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WHTYREE PRESS, WEDNESDAY, DEEMBER 17, 1986 PAGE 5 "I have aworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility againast every, formn of tyranny over the mind of man." - Thomas Jefferson AdIlvise and Dissent DOWNTOWN SECONDARY PLAN There were clear signs of retreat an the part of aur politicians at last week's public meeting on the downtown secondary plan. Faced with a crowd of 200 residents who.were fairly united in their opposition ta certain aspects of the plan, sorme changes wiil be made. Most signiflcantiy, the planning staff has been told toaelminate plans for a one-way street system through Whitby. I expect that there will also be some reductian in the height limits allowed in the core areas but probabiy not enaugh. Anytbing more than two storeys plays inta the handâ of speculators who can gain financial benefît from increased densities. This works against the home awners wha have invested hundrecls of thousands of dollars inta their homes and against the community as a whole which could lose one of its major assets - its Victorian streetscapes. The Town ciearly does not have the tools with which ta contrai incompatible developments like the clinic beside Ail Saints' Church. Such contrai could be gained by imposing a twa starey height limit - anything larger wauld have ta go through a rigorous detailed site plan approval process. (This is exactly what Toronto did in the early 70's when it impased à 40ft. limit in downtawn Toronto.) The current situation (and the secandary plan as presently warded) gives developers everything they want at the outset so the planning department bas ta beg for any changes it wants. Traffic througb residentiai areas was another concern of many residents. The problem is that most af aur designated "collector" roads are aiigned sa they make very convenient through streets. There are many ways - one is frequent stop signs .- ta discourage this traffic but the main problem is the will of aur politicians ta do so. I remember when Town Couneil put Burns St. tbrough Cen- tenniai Park and bow the residents of -Burns St. were told that their street would remnain a local thoroughfare. The Town then widened Burns St. east of Brock and *West of Henry. When asked about the traffic now, the politicians shrug and say it was inevitable. The residents of Burns St. were duped. Further meetings are ta be held an the secondary plan and if the same public Anterest that was sbown last week is maintained, we may end up with a plan * iwicb protects aur interests,' particuiarly if people can put aside their awn 1narrow interests ("my house on my street") and fight for the broader interests of the area as a wbole. Lets hope that the people on Coîborne St. wbo won their bat- te agalnst the one-way street system and the residents of Palace St. who stapped the condominiumn behind them wiil stiil came ta the next meeting in even greater numbers to lend their support to otber residents of the area. CRAWFORD - POLLEY HOUSE By the tirne this is being read another of Witby's aid bouses wiil be at Cullen -Gardens. .The Crawford Hause which stood well back from Hopkins St. S. of Dundas was ta be moved an' Tuesday. Its former owner, Mrs. Pailey, was a strong preser. vationlat and wben uhe sold ber property ta, Mayor Attersiey for commercial develooment she Insisted that the house be moved ratber tban demolisbed. There bas been considerable contraversy about the age of this house. Some, finluding Mrs. Polley and tbe mayor, claimed that it was aider than Lynde House and hence the oldest bouse in Whitby. Theimpendinlg move hias made iît passible ta get a gaod look at its structural detail. It is a frame structure (nat log as some bad tbought) and I can say with certainty that the building was built many years after Lynde House, probably not until the 1830s. The plaster of the Crawford bouse bas been applied over accor- dian latlh fastened ta the frâming with cut, machine made nails. In Lynde House,the Iathlng nails have forged heads. The framing and plaster work of the Crawford Houme la qulte reminiscent of the oldest parts of iny own bouse which 1 have always dated as 1835lsh. By comparison, though, the Crawford house la in qute bad condition with extensive severe rot In tbe main framing members. Restarationaf thisbousewillnot becheapi (Rtis ironic that, amang other things, Cullen wil bave to remove the aluminwn siding that was put on at the insistence of the Twn'sbuildingaofficers many years aga.) Mrs. Polley and now Mr. Attersley have a raft or papers that they believe sup- prts an earlier date; bowever, tbese papers aU refer ta land transfers, not tai the bidng itself. It is.a common error of people researcbing buildings ta assume thàta building was built shortly after the land was bought. That may or may not have been true. It may also have burnt down and been replaced one or more times. It la another common mistake ta assume that crudeness and simplicity are a sign of age. The Crawford bouse whicb bas unpeeled logs for floor joists is of relatively crude construction when compared with Lynde Hanse which was bult by highly skilled craftsmen, yet Lynde House is clearly the aider building. The architecture of the Crawford bouse led restoration architect Peter Stokes ta conclude In 1971 that the bouse was "learly", possibly 1810, but'the physical evidence (which be could not examine) does nat support this. It is possible that an early house was built there and burnt down and a replacement was built to a similar design around the original fireplaces. (This was not uncornmon as the fireplaces and chimneys wouid have survived a fire and were also the most dif- ficuit parts to build.) Rowever, the fireplaces of the Crawford bouse have been removed in order ta failitate the moive to Cullen Gardens, so possibiy the only early feature of the bousebhas been destroyed. If there is a moral ta ail this, it is that istorical preservatian should be lef t ta thase who know what they are talking about. The politicians have made aur hritage a poitical football and it is high time they backed off.« WITH OUR FEET UP By Bill Swan, As parades go, tbe ane that sbuffled dawn Brock St. about 1 p.m. last Sunday was small. One girl carried a Canadian flag; one jester bo-hoed along in psycbedelilcbliss; and tise rest of the two dozen or so jaggers waved ta passing mtorists and startied pedestrians. And wbat, many wauid afterward ask, was that? That parade, if yau want to cail it that - and I wouidn't becàuse it had neitber permit, advance warning nor wi iling spectators - that parade, if yau wil, was the annual Eggnag Jag. Like rnany good ideas, the Eggnog Jog began in Oshawa and this year ended in Whitby. At eacb af several preordained bouses, the celebrants stop and take in refreshment: eggnog, Christmas cake, pun- ch, sbortbread;' And as the name impiies, the merry-makers travel on foot: they jogged about six miles (10 kilometres In metric ternis). To cail this annual affair an event may perbaps give it mare importance than it deserves. Runners stress that it ta nat in any way a race, that it is 'A Jog'. That is, a slow, shuffling pace sometimes not mucb faster than a waiic, and whicb ta neyer faster than the siowest members of the group. (Whicb stiil doesn't explain wby Whitby runner Ann Emmett gat lost la ber own bouse and had ta run -not jog but actualiy rmn, something Ana is very good at -to catch the group atthe next stop.) However, slow and fast, jog and run are relative terms. To most readers the slow jog of this fit group waud be fast, indeed. Imagine such a group that eas up six miles of Christmas cake on a Sunday morning and calta it fun. The event began 10 years ago as an off-shoot of the Durham Fitness Club, whicb ran fromn Durham Coliege every Sunday morning. in the first years of operation, the club, organized by retired Oshawa City Clerk Roy Barrand, embraced experienced and beginning ruaners of ail ages. On sunny sum- mer Sunday mornings more than 60 runners would jain in . After the mun, ail joined in a social with caf- fee, soda pop and donuts in the college cafeteria. It was only fitting,then, that the social portion shouid become samewhat special for the Christmas season, The braincbild of Barrand, along with Keitb Buchanan and Ted Maidman, the tradition grew: the Sunday before Christmas became known as the Eggnog Jog. But once the colege opened the athletic complex and fitness centre in 1978, use of the facilities was restricted. Numbers feU off and the social portion withered. But the Eggnag Jog did not. Naw moved out of the college, the event grew into an informai affair in- volving stops at several bouses. For Eggnag, naturaily. Etc. Last Sunday's run continued a tradition now more than ten years aid. However, the bloom ta off the running rase of a decade ago. Now, the alniast- organized Durham Fitness Club - a newer version ta urging its way toward rebirtb - joined with the Whitby Tigers and other interested local runners for Sunday's event. Fram the home of Marcel Crete in Oshawa, the matley crew proceeded along Rassland Road ta, Whitby. First stop was at the homne of Terry and Ann Emmett; next, the home of Jeff Wiilett; then ta, Ian Barran Motars for a graaning board filled with cookies; and the Iast stop at the home of Pat and Jerry Garrard. What do peaple talk about on sucb occasions? Buchanan and Maidman recalled a reiay mun from Toronto ta Montreal prior ta the 1976 Olynipics, WVben tbey arrivedi at Montreai - part of a wboie cavalcade from ail parts of Canada - no one bad ever beard of tbem. Instead of the pramised welcome and festivities and meata and accom- modation, the relay runners experienced rejection. (Montreaiers are nathing if not good hosts, however; with littie notice, they put up the runners in local scbools.) Ian Barron quietiy states bis intention ta run a 100-mile race in the coming year. He will, toc. And in that corner, a trio pledge ta lase 20Opaunds eacb and "get fit again.". Sa if you saw that parade on Sunday, sureiy you honked your car born. Or wavied. And doubtiess, the runners waved back and wisbed you ho-ho-ho for the seasan.