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

6 Independent & Free Press, Tuesday,March 23, 2010 OPINION Burning desire The time of year for yard cleanup is here, which also means for some, the time to burn the remnants of winter such as branches, brush and tree trimmings. Halton Hills Fire Protection and Prevention Services reminds everyone that open air burning requires a burn permit. Even recreational bon fires contained in a clay chimnea or factory-built fire pot require a burn permit. Over the past week Halton Hills fire crews were busy responding to six different burning calls-- in each case the homeowner did not have a valid burn permit. Fire Chief Brent Marshall reminds everyone, including farmers, that they must obtain a burn permit before doing any burning. Very few fires occur on the properties of those who have a permit issued to them. A few friendly reminders of conducting safe burns are usually included when applying for a permit. "With warm, sunny, spring conditions, firefighters usually see a sharp increase in grass and brush fires which can cause extensive damage and threaten buildings and properties," said Marshall. "A grass fire fuelled by wind conditions can destroy an extensive number of acres and bush before being brought under control by firefighters." On Thursday (March 18) firefighters were called to a large grass fire near Gamble St. The high winds helped spread the fire quickly. The burn permit program includes a number of safeguards in the prevention of fires by monitoring wind conditions, smog/ heat advisories and moisture conditions-- all of which play a significant role in the prevention and reduction of fires. For more information on burn permits visit the Fire Department's information centre at Georgetown Marketplace or call 905-877-1133. 905-873-0301 Publisher: Ken Nugent General manager: Steve Foreman (sforeman@independentfreepress.com) Retail advertising manager: Cindi Campbell (ccampbell@independentfreepress.com) Managing editor: John McGhie (jmcghie@independentfreepress.com) Distribution manager: Nancy Geissler (ngeissler@independentfreepress.com) Classifieds Kristie Pells (classified@independentfreepress.com) Accounting Rose Marie Gauthier Editorial Cynthia Gamble: News editor (cgamble@independentfreepress.com) Ted Brown: Photography (tbrown@independentfreepress.com) Lisa Tallyn: Staff writer (ltallyn@independentfreepress.com) Eamonn Maher: Staff writer/sports (emaher@independentfreepress.com) WEB POLL RESULTS Starting March 31 the general minimum wage in Ontario will rise 75 cents to $10.25 an hour. Do you feel this is a fair wage? · No (49%) · Yes (51%) Steve Nease Go to www.independentfreepress.com Letters to the editor New development should pay for itself Dear editor, Reading about how our Town council is spending $75,000 to "set a long-range financial plan to deal with the expected continued pressure to build new infrastructure resulting from future residential housing", I can't help but wish there was some way of making development pay for itself. Perhaps via a fee charged to developers to cover the costs associated with development-- say, a development fee. Oh wait, that exists? Then why isn't our Town council charging these developers the full amount that growth costs the town? If these new homes go up from $400,000 to $410,000 I doubt the buyers will stop coming, but increasing all of our taxes instead will certainly make many of us think twice come election time. Also, to help cut the cost of this new development why aren't they looking at minimizing development's future cost to the town via simple measures, such as requiring all new homes to have a rain water setup (reducing strain on the water system in town for under one per cent of the cost of many of the new homes being built today) and a tank-less water heater system (less electricity/gas needed, costs about $1,000 more than a basic water tank before government incentives)-- simple things that would barely cut into the developers' profits. And, if it did slow down development of new homes in town, I suspect few current residents would complain. John Northey, Georgetown all the assistance received from our fellow-walkers, families and friends-- it would not have been the success it was without your help! A very special thank you to all the Ladies In Pink Pyjamas, all 180 of you! You know what helping your `sisters' is all about. We look forward to seeing all of you at My Sister's" Pink Pyjama Party & Spaghetti Dinner again next year. Roberta Kent, Georgetown Join the Relay for Life Dear editor, The committee for the Georgetown Relay for Life is looking for teams, volunteers and local companies to sponsor us in the 12-hour relay. Join us to remember, celebrate and fight back against cancer on June 4 at the Gellert Community Centre from 7 p.m.- 7 a.m. If you are a cancer survivor and would like to participate this evening is about you. Please go to www.cancer.ca/relay to register today or call 1-866-711-0111. Help us to make Georgetown one of the leaders in raising funds to fight back against cancer--together we can make cancer history. Julie LaCapruccia, committee for 2010 Relay member Georgetown PJ partyers say thanks Dear editor, The second annual My Sister's Pink Pyjama Party & Spaghetti Dinner in support of The Weekend To End Women's Cancers was held at the Gellert Community Centre in Georgetown Jan. 29. The support and assistance we received from local Georgetown merchants was phenomenal and my team and I would like to express our thanks and appreciation to each and every one of you. The Georgetown merchants are truly representative of what it is to support your local community. We are also extremely grateful for Letters to the editor policy Letters must include an address and daytime telephone number. Anonymous letters will not be published. Letters should not exceed 150 words and may be edited for content and/or length. E-mail: jmcghie@independentfreepress.com Mail or drop off: Independent & Free Press, 280 Guelph St., Unit 29, Georgetown, ON., L7G 4B1. The Independent & Free Press The Independent & Free Press is published Tuesday and Thursday and is one of several Metroland Media Group Ltd. community newspapers. Editorial and advertising content of The Independent & Free Press is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.