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PAGE 4. WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 8. 1986, WHITBY FREE PRESS Publiahod avery Wednesdlay DOUG AN DERSON S w hitby By 677209 Ontarlo Inc. Publishor LJyI/IhPhono: 668-611il BILL MCOUAT M>M Editor W The Free Press Building KEN HATHAWAY 131 Brock Street North detsnMagr VOICE 0F THE COUNTY TOWN P.O. Box 206, Whltby, Ont. AdrtlgMage Tite oni> Whitby îiewspiiper independ<entli ow* îu'd *iiid op)titecd hy Whitby, re',idews for Wliithy remiiderît, Group homes threatened by Emm proposa- This week Whitby regional councillor Gerry Emm announced his plans to introduce an in- terjîn by-law which, if approved by council, would hait the conversion-of single-family homes in the old, downtown area to "rooming house type"y operations. According to Emm he has in- troduced this by-law in the interests of a group of centre ward residents with "a keen interest in, their neighbourhood. " The residents' interest is, in fact, so "keen" that, in Emms wordls "every tinie a house goes up for sale they have to try and get a single famnily in there to preserve the character of the neighbourhood."' In a background report prepared by Emm he states the residents are concerned about the threat of " a new element growing within- the area ",. namely: the proliferation of "rooming-house type" operations. Included in the definition of Emm's rather nebulous terminology are group homes or community based residences such as those used by the mentally retarded, the physically and mentally handicapped, seniors, ex-offenders, children from broken homes and other disadvant.aged human beings. SAccording to Provincial Group Homes Coor- dinator Jon Boynton, group homes have formed an integral and essential part of the province's vision for the social services for some ten years, said Boynton this week. "It's become clearer and clearer over the years that a lot of people need this kind of care, attention and support. For example the mentally retarded cannot always make progress in an institution because they aren't challenged to their. full potential. G- -%up Policy The Whitby Free Press la always Iooking for letters to the editor and welcomes letters on any Issues that concern its readers. While the paper reserves the right to reject or edit any letters for publication, a letter that la short and to the point is most likely to appear on our editorial page In- tact. Although not al Issues can be addressed lu a short letter, the best ls one of about 300 words or less. Ail letters to the editor must be signed and accompanled by a phone- number for the edtor's Information. Letters may be sent to: The Editor, Whtby Free Press, 131 Brock Street Nor- th, Witby, Ont., LIN 5S1. Letters to the Editor To The Editor: Why does Gord Bur- nett Say quote "Regionai Transpor- tation is 'miles away'! " The answer is theoreticaily simple and Durham certainly has a fine example of a "public conveyance" system set by its neigh- bour Toronto and surrounding municipali- ties. The Toronto Tran- sit Commission is con- sidered one of or the finest public service of its kind in the world and I believe the best on the North American Con- tinent. City planners and architectural engineers corne fromn global centres to obser- ve this system. As Durham Region public transportation service is now. it is literally a hodge podge of antiquated, unser- vicable vehicles which have no connection, one with the other. The GO bus, an old Grey Coach long distan- ce designed vehicle with narrow aisies and reclining seats, is not meant for daily shop- pers or college students and busisnessmen, with brief cases, school back- packs, shopping bags or strollers and God forbid if you are overweight, elderly, or do not have the equilibrium of an acrobat to board or debark from the bus. Charterways buses, serving localities such as Bowmanville, Whit- by, Ajax, Pickering sound like they wiIl blow up and disintigrate at any moment, bççi4ing homes allow these people to progr--ss mucn more rapidly than an institution." And what's more, these people have as much right to live in the community as anyone else and that right is protected under the Ontario Human Rights Code, a piece of legislation which super- cedes all other municipal and provincial legisiation. Regional councillor Emm says the proposed interim by-law is in no way to be interpreted as an intrusion on the rights of the disadvantaged to live in the communîty. Rather, said Emm, it is intended as a holding action while the town com- pletes its Secondary Plan, a strategy for land use in the downtown area. Once this study has been completed (sometime in the next year) Emm hopes the town will then be able to corne up with a coniprehensive statement on the appropriate land uses in the downtown and the citizens of centre ward wlll be able to have some input into that strategy. It should be noted, however, that if the town concludes that there is no place for group homes in the downtown area there will have to be an amendment made to the existing zoning by-laws and that amendment must be approved by the them requires the dex- terity of an olympic high-jumper and riding on them feels as though the wheels had rims only and turning the corners is an exercise in strength to try to remain seated rather than being thrown to the floor. As in Toronto, regional buses should run from the main "Go Track" stations into the core of the various towns and cities (Bowmanvile, Oshawa, Whitby, ,.4jqx,, Pickering) and local buses should have east- west and north-south routes, with a transfer station s0 "Joe and Josephine" Public could make their own routes. Every city shouid have Sunday service and there should be a ticket and token system to eliminate the out-dated cash lares which are an aggrevation to both passengers and drivers and are an invitation to things!1 As in Toronto and Spbprb, teehil be an appointed com- mission to govern and operate this service en- titled Durham Transit Commission and the whole of Durham ser- viced by the same type of bus, a modemn fun- ctional vehicle. With the onslaught of open Sun- day and also for church- pers, elderly not able to drive, youngsters and those unable to afford cars, adequate public conveyance is a must! With the' trend to locating outside -major centres such as Toronto, Ministry of Municipal MAfairs and Housing. In Boynton's opinion, such an amendment would likely not be approved and if it were there is a good chance it would be contested under the On- tario Human Rights Code. Nowhere in Emm's interim by-law is the phrase "group home" mentioned nor is there any mention of psychiatric out-patients, the mentally retarded or any other disadvantaged group. When it cornes down to the nut and boîts, however, the proposed by-law states that no buildings in the area may be built or altered to accommodate anything other than detached single family dwellings and semi-detached dwellings except in areas designated commer- cial or approved under a site plan agreement executed prior to the interimn by-law. In short, no group homes. The proposai directly contradicts town housing policy set by Emm and other coun- cillors in the 1970's which suggested group homes should be located in the downtown core- where they would be close to essential services. It is a policy founded on sound principles, principles our regional councillor would do well to recon- sider. residential housing in Whitby at an ali-time high, and industrial growth coming to the region in leafps and bounds, along with multi-shopping plazas, our present transpor- tation is detracting both functionaliy and monetarily (rom Durham's full business potential. Surely with aIl the residentiai and com- mercial tax revenue being collected, Durham can afford a modern, reliable transit systemn and the influen- tial Mayors of Durham could cajole David Peterson and the Province to contribute a few million, after alI if we get a functional ultra-modern bus system, we may be next in uine for a Dome Stadium. Indeed we have the Hawkeyes Football team in Oshawa, along with the Junior 'A' Oshawa Generals, the Brooklin Redmen Lacrosse See pg. 1l