The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

^ 2 - Orono Weekly Times, Wednesday, April 10, 2002 J Aocna frCNA Weekly Times Subscriptions $28.04 + $1.96 G.S.T. = $30.00/year Publications Mail Registration No. 09301 Agreement No. 40012366 Publishing SO Issues Annually at the Office of Publication ? "We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada, through the Publications Assistance Program (PAP), toward our mailing costs." 5310 Main Street, P.O. Box 209, Orono, Ontario LOB 1M0 E-Mail Address: oronotimes@speediine.ca Phone/Fax (905) 983-5301 Sefvmy East Clarmyton and beyond since 1937 Publisher/Editor Margaret Zwart The Orono Weekly Times welcomes letters to the editor on subjects of interest to our readers. Opinions expressed to the editor and articles are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of The Orono Weekly Times. Letters must be signed and contain the address and phone number of the writer. Any letter considered unsuitable will not be acknowledged or returned. We reserve the right to edit for length, libel and slander. If your retail or classified ad appears for the first time, please check carefully. Notice of an error must be given before the next issue goes to print. The Orono Weekly Times will not be responsible for the loss or damage of such items. "There is only one taxpayer" It's a phrase often kicked around during budget time, "There is only one taxpayer," but what it really means is that you and I can just keep opening our wallets and continue to pay the ever increasing tax bill. Last month the Region of Durham's Finance Department was prepared to nix the three new Rapid Response Vehicles requested by the Emergency Medical Services from the 2002 budget. An eleventh hour offering from the Province has put the Rapid Response Vehicles back on the order form at $675,000. Durham Region will own not three, but four fully equipped Rapid Response Vehicles. ( The fourth unit will be a spare.) This last minute reprieve came from the Ministiy of Health in an effort to help Durham Region reduce their emergency Response times. Of course we all know it's you and I that fund the Ministiy of Health through our income tax dollars. Take a look at ITER facility. This is the $13 billion dollar fusion Science Lab that could be located in Clarington if we are selected to host the community for this project later this summer. summer. The ITER bid committee, (that is the committee that works diligently to promote Clarington as the best possible site for this project) has an operating budget comprised of $3 million million from the Federal Government, $3 million from the Provincial Government, and $6 million from Ontario Power Generation, formerly Ontario Hydro which as a crown corporation corporation racked up a $38 billion dollar debt which we hydro users are paying off. The Municipality of Clarington gave the ITER Host Committee (an offshoot of the Bid Committee) $40,000 last year and will give them another $25,000 this year. We are paying through all three levels of government for this ITER bid for a project that might never happen, and if it does could conceivably conceivably be located in France or Japan. Closer to home, we look at the 2002 municipal budget. The mayor is proposing a withdrawal from the Library Reserve Account to lessen the tax impact this year. Municipal reserves are built up with tax revenue. Reserve accounts are put in place to offset unforeseen expenditures down the road. With healthy reserves in place, the municipality should avoid huge spikes in annual tax rates. Whatever the sound financial planning principles principles that have built up healthy reserve account, you and I have paid for them. So whether we pay now or pay later, pay we will. Golf course proposal putting along Eight years after the original original applications for the Crooked Creek Golf Club were submitted, a scaled down version was approved by councillors on Monday.. Original plans for an 18 hole Crooked Creek Golf Club have been redesigned to a 9 hole course on the 17 acre parcel of land just west of the Clarke/Darlington Townline. Planning Consultant Kevin Tunney indicated that all the commencing agencies - CLOCA, Durham Region Health Department, Ministiy of Agricultural and the Ministry of Natural Resources, as well as Clarington's own Engineering Services - agree that a nine hole golf course will not have an impact on the significant natural features and functions on the property. An environmental impact study submitted in 1996 determined that the impacts of the 18 hole course would interfere with the natural features features of the area which are recognized by the province for their natural significance. The golf course site which is just west of the Clarke/Darlington Townline Road, is bound by Taunton Road at the north, Stephens Mill Road and Stephens Gulch to the south. The Soper Creek Valley crosses the The Pines staff and students students would like to recognize all the families and local community stores that donated baked goods for our annual Children's Wish Foundation Auction. Your generosity was greatly appreciated. appreciated. Special thanks to Sugar's Bakery, Orono IGA, Orono Country Cafe, Village Bakeshop, New Dutch Oven, Country Style Donuts, Coffee Time, and Tim Hortons. Very special thanks to all these, and other donators, and also the staff, students, and parents of the Pines Senior Public School. Without you the bake auction auction wouldn't have been possible. possible. A veiy special thanks to auctioneer Mr. Frank Stapleton for donating his time. The total amount raised during the past week was $2,901.00. northwest comer of the property, property, the middlè of the site is bisected by a tributary of Soper Creek and a wide valley valley containing Crooked Creek runs along the southwest portion portion of the site. The revised application buffers the golf course development development from the most ecologically ecologically sensitive area of the site. The applicants, Kevin Sewell and Doug Summes, have also agreed to transfer the areas of natural significance significance - the Soper Creek Valley at the northwest comer of the property, and the Crooked Creek Valley at the south end of the property to CLOCA as part of the Stephen's Gulch Conservation Area. Even so, Libby Racansky from Friends of the Farwell in Courtice asked for permission to go on the site every year to monitor the Belted Kingfisher which she says has been migrating to the cliffs on this property for at least 10 years. According to Racansky,the Kingfisher is a sentinel of the health of the water courses that traverse the property. If fertilizer from the golf course seeps into the creek killing the fish population, the kingfisher will also disappear. Prior to receiving site plan approval, the applicants will be required to agree to undertake undertake a monitoring and remediation remediation program for the golf course. The only objection raised to the application at the public meeting Monday morning was from a neighbour on Taunton Road who asked that his well be monitored for possible possible fertilizer contamination, and possible quality reduc-. tions. His request was agreed to by the applicant's planning consultant. The application was sent back to the Planning Department for further processing. processing. Classified Advertising 9o5-983-5301 Letter to the Editor Thank-you t i