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Region approves $2 dumping fee But councillor vows to bring issue back By John B. McClelland Port Perry Star Durham Region council has approved the $2 per vehicle fee to take trash to transfer stations. But the vote Wednesday (Dec. 18) was extremely close, and the issue may not be dead yet. Regional chairman Jim Witty had to break a tie vote to approve the committee recommendation 11-10, and Oshawa councillor Brian Nicholson says he will rein- troduce a motion to kill the fee at a future meeting, when all mem- bers are present in the chambers. Nicholson called the fee a form of "double taxation," and says a decision of such major signifi- cance should be decided when all councillors are in their seats. There were only 22 of 33 of councillors present when the vote was taken at the end of a mara- thon meeting Dec. 18 that lasted until late in the afternoon. Both Scugog reps, Mayor Howard Hall and councillor Marilyn Pearce, voted in favor of the $2 fee, which is expected to generate $570,000 yearly in reve- nue for the region's garbage dis- posal budggt. In breaking the tie vote in favor of the fee, chairman Witty (who only votes in the case of ties) said the region needs the money. He noted that he was in favor of a $5 fee when the matter was approved a week earlier by a joint works and finance committee. ¢ "When you see the report from the re-engineering (budget) com- mittee, you'll wish the fee was $5," he warned councillors. Until now, residents of Durham have been allowed to take up to 220 pounds (100 kg) of household trash to a transfer sta- tion free of charge. Following the vote, Mayor Howard Hall stressed that resi- Please Turn to Page 20 Rory finds spirit of 'Christmas in giving § By Jeff Mitchell Port Perry Star This Christmas, while around { him adults have been advertising | for the highest bidder to take | home their Tickle Me Elmo dolls, | a Port Perry boy has captured the | spirit of the season with one sim- ple gesture. Rory Taillon, 8, has donated | the teddy bear he won in a draw | at a local drug store to the Star's | Christmas Toy and Food Drive, in | hopes of making the season brighter a less fortunate child. | Rory, a Grade 3 student at Immaculate Conception school in | Port, said he was happy, when he | won the bear -- he's a fan of | stuffed elephants, actually -- but | agreed with his mom, Anne M arie, | when she suggested the bear would make a great gift for some- body else. "My mom gave me a decision," he said. "I felt sort of sad because I wanted the bear, but I thought someone might want it more than Ido." With the decision made, Rory came with his mom and dropped the bear off. It's been sent, along with many donations of food and toy§ by Star readers, on to Operation Scugog for distribution among the area's needy this Christmas. Rory said that after his act of kindness, he began to understand what the Christmas season should really be all about. "I felt happy," he said. "I was in the spirit of Christmas, and I gave it to someone else." PORT PERRY, ONTARIO - TUESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 1996 helper In the true spirit of Christmas, an eight-year-old Port P teddy bear he won in a draw at a local drug store. Rory Port Perry Star's annual Toy and Food Drive recently, to give it to someone that might need it more than he d » RATE BREAK 3.9% GMAC Finance Rate 5.g%gMac Finance Rate up to 48 months 49 to 60 months Available with approved credit on n New 1997s,