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hl 6 -- October 1, 1991 * EDITORIAL or 4 Middle ground The council that takes office in Scugog after the November munici- pal clections will have 10 deal with' many conientious issues over its three-year term. And one is the Vanedward rezoning on Union Avenue. On September 23, more than 100 ratepayers attended a public meeting it is fair 0 say that the overwhelming sentiment expressed that evenrf was opposition Lo the proposed re-zoning And with good reason. The re-zoning secks approval for 168 housing units (80 detached, 34 semi-detached, 48 street townhouses and 36 block townhouses) on 27 acres of land. The current zoning on the parcel permits 44 single detached homes. Clearly, a jump from 44 10 168 on such a siall parcel is 100 much, the density far 100 high in relation to the surrounding neighbourhoods and indeed in relation 10 almost all residential areas of Port Perry and Prince Albert. Howewgr, the nguion that the land can be developed for 44 homes on fully serviced half-acre lots is completely unrealistic. It may have been fefisible at one time, but notin today's economic climate or the climate we could be facing in the forsecable future. It is simply not possible for a developer 10 build a 4-lot subdivision 10 full urban standards (sewer, water, sidewalks, underground hydro and s0 on) and expect 10 see any retum on the investment. And retum on investment is what drives the private sector these days, including the development industry Clearly, when council comes 10 make a decision on this re-zoning, there will have © some "give-and-take™ on-all sides 10 come up with a compromise that reasonably satsfies the needs of the Township, the ratepayers and the developers. If 168 1s 00 much and 44 not enough, one can pick a number somewhere in between Scugog is in the middie of wugh times when it comes © develop ment. So far this year, building permits have a value of just over $10 million. Last year (and it was a tough year, 00) the value was S14 8 mil lion. Only 28 new homes have been built in Scugog so far in 1991, There were 61 in the same penod last year At last week's public meeting, there was some discussion about the "affordable" housing aspect of the application. And the fact that some of he land is car-marked for rental housing. This is provincial policy and municipalities have no choice but 1 follow, it - Do we stop development just because we don't want "affordable" or rental housing blended in" That's not realistic. If development 1s stifled in the Pont Perry and Scugog arcas, the local economy will nose-dive We don't want 10 $cc houses jammed gato every possible square inch of land the way they are in some areas of Durham now. That would be 100 much change to the community we all enjoy. But surely, there is some middle ground that can be reached to minimize the negative impacts Qf growth yet still make it worthwhile for the private sector 0 invest in development. . We alt i 1Ying i's Suing ib iy 10 Td Wis ile: ground, but the aliematives are not acceptable. Be patient Be patent. NG pun intended «But officials at Community Memorial Hospital want the people of Scugog 10 know that the expansion plans are proceeding, though at a pace that is agonizingly slow. Board chairman Ted Griffen said last week "the people of the com- munity have done their job (in rajging money for this project) but 1 can understand the frustration" (on the part ofthe public who are wondering when construction will stant). What Mr. Griffen and administrator David Brown want emphasized is'that the project is moving ahead. At this time, they hope 10 issue a contract carly néxt year and actually stant ing in the spring of '92. It's been just over five years since the al expansion plans were first unveiled. Many people thought the expansion would be done by now. Unfortunately, the pace of provincial govemment approval for Happy In a few months, the pretty red and gold follagd surrounding this country gate, will be gone, replaced by banks of snow. Then, the gate will ny lead to a snowmobile trail, which will wind itself north through many more fields and many more gates. This ene Is near Sun Valley. = LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Demands, demands" To the Editor: As we face more endless debate on the Constitution, let's not forget that the whole matter was settled in 1971 at the Vicona Conference. Premier Bourassa returned 10 Quebec and scuttled the Accord fter pressure from the separatist St. Jean Baptiste Society. In 1982, when the Queen signed a new 'constitution Quebec refused to sign----yet four of the five signators were French Canadians. The ink was barely dry when there were more demands from Quebec and the result was the Meech Lake fiasco. Although not a signator Quebec used the "notwithstand- ing" clause to introduce Bill 172 (the French only sign law) con- trary 10 the ruling of the Supreme Court of Canada that it was unconstitutional. How could Quebec legally use a clause that it was not a signator The Mulroney government' spent $2% million on the Spicer hospital projects moves agonizingly slow. That's ie way go work. a The community has put its faith, wust and a fair chunk of money into this project over the last five years officials want 10 assure people the project is moving ahead, will be no cut-backs in the of beds, and the provincial financing remains secure. The hold-up is not un the local We can be patient a few more months, but eventually, we are going to demand that Queens Park get moving on this. The people of Scugog have waited more than five 10 find what every- one knew already: most people in Canada don't want official bilin- gualism or multiculturalism, The cost in billions does more 0 divide the country than 10 unite i We now have another five months of a Joe Clark circus In New Brunswick, the only officially bilingual province in the country, the COR Party in less than two years won twice as many seats as the PC and NDP com- bined with more than 20 per cent of the total vote cast. The latest poll found that more than half of Quebeckers want to separate. They want to have their cake and cat it oo by using sovereignty association. They want protection from Canadian Armed Forces and the use of the Canadian currency, as well as trade protection. Quebec already has 48 per cent of all the dairy business in Canada, thanks 10 protective regu- lations. The rest of Canada has spent billions on bilingualism to placate Quebec. In Durham Region, the price tag for French Immersion is $32 million, and this does not include core French. Yet from Quebec all we hear are more demands, demands, demands. Mulroney promised jobs, jobs, jobs. We have millions out of work with half of the jobs in Ontario gone forever assplants close permanently, Our energy should be directed to saving the economy, not a divisive constitu- non, Rd Great Britain has no constitu: dom. They say they don't need ofc, The Sot Union has a sweet sounding one' that means litle 0 the average Soviet citizen. How can we have equality for all Canadians when one province demands special sgatus, i.e. the distinct society. Are the native people and the rest of Canadians less than equal, in ft second class? The only light on the horizon, in my view, is the Reform Party (and COR) that advocate Quebec remain French speaking and the rest of Canada to remain English speaking. Many people feel that the final solution will come only when Quebec goes ils own way, thus allowing the rest of thé coun- try to get on with our economic future. - In a CTV poll last March, t 70 per cent of Canadians "let Quebec go." After 125 years of wrangling, it might be best for all concerned. Dean Kelly, president, Association of Dedicated Canadians. Port Perry. P.S. The Durham Board of Educatian is facing more and more demands from government- funded French geoups for even more power in the schools. (source, Page 138, Board meeting * years, and that's long enough. crossing the country. tion. Yet it has un-limited free- agenda for August 26, 1991) --_-- « * 36 Water Street «, » Published by . = Port Perry, Ontario Scugog Citizen Publishing Lid. Proud * Phone: 985-NEWS Valerie lls - John 8. McClelland - Cay Ollie Canadians ~The Scugog Citizen is delivered free of etal Mam Scugog | charge to 9,000 homes and businesses in -- dation Township Scugog Township every Tuesday. 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