and Dr. Karl Campbell proposed a two story building to house a dental clinic on the ground floor and apartments on the second story. The board was confident the clinic would blend into theresidential area asking only that the building belocated in the front of the lot and the parking at the rear, contrary to the proposal submitted by the two dentists. The residents petitioned town council when the bylaws for the project were being read and convinced council to send the, matter back to planning board for fur- ther study. Kiar told the, board Tuesday night that `ac- cording to his calculations there would be one car arriving or departing the clinic every two minutes during office hours. He said' he based his calculations on the figures the dentists gave on the average length of stay per patient and the daily patient load. • The engineer told planning board Cam- bridge Steet is a quiet street with little traffic and as a result children in the area use the street to play. He said there are no sidewalks in the area and the street is used as a substitute. He added that if the traffic flow in- creased as much as the dental clinic would demand the children would be denied their play area. Kiar said that if children were forced off the street the town would have to construct sidewalks and he asked who would have to pay for that construction. He suggested that since the dental clinic was the prime reason the sidewalks were needed it may be reasonable for the dentists to pay for them. County planner Roman Dzus told the residents the dental clinic was considered a permitted residential land use. He said the town's official plan allowed uses such as doctors offices and dentists offices in residential areas because both awnsered some needs of residents in the area. He said the board felt the clinic would not be disruptive to the residents and would • blend in with the present land use on Cambridge Street. Kiar disagreed with the planner suggesting the dental clinic was a professional office. He said the building was large enough to suggest that more dentists could locate in the building in the future creating more problems for residents. He said it was fine to say now that only two dentists were locating in the building but in the future all the doctors would have to do is seek a minor variance from the town's committee of adjustment to allow another dentist to use the building. Dr. Speers told Kiar the upper story of the building was to house two apartments. He said the space on the ground floor was for the two dentists, equipment, a labratory and storage. He added that if the upper floor was not for apartments it would riot be built. Ken McGee pointed out to the board that the town's official plan permits small con- venience stores to be located ih residential areas to meet the needs of residents in those areas. He said such a store could locate on the lot to be used by the dentist and the residents would have no grounds for objection. McGee added that if a store did locate on the property it would generate much m.ore traffic than the dental clinic. Kiar indicated residents were not sure the clinic would not be expanding in the future creating more danger for children in the area. He co -related the con- venience store to the dental clinic claiming "you start with a corner store then all of a sudden you have a super- market". The engineer told the board if the dental clinic served the needs of the residents what would stop him from putting an office on the street for' his business. "What would be the difference between his business and mine other than ,the fact he drills holes in teeth and I drill holes in the ground." Dzus said the main difference would be the clientel. He said ' the dentist would be serving the needs of just about every person in the neighborhood while an engineer, would not. He added that the decision planning board must make is whether the dental clinic isan keeping with the character of the neighborhood or is it disruptive. Kiar pointed out that the official plan discusses the needs of the nligh- borhood the project s to be built in pointing out a that this clinic will not be for the people on Cam- bridge Street but for the entire town. Dr. Speers .told the board the town had just finished dealing with a proposal that used high- way commercial property and thus knew there was a shortage of such property in Goderich. He said the dental clinic was not "traditional highway commercial land use" and should not be located on the highway com- mercial land that fronts on Huron Road. Dr. Speers said he felt the traffic flow into and out of the clinic had been overestimated by the residents. He said traffic to the clinic _would "hardly constitute a major freeway" and would probably be "barely enough to keep the weeds down". He suggested that if physicians in the town of Goderich had not been permitted to establish offices in residential areas there "wouldn:'t be any here". .. "Just because there operating illegally that's .no reason to continue," countered Kiar. He told the board it would have to chnsider the dental clinic a commercial use rather. than a permitted residential use. Reeve Eileen Palmer said she felt the ,traffic problem was overem- phasized. She said Dr. Campbell's present office above the town's municipal offices "have never caused a traffic jam" and on Britannia Road, which she called busy, she had never noticed an abundance of cars in front of Dr. Speers' office. She added that she found it difficult to accept the "heavy, heavy traffic load that is being emphasized". Palmer suggested that planning board make.no changes in its original recommendation to council -quipping "probably lost more votes" by the,suggestien. that she. a ".few making SYMPHONY CONCERT POSTPONED The March "77th Concert at GDCI by the London Symphony Orchestra has been postponed to Friday. May 2S at 8 p.m. This will allow the par- ticipation of tho 000 Band with the Sym- phony Orchestra. Goderl-ch Rotary Club J.J. (JIM)MULHERN . GENERAL INSURANCE 43 WEST ST. GODERICH 524-7878 PROTECTION FOR CAR, BUSINESS, HOME, FARM also LIFE & INVESTMENTS 1\\ tt liusititt Maurcie Wilkinson; Jack Seaman and Jim Brunk were three of the Brotherhood of Anglican Churchmen (B.A.C.) \members whohelped prepare breakfasts for about 100 men who attended a B.A.C. conference held In Goderich over the weekend for the Diocese of Huron. It was the first time for the 29th annual spiritual conference to be held here. (Photo by Mac Campbell) Principals shuffled The Huron County board of edcation shuffled some of its elementary school principals around the county Monday giving them` schools in or close to the community they live in. Director of education John Cochrane said ,Tuesday five prin- cipals had been tran- sferred. Cochrane said the transfers reverse placings made by the board several years ago. He said in the past school principals were paid according to the size of the school they were in charge of. He said that has since been phased out of the principal's con- tracts so that placements that were once regarded as , promotions for the principals are now costing them money in travel expenses. John Kane. now principal of Colborne Central Public School, will betaking over duties at Victoria Public School in Goderich. Don O'Brien,- now head of Victoria, will be moving to Zurich Public where Ron Jewitt is principal. Jewitt will be taking over duties at Colborne. Ron McKay will be moving from Hensall Public to Holmesville Public School replacing Robert Raeburn. Raeburn will be transferred to Hensall. 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