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Sideroads of Halton Hills named top special section in North America Sideroads of Halton Hills (Spring 2005 edition) has been named the Best Special Section in its class in the Suburban Newspapers of America's annual editorial contest. Results of the competition were announced Friday from SNA's head office in Traverse City, Mich. "We are thrilled that the SNA judges recognized Sideroads as the best in North America, said Sideroads and Independent & Free Press publisher Ken Nugent. "Sideroads magazine gives our readers and advertisers throughout Halton Hills a glimpse of Halton Hills' unique rural lifestyle," added Nugent of the quarterly publication produced by The Independent & Free Press. "Right from the first issue we knew we had a winner as the response from readers and advertisers has been very, very positive." The SNA judge wrote: "This section is an evocative portrayal of rural life on the outskirts of a major metro area, focusing on nature, farms, animals, art and neighbourhoods. Feature stories describe an area where lifestyle, not big business, takes centre stage. Excellent nature photography is accented by clean, flowing headline type and restful white space. The entire section has a gentle, relaxing feel to it." Former Independent & Free Press sport writer Herb Garbutt was also awarded an honourable mention in sports writing for his column on former Georgetown Jr. A Raiders' head coach Dan Cameron. The SNA reports that the 2005 contest was the most competitive in the association's 35-year history with more than 3,100 entries-- a 40 per cent increase over last year's record total. Winners will be recognized at the SNA publishers' conference March 1-3 in Palm Springs, CA and at the editors' conference Mar. 29-30 in Hershey, PA. The spring 2006 edition of Sideroads of Halton Hills will be published in March. Lots of Legos Lisa Hunziger, library assistant in the Children and Youth Services Department at the Georgetown Branch of the Halton Hills Public Library, adjusts one of the many creations in the annual Lego contest at the library. The public was invited to drop by the library and vote on the most creative entries. Bartek Kulas, 7, won the age seven and older class while brothers Ryan and Jack Waddick won the six and under division. Photo by Ted Brown Election candidates square off night. The five federal election candidates didn't take any real shots at each other and politely answered the mostly agricultural-themed questions from the audience at the meeting hosted by the Halton Federation of Agriculture at Hume's Auction Farm. Participating were Brent Bouteiller (Green Party), Michael Chong (Conservative), Noel Duignan (NDP), Rod Finnie (Liberal), and Mike Wisniewski (independent). Carolann Krusky of the Christian Heritage Party wasn't there. No sparks flew between the WellingtonHalton Hills federal election candidates at a debate focusing on agriculture Monday Despite the televised leaders' debate that evening, the local meeting drew approximately 140 interested audience members. Norval area farmer Harry Brander of the Halton Federation of Agriculture asked the candidates if they would support and provide 60 per cent share of funding required by the federal government for the new business risk management plan developed by farmers to replace the Canadian Agricultural Income Stabilization (CAIS). Wisniewski called the plan "very reasonable," and said he couldn't see a problem in trying to sell the notion to the public.