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The Wingham Advance-Times, 1984-10-10, Page 1f ' ub l i a Library Div. 4, Box 010 W ngham, Ont 140, .4 • +b, WOW! LOOK WHAT 1 GOTI®Clearly tickled with his acquisition, Shaun King didn't mind toting around a huge stuffed Smurf which had been won by his mother at the Teeswater Fair on Saturday. Sister Joyce also seemed pleased with her day at. the fair, but baby Christopher was unmoved by it all. The youngsters are the children of Joan and Bob King of Teeswater. PUC discusses raise in hydro rates for '85 Although the final figures will not be set until later this year, it appears Wingham residents can look forward to paying about nine per cent more for electricity next year. They may, however, get a break on their water rates, since a provincial grant toward the major repairs to the water standpipe together with the retirement of one debenture andgoad financial performance this year mean if there is any increase it would likely be modest. At . their meeting last week, , members of the Wingham Public Utilities Commission spent some time discussing a proposed budget for hydro operations in 1985. Manager Ken Saxton noted that Ontario Hydro has announced an increase in its bulk power rates of about 8.6 per cent for next year, and he said,t,1Ie�PUe,will ,have „to in- ei ower crease •ts rates td t�leaat' covcfr that. Since the cost of bulk power accounts for about 90 per cent of the hydro operations budget, it does not leave a lot of room for maneuvering, he noted. He estimated the PUC's total budget for hydro operations next year will be about $2.7 million, of which $2.4 million represents the received the final bills for repairs to the Commissioners agreed they will have to raise the rates enough to at least offset the increased cost of power. The hydro budget has been a source of concern to the commission all year long as it continues to work its way back from a substantial deficit two years ago when its rate increase proposed by Ontario Hydro and accepted, with some misgivings, by the commission proved insufficient to' cover operating costs. When Chairman Roy Bennett asked . whether they could expect to end this year with another deficit Mr. Saxton said he was not sure yet, but noted that usually the picture doesn't change much after Sep- tember. Currently the budget shows a small surplus of about $1,000. "'I hope the day comes when we won't have to increase hydro rates. That's What I'd like to see," Mr. Bennett had commented earlier, with Mr. Saxton responding that, "It won't be this day." Commissioners commented that the waterworks budget looks good, however Mr. Saxton pointed out that the PUC still had not cost of power from Ontario Hydro. standpipe•. CwntSil SECTION New Iife injected into plans to re.i.,air, replace lower dam Wingham, Ontario, Wednesday, Oct. 10, 1984 Single Copy 50c Just one week after a pessimistic report . to Wingham council appeared to all but rule out replacement of the Lower \Town dam, there is new hope that the mill pond may he restored after all — possibly sooner than expected. Bolstered by two new members from Turnberry Township, the ad hoc committee on the dam met Monday night to discuss alternatives to the very costly proposal to replace the dam with a concrete weir. Rather than looking .at ways to get along withoutthe dam, however, the cam* mittee turned its attention to • the possibility of a less cosily replac went or even of repairing what remains of'' the existing structure. • One idea is to replace, -the dam with a weir -tie;.' structure as originally_ proposed. Instead of building the weir of concrete;;,. however, which would cash; nearly half a million dollaits in materials alone, it would be built from fieldstone, witl{' a core of clay to prevent' Seepage, and theniaced*Ohlr. concrete. A second idea is ','to preserve what remains of the old dam by digging and pouring a cut-off wall in front of it to prevent further un- dermining, and then to repair the section which has already collapsed. As yet the committee has no cost estimates on these alternatives, but members expressed confidence that either could be done for a fraction of the nearly $700,0001t would cost to build a concrete weir. That means that even if outside funding were not available, it might be possible for the town and perhaps Turnberry to carry out the project on their own. As its next step, the committee plans to arrange Commission duties discussed at Oct. meeting of police board The duties and,respon- sibilities of a police govern- ment authority were among the topics of discussion at the October meeting of the - Wingham Board of . Police Commissioners last week. Reporting on a seminar held at the Ontario Police College recently, Chairman Jack Gillespie said one of the most interesting , items looked at was the relation- ship of a police committee or commission to its police force and community. In a brief summary of the session, he reported that one of the prime functions of a committee or commission is to act as a liaison between the public and police. Its duties include establishing policies and regulations, in consultation with the police chief, for guidance of the force. A commission is properly concerned with the ef- ficiency, productivity and accountability of the force, he said, but it must make a clear distinction between administrative functions and those related to law en- forcement. In enforcing the taw, police are not servants of the commission but of the . Crown, and no member can apply pressure to lay or not lay a charge. "It is a very delicate balance where the authority starts and finishes," he said. A commission is quite within its rights to take up the matter with the chief if it wants more attention paid to a particular area of law enforcement or feels the emphasis is incorrect, however it must not get involved in individual charges. Mr. Gillespie also ex- plained that a committee or commission must act as a corporate entity. All de- cisions must be made by a majority of the group and no member may take it on him or herself to act individually. The board hopes to learn more about its specific duties and responsibilities next month when it expects to meet with Ken Schultz of the Ontario Police. Com- mission, the provincial body which oversees municipal police authorities. Arson is blamed for two recent fires Arson has been labeled as the cause of two separate fires this past week in the town of Wingham. Fire Chief Dave Crothers said his department sent two - tankers to a fire at Beaver Lumber Ltd. on Josephine Street Tuesday at 1:25 a.m. Constable John Nolan of Wingham police department had noticed a fire among three tiers of two by, four pellets outdoors at Beaver Lumber. The ' dispatch summonned the fire depart- ment to the scene, but in the meantime Const. Nolan had knocked down the fire with a small extinguisher. Mr. Crothers estimated the damage at $200. A similar incident oc- curred at 5:45 last Friday morning. Mr. Crothers said a pile of railway ties were set ablaze by vandals at the CNR rightoof-way crossing on Shuter Street. Once again the police notified the fire department of the blaze. Mr. Crothers said the damage was neglible. There was a false alarm later that day, Oct. 5. The cause is unknown, reported the chief. In other business at the meeting, commissioners discussed several matters which had been referred to them for commenivand advice. On the matter of a petition for a dross -walk at Josephine and Alfred streets, they decided to in- vite Mr. and Mrs. Kevin Wiechenthal, whose names topped the petition, to attend a future meeting and explain their concerns. They also discussed a concern raised by two residents regarding the possible effects of the proposed hospital parking lot at the corner of John Street and Carling Terrace on traffic flows in the area, eventually agreeing to consider doing a traffic study after the lot is in use. Some time also was spent discussing a proposed let- terhead for the board and benefits for auxiliary of- ficers. Chief Robert Wittig was not present at the meeting, but the board received a written report stating that the two new auxiliary constables will be sworn in later this month and will appear before the board in November, and that tenders for a new police car also will be brought to that meeting. The report said the police had received 70 calls for assistance during Sep- tember, with 29 Criminal Code investigations, 77 parking violations, five motor vehicle accidents alb; six liquor offences, with appropriate charges laid. At the end of the meeting, the board went in -camera for a report from Mrs. Margaret Bennett, chairman of its negotiating committee, on the progress of contract negotiations with the police association. Accidents injure two Two persons were injured in separate accidents around the Wingham area on Sun- day. Sean Kuehl, 24, of Sarnia was taken to the Wingham and District Hospital for treatment of minor injuries following a single -car ac- cident on Sideroad 39-40 of East Wawanosh Township at 2 a.m. Sunday. Provincial police reported Mr. Kuehl was travelling along the sideroad 1.1 km south of Con. 12-13 when a front tire blew out, causing the vehicle to leave the road and strike a fence. Damage to the ear, a 1983 Chev, was estimated at $1,200, with $100 damage to the fence. In another accident Sunday evening, Donna Vellenga, 23, of Milverton received minor injuries meetings with several engineers to get their opinions on the feasibility of its ideas. It then hopes to hold another meeting within the next week to work out a recommendation to take to the public works committee and then to town council. Several 'members also plan to attend the- next meeting of the. Turnberry council to see whether that municipality might be willing to get involved in the n "' ', fi � when a car in which she was riding collided with a cattle- , beast along Con. 7-8 of Grey Township. Police reported that a car driven by Tarry H. Clark, 22, of Ethel crested a hill on the concession road, 0.3 km west of Sideroad 20-21, when six cattlebeasts ran across the road in front of the car and it collided with one of them. The driver of the car was uninjured, as was a passenger Michael Smith, 17, of Brussels. However a second passenger, Ms. Vellenga, was taken to the Listowel Memorial Hospital for treatment. Police estimated damage to the car, a 1977 Chrysler, at $2,000 and 8500 for the loss of the cattlebeast, which belonged to Lloyd Keffer of Lot 18, Con. 8 of Grey Town- ship. LITTLE GILLIAN ELSTON, the infant daughter of Mur- ray and Trudy Elston of Wingham, has seen more in her two short weeks on earth than most people see in a lifetime. Last week Gillian attended a dinner for the Queen, was blessed by Eminett Cardinal Carter, went to the Belgrave Fowl Supper and her father's nomina- tion meeting at Lucknow. Baby Gillian Elston f is seen by Queen blessed by Cardinal Little Gillian Elston of Wingham has done more in her short two weeks on Earth than most people do in a lifetime. She was seen by the Queen, blessed by Emmett Cardinal . Carter, attended the Belgrave Fowl Supper and her father's, (MPP Murray Elston) 'nomination meeting all in the short space of one week. Gillian was a mere four days old when her mother Trudy, her grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Bill Elston, Mac Inglis of Belmore and his daughter Mary all ' journeyed to an MPP's dinner at Toronto's Harbor Castle Hilton last Tuesday. The baby was the hit of the day, said her mother, and people were incredulous to learn she was only four days old. Queen Elizabeth stopped to look at the baby on her way out of the banquet hall, as did Ontario Premier William Davis and Cardinal Carter, who put his hand on the child's forehead and blessed her. project. Despite receiving scant encouragement so far from either the Maitland Valley Conservation Authority, the Ministry of Natural Resourc- es or the Ministry of Tourism and Recreation, the commit- tee has not yet given up on finding grants. It has ap- pointed a subcommittee headed by Patricia Bailey to look for outside sources of funding. The committee also welcomed two new mem- bers, Mery Baker and Raymond Neill from Turn - berry Township, who live just on the far side of the mill pond. Chairman Ron Beecroft explained the two had visited the Turnberry council at its last meeting and expressed their desire to see something done about the dam. As a result. the Please turn to Page 5 Committee to recommend on hiring of zoning officer Wingham Town Council has taken another ` step toward hiring someone to administer and enforce local . zoning bylaws. • After having previously accepted a job description for the position, council last week passed a motion en- dorsing the concept of a zoning administrator. It also instructed its finance and management committee to bring in recommendations about filling the post "at the earliest possible time." Councillor James • A. Currie, who has been one of the strongest advocates for a zoning enforcement officer and headed an ad hoc-, committee which drew up the job description, told councilthere is no time to waste. Particularly after events of recent weeks, "there can be no doubt in anybody's mind" about the need for such an officer, he declared. He did not make it clear to what events he was referring, however no one challenged the claim and the motion to endorse the con- cept of a zoning officer passed quickly and with virtually no discussion. After such a busy week getting down to a routine will seem rather anticlimactic for little Gillian. But with a provincial election put on hold, at least for the time being, she will be able to stay at home for a well-deserved rest. CGIT group sells Hallowe'en insurance The Wingham Canadian Girls in Training group will be selling "Hallowe'en Insurance" for the second year in a row this month. For a minimal fee, the girls will clean windows as part of a fund-raising and community -service project. Next year is the 70th anniversary of the CGIT and a jam- boree is being held at Algonquin Park in June. Members from all over Ontario will attend the jamboree. The profits made from selling insurance will be used to send local girls to the jamboree. Last year the girls cleaned many downtown windows and it is hoped that Wingham residents and businesses will support this fund-raising effort. Of course the group cannot be responsible for any breakage or damage and those sub- stances which cannot be removed through elbow power, such as paint. For more information, contact Mrs. M. Armstrong at 357- 1240 or K. Roesler at 357-3234. Mr. Currie told council it should proceed to find out what it would cost to fill the position. He had hoped it could be filled this year, he added, ;,4,UtipAROUeeN et the "budgetaty- eonstaints he suggested council should aim to hire someone by no later than January of 1985. Initially it appeared that Mr. Currie's motion had instructed the finance and management committee to proceed to fill the position. However Councillor Jack Kopas, who heads that committee, said later that upon reviewing the motion he was satisfied it asked only for recommendations to be brought forward. In an interview, Mr. Kopas also explained some of the background to the proposal, which he said had its start about two years ago in a series of zoning prpblems, including the building of a much -disputed truck wash by Joe's Truck and Trailer on Josephine Street. The latter has led to a lawsuit by the town against the trucking company. In all of these cases, Mr. Kopas said, there seemed to Please turn to Page -5 William Davis to retire from Ontario politics At a press conference Thanksgiving Monday, On- tario Premier William Davis made an announcement, but it was not the election call that most had expected. After 13 years as premier, Mr. Davis announced his in- tention to resign from pro- vincial politics. The announcement left some shattered, some exultant, but in most sec- tions of the province there was shock and Huron -Bruce was no exception. Murray Elston, Huron - Bruce MPP, said he was surprised by the premier's announcement. Mr. Elston said he fully expected an election call and was all set to go on the road Tuesday campaigning. The premier's decision to retire changes things "right around", said Mr. Elston and it puts the election - planning machinery on hold, at least for a while. Now it will be business as usual this week for Mr. Elston, as the Legislature began its fall sitting on Tuesday. Due to the loss of five Liberal MPPs during the recent federal election, leader David Peterson likely will be doing some shuffling of his shadow cabinet and Mr. Elston is hopeful he will end up in the front benches of the opposition. Bill Thomson of Wingham was nominated as the Progressive Conservative. candidate for Huron -Bruce at a meeting held Oct. 1. Mr. Thomson was forced to quit his job at CKNX in order to stand as a candidate. "Everyone was surprised" by the premier's an- nouncement, said Mr. Thomson." Buf he said he respects Mr. Davis and knows it must have been a difficult decision for him to make. Mr. Thomson admitted to being disappointed by the announcement because he said his campaign team was ready for a fall election. Mr. Thomson said his future plans are un- determined at present, but he will confer withhls family and will make hi$ decision known next week. Norma Peterson, a Kin- cardine town councillor, was acclaimed the provincial Huron -Bruce New Demo- cratic Party candidate at a meeting held last Wednes- day evening at Ripley.