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Mayor Jerry Taylor roasted by Rotarians Scugog Mayor Jerry Taylor gave back as good as he got last Wednesday evening at the 2nd an- nual "Celebrity Roast" put on by the Port Perry Rotary Club. oy Mayor was the "roastee" in frony of nearly 200 people at the Catholic Church Hall in Port Perry who paid $35 each for din- ner and the chance to see and hear some of the finest "roasters" in Durham Region do their level best to make the Mayor blush and squirm, It was all in good fun, and for a good cause. Net proceeds from the evening will be used by the Rotary Club for their project to repair and renovate Birdseye Pool in Port Perry. The "roasters" were a group of gentlemen well known in Scugog Township and Durham Region: lawyer Mike Fowler; former coun- cillor Dr. Jack Cottrell; present councillor and mayorality candi- date Harvey Graham; Regional Police Chief Jon Jenkins and Gary Herrema, chairman of Durham Re- gion. Without mercy, they fired a series of zingers at the Mayor that The Mayor was presented with an honourary life membership in Rotary, a gesture of appreciation for his work In public office and his presence as the "roastee" last week. PORT PERRY WINDOWS & DOORS it ii § Snir EY Aluminum & Vinyl Windows & Doors * Double Hung Tilt Windows =* Casement Windows * Picture Windows p--.. Awning Windows : * Storm Windows ily * Storm Doors [lf * Sealed Thermal Units ' * Patio Doors 8 * and much more! - INSURANCE WORK - SERVICE & INSTALLATION FREE ESTIMATES Wayne Hutchinson 98-8124 left virtually no stones of his life un-turned. From his first career as a police officer in Toronto, to his days farming on Scugog Island, his life in municipal politics and now the insurance business. And when they were finished and it was Taylor's turn to reply, he proved that he can zap the one- liners and the stories with the best of them. The audience, of course, loved, it all. While the evening was billed as a "roast," it was also a tribute to the Mayor, for he has officially announced that come the election in November, he will be retiring from active politics. The "roasters"" took their best shots, all in fun, of course, but they also praised Jerry Taylor for the work he has done as Mayor of Scugog Township over the past In-coming Rotary president Ted Blanchard presented Mayor Taylor with an honourary life membership in the local club, and a painting by local artist Les Parkes has been commissioned for presentation at a later date. PORT PERRY STAR -- Tuesday, July 5 1988 -- 13 These five gentlemen didn't pull any punches as "roasters"" of Mayor Taylor last week. They fired some dandy shots at him (all in good fun, of course) and took a few good ones back when the Mayor replied in turn. From left front with Mayor Taylor are Durham Po- lice Chief Jon Jenkins, Scugog councillor Harvey Graham, Regional chairman Gary Herrema. And at back are Mike Fowler and former Scugog councillor Dr. Jack Cottrell. After a decade as Mayor Jerry Taylor can relax (From page 1) - After amalgamation, he was twice elected as the councillor for Scugog Island (Ward 3) and first ran for the Mayor's chair in 1978, pulling off what many considered something of an upset to knock off Lawrence Malcolm by about 200 votes. . He won again easily in 1980, was acclaimed in 1982, and again won in 1985 by a comfortable margin despite a swarm of contro- versy over his involvement in a subdivision development on Scu- gog Island. He publicly declared his in- volvement in that subdivision from the outset, took no part in any vote or discussion on it dur- ing council meetings, and it was eventually approved after a lengthy OMB hearing and court - proceedings into the technicalities of the re-zoning. He said it was a very difficult time for himself personally and for his family, and admits that for a time he toyed with the idea of getting out of politics in 1985. "But when my credibility and integrity was being questioned, I felt I had to put the issue to the people (voters) to see if they had confidence in me for another term" (in office), he said. Looking back on his decade long tenure as Mayor of Scugog, he said some of the accomplish- ments he's most proud of include the reconstruction of Queen Street which he termed a "turning point in the revitalization of the down- town core," and seeing the new li- brary completed after a bitter con- troversy split the council and the community over the location of that facility. And he's pleased that the Township was able to assist in improving community parks, halls and recreation facilities in several of the hamlets in Scugog. While he acknowledges that there are those in Scugog who feel the growth in the past few yeas has too rapid, the Mayor said the development rate has been "acceptable" and a necessary and important aspect of any successful community. And he feels the Township has gone a long way in improving the network of municipal roads, for which he credits the local works department and superinten- dent Ronn MacDonald. One issue that he would just as soon forget involved the ill- fated plan to locate a new public school on seven acres of land at the Port Perry Fairgrounds. "We (council) thought we were doing the right thing, selling the land to the Board of Education for a new school," he said. The Fair Board resisted any plans to re-locate the Fairgrounds, the controversy simmered for sev- eral months, then quickly died when the Board of Education backed away from expropriation plans and bought a school site in a different location. As for the future, Mayor Tay- lor said the new council elected in November will have to decide in the coming term about a new mu- nicipal building. The present one, he said, is simply too small to meet the needs of the Township. And he said that eventually, PICK-YOUR-OWN STRAWBERRIE PICK-YOUR-OWN FRESHLY PICKED Phone Orders Accepted WHITAKERS 2, vor rer; 985-3170 the. municipally owned lands be- hind the Scugog Arena will be de- veloped for recreation purposes, there will be a second ice pad at the arena and a banquet hall. "All that will come, some time in the future." Over the years, Mayor Taylor earned a reputation for patience and fairness, especially when deal- ing with any delegations that ap- peared in front of the Township council. He admits he "bent the rules of procedure somewhat" during some of these meetings to ensure that all present had a chance to speak their minds. He said he leamed a long time ago that patience is a key when dealing with angry ratepayers, no matter how large or small the problem might be. He admits that once he's out of office, he's not going to miss the angry phone calls at all hours of the day or night. Mayor Taylor told the Star he most certainly has no plans to seek higher office at the provincial or federal levels. After 17 years in the public eye, he's looking forward to life as a private citizen and local busi- nessman. ~ 7, 7 4 ' ' Ys (A x 2 A, & $f £8 Shirley Road « eMeysQ Awad lod » TT