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HAROLD TOWNSLEY 6 a aq = 9 0 G M 1994 CAVALIER 222 Rockwood * 856-2222 Leisure Centre, arena What's Inside Students at McKenzie- Smith Bennett school col- lected over 1,000 T-shirts for the Sudanese. See photo on Page 4. Downtown business got another boost with the opening of the Needle Gnome last weekend. See Page 7. Achievers at Acton High are recognized with awards. See Page 12. WEEKLY CHUCKLE Judge to Casey in Court: "Have you ever been up before me?" Casey said: "I don't know. What time do you get up?" Hal Roach. Achilles Presents... Spring eTerleulete)s ert "March" on in for great deals! BY MAGGIE PETRUSHEVSKY The New Tanner Harold Townsley has joined the ranks of Ac- ton's Citizens of the Year for 2000. Chosen by a committee of former award recipi- ents, Townsley isn't too sure either who nomi- nated him or why he was chosen. Looking at his involvement in Acton however, outsiders might see a good reason to agree with judges. Recreation has always been important to Townsley. With a father who played semi-pro hockey, and a long history in minor and later pro hockey in his own right, he spent seven years as a volunteer with the town's parks and recreation committee. Then he became the Acton arena man- ager in 1967. When Halton Hills became a regional munici- pality he remained with the Acton arena until his retirement in 1988. He also spent 30 years as a volunteer with the Acton (and later Halton Hills) fire department. An Acton resident for almost 60 years, Townsley and his family came from Newmarket because his father was hired as a glazer at Beardmore's in 1941. Like his father, Townsley loved hockey. He be- gan playing as a youngster and played both juve- nile and junior hockey in Acton. Also like his fa- ther, he was nick-named Sonny when he played in Milton and Georgetown. At 14 he played hockey in Erin because there was no ice in the Acton arena. "That was the year the arena was full of wool," Townsley recalls, "so Dad took us to Erin to play." We ROYAL FELINES: Micha, left with Tish Lewis and Orange Sherbert with Kathy Walshe, are just two of the regal creatures who rule the private cat sanctuary, Acts Anonymous, near Orton. Since they both consider themselves to be the boss, they really aren't best friends. - Maggie Petrushevsky photo See story on Page 8. & Fun and fellowship on menu at Acton community brunch By Frances Niblock The New Tanner Great food and friendship are on the menu for the first Acton Community Brunch -- a millennium project designed to foster a sense of commu- nity in Acton. Modeled on a community brunch held in a small com- munity near Simcoe, the idea of bringing the brunch to Acton came from Mary Ann Austin, who attended a 2.9% Financing Up to 48 Months ON ALL 2000 Mazdas brunch with her mother and thought it would make a great project for Acton. "It's a place to get to- gether to visit and see other people. For people who are furiously working all week, here's an hour when you can go and meet 20 or 30 other people to have a chat with," Austin said on Monday. "We're not all that con- cerned with raising money -- we hope we do -- but I just see it as sort of a good thing * 1.6L 16 Valve ZMD 4 Cylinder Engine * AM/FM CD Stereo with 4 Speakers * Tilt Steering » 60/40 Split Fold-Down Rear Seats + Remote Fuel and Trunk Release * Dual Airbags « ...plus much more! to do for Acton," Austin said, adding she bounced the idea off Lloyd McIntyre of Acton, and then pulled together a small group of volunteers. The whole idea of commu- nity is very important to McIntyre who likes being es on the street or in the store to talk with friends. "I don't want to come across as being nosey, but I'mvery much more comfort- able when I have a sense of Continued on page 2 the next 10 years unti .. or Starting From $14,995 (+ FRT/PDE/Taxes) *Monthly Payment, down payment plus tax. -- Down includes frei ECs u combine special price, leasing, or cin, deals. Call neal Mazda For Details. . Tata UCT ae LU sya Continued on Page 12 Newstand price: 40¢ + GST 27 es 19"- 32" - 25" =< 36" a On Selected TVs 14 Wesleyan St. Downtown Georgetown just off Main St. (OO Tar Mare LILA 877-3405 over budget Council approves extra $2.1 million By FRANCES NIBLOCK The New Tanner The largest capital projects ever undertaken by the Town -- construction of a recreation centre in Georgetown South and the twinning of Alcott arena -- are $2.1 million over budget before a shovel is even in the ground. The revised costs would mean a taxpayer with a prop- erty valued 5,000 would Day an ©. \ I the debt is paid. Annual net op- erating costs are estimated at $150,000 for both facilities. Councillors were briefed on the revised costs and all but Acton Councillor Clark Somerville approved the plans at a special meeting on Monday. Both Acton Coun- cillors Norm Elliott and Rick Bonnette expressed some concerns but voted in favor of the revised costs and plans. The cost to twin the arena, build a new lobby and give the existing lobby a face-lift is now $4 million --up from the preliminary budget of $3.7 million, Staff's preferred op- tion, which was approved by councillors, added $560,000 for a new lobby but removed $529,000 to repair the existing ing lot and for new park- ing --items which will be in- cluded in next year's budget requests. The recreation centre is now $8.1 million (up from $6.3 million) and in- cludes a six-lane by 25m. pool, a separate leisure pool, hot tub, sauna and a multi-pur- pose area with a banquet fa- cility and café. Treasurer Ed DeSousa t/PDE. Cannot eS stressed that 60 per cent of the total cost will be paid out of development charges. He sale of Town-owned land, an anticipated surplus from the restructuring of Halton Hills Hydro, the $1 million 1999 surplus new user fees, reduc- tions on other capital projects, increased taxes or partnerships. Mayor Marilyn Serjeantson urged councillors not to go with anything less than the revised plans, say- ing to go with anything less would be a big mistake and the community expects the Town to do a good job it can be proud of. Acton Councillor Norm Elliott, who ied the re- vise plans, sait was "nerv- ous" and "extremely con- cerned" about the suggestion to use the hydro restructur- ing surplus to offset the ad- ditional costs but couldn't convince his fellow council- lors to remove that option. Acton Councillor Rick Bonnette, who also ended up supporting the plan, said he was "leery" about the "ex- tremely vague" supplemen- tary financing plans and said Town owned land beside the Civic Centre should be sold to cover the additional costs. Continued on page 2 357 Queen St. Acton (519) 853-0200