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Modest 567 increase for Acton but Esquesings rate up 811 mills The former township of Esquesmg was smacked with one of the biggest tax increases in its history as Hills council unveiled the first budget for the new town Thursday night Rural ratepayers face a still 11 mil increase while Georgetown escaped relatively unscathed with an increase of less than a mill Acton emerged with a 5 67 mill hike Councillors figure the average ratepayer will be forking over anywhere from 30 to more per depending on assessment while Acton taxpayers will average about 25 per year more The Georgetown increase will be nominal The increase could have been more but council one mill of the startup grant from the Province to reduce the general levy by approximately one mill 67000 across the board The remainder was applied to the working fund Councillors Coxe and Howitt from Ward 2 the former township of Esquesing felt the entire 150000 should have gone to reduce the levy for rural ratepayers since most of the surplus left over from Esquesing last year was to go to the new Georgetown arena along with the Georgetown surplus Predicting that next years tax increase rather than this years would show the true figures with less provincial assistance Councillor said he was thoroughly disgusted and disillusioned by One Hundredth No First budget Halton Hills the increase for which means in our area well wind up paying for things we dont want or those we dont get We are baled out this year by transitional grants Coxe said but what we dont face this year well have to face the next Colleague Dick Howitt was equally vehemnet It is easy for Wards 3 and Georgetown say throw the start up grants into the reserves working fund while Ward is looking at nine mills The people there never saw any more than two mills at one time Nine a lieek of a jolt to these people I preferred all of surplus to go back to Esquesing and all of Georgetowns to Georgetown but the majority see different said Acton had a deficit in Ward two taxpayers in Glen Williams Stewarttown and Ballinafad must also pay two mills street lighting ACTON ONTARIO WEDNESDAY AUGUST 7 Halton Hills must raise in taxes from an assessment of 213 but only is controlled by the town Levies from the region of secondary school purposes of 1105082 and for public schools as well as for separate schools are completely in the hands of the regional council and board of education The final two tax instalments are due and payable on the 16th day of September and the 2lst of October Penalty for nonpayment is one per cent of the amount due on the first day of default and an additional penalty of one per cent of the amount due ib added on the first day of each month until taxes are paid Two interim tax levies by the town accounted for a levy reduction of JO mills Finance chairman G paid tribute to town auditor Graeme Goebelle acting treasurer Grant Usher and Henry Hutzal of the tieasury department for their work on the towns first budget He noted the budget had been so it did not reflect in any way the in start up costs provided by the Province Hills had asked for 350000 in startup and the money could be used to reduce the mill rate In auditorGoebelles opinion councildeserved a pat on the back for having in the reserve working fund but he refused to be drawn into the Continued on page 2 Twenty Six Pages Fifteen Cents Residents want answers Town water off 5 hours Peter McCti- photo I WILL LOOK INTO the crystal ball and tell you of your future and little Shirley Van was the Tuesday fortune teller at the Kingham Hill carnival which drew a number of children and adults to enjoy festivities More lluin of the town was without water for now looking for an ex pi ana ti on and assurance from authorities from the Region which now controls water services that it won happen again The interruption Ihe Free Press has learned resulted tram more than just the normal watcrhnc break which did occur on Church St near the corner of Maria St workmen a Church St resident about pm and immediately took measures to shut the water off on Church between Frederick St and the Force Electric plant so that the break could be repaired However for reasons not yet determined to the entire town with the exception of the Block and Glenlea Sub division Workman began from all over town The break took only hours to repair but water service was not restored until 10 as workmen tried to figure out why most of the town had been shut off when only the valve for a small of Church St had en closed A similar two hour water service interruption occurred approximately two weeks ago when pipes litre connected from Churchill rid north Into the newly constructed of the Mcrndows subdivision That interruption affected both the Building Products and K Porter plants even causing serious concern about damage to boilers at the Porter plant It is known that engineers from the Region unfamiliar with Acton water system supervised that Adding further to the frustration was that with most of the equipment needed to repair the break now housed in Georgetown since the introduction of regional government town workmen needed an hour more than it usually takes to do the work Only piece of equipment available in the Acton yard was a clamp A truckload of gravel arid other tools had to be picked up In Georgetown by workmen who drove down there from Acton telephone and gas com panics first before they begin to dig to repair a break Police lay drug charge An out of town man has been charged with possession of marijuana after he was found lying on the shoulder of Queen near the Seeker Milk store at 12 15 a day morning by Acton O P Ik will appear in court Sep tember to face the charge Police also charged another out of town man with wilful damage and possession of an offensive weupon after they wort called to the Station Ho tel at m Saturday morning The man had considerable damage to the door of the hotel with a tire iron He will appear In court September A charge of theft under was also laid against a third out of town man following a week long police invest lea lion Into discrepant in the till at a local shoe store The suspect was working at the store He will appear in court September It Police also charged two persons with common drunk after they were picked up on town streets made threcliquorsclzures charged one impaired driver and two minors for drinking under age Strike fizzles The Ontario Haulers Association strike has ap parently fizzled out The Haulers had not been rccuenizcd by the Aggregate Producers because the strike was illegal The Haulers had been trying to set prices The organization pickettcd the quarries in this area No 7 Heritage Hwy Claude Bennett Ontario Minister of Industry and Tourism thinks if Highway becomes a Heritage Highway it will bring more tourists to Hills He expressed this view when he met w Hills Mayor Tom Hill M and Minister of Governmental Services Jim Snow and Walter Gowing of the Niagara Escarpment Commission last Friday at the Georgetown Market Centre We are presently reviewing Highway 7 situation I think it would be good because it would take tourists off the and give them a chance to see the Onto side Bennett said wis Georgetown as part of i tour of Ontario in which he is visiting various industries and with municipal officials They hid an in formal discussion in Ben touring trailer The Minister pointed out that Highway is a Heritage Highway and they have found that once roads are so designated that it where the tourists go Tourists make fine use of these roads once t get brochures and our special map productions Into their hands Bennett He asked the mayor if he has been by the new Ontario Tourism and operation among different Travel Association areas and greater unity No they might have I think this will mean that Mine to the Region Hill various regions will no longer answered be worried about just their Bennett explained that the own small area and will now Association was expected to work together for the bet create a spirit of Continued on Page Town streets quieter following crackdown Hot rodders and tire squealers beware Six months of driving privileges and have already been lost by drivers who chose to Ignore the recent crackdown by Acton and according to Cpl Bob Arbour at least more persons charged are scheduled to appear in court during August and Sep t ember As a result of our in creased patrols the streets definitely been quieter at night Cpl Arbour said this week Recently one person charged was convicted of careless driving fined and had his license suspended for six months Another local was fined for making unnecessary noise Cpl Arbour emphasizes that the new practice of having offenders appear in court rather than simply paying fines out of court will continue The community centre parking lot and the parking lot at Becker In the cast end of town are well known turnaround points Tor some hot rodders who have often used town streets in between like drag strips Hator Hit ti ale HATES Excluding Sped Light frig- Residential and Farm Acton Georgetown Oakvllo Region General Secondary Schools Elementary Schools 35 18 23 3 25 70 22 32 14 72 63 24 13 18 21 61 62 Commercial and Esquesing Georgetown Oakuille Region General Secondary Schools Elementary Schools 18 23 67 20 25 68 3 87 34 16 20 79 29 64 78 TOTAL MILL RATES Special Lighting Areas Only Residential and Farm Glen Williams Stewart Esquesing Basic Area 68 61 204 96 61 Area Total 70 69 57 Commercial and Business Glen Williams Stewart Esquesing Basic Area 11 2 40 78 11 1 12 78 78 Area Total 51 79 False alarms Acton firefighters were called out on two false alarms thisweek Acaraccidenlwith two vehicles in flames was reported on Highway The second one rtporlcd was a house and barn fire In Ward Both false seem to tots f MUST BE OH been with Hornet plows through fence and front door Mr and Mrs Percy Woods Main St had an expected and Unwelcome visitor last Wednesday at 35 when a vellow Hornet plowed through their picket fence and knocked In their aluminum front door before coming to a stop You may have guessed by now the Hornet was a driver less 71 model which per formed a pirouette alter being struck by a truck and plowed into the Woods home an unexpected caller Wednesday of last week in front of their home The freak accident hap- thenar of their when this Hornet knocked loudly on about 5 m the vehicle made ihe loudest knock they ever had at their front door Mrs Woods rushed to the front to sec what had hap pened and was disturbed to see the car had no driver she thought perhaps the dnver had been injured and was Ivmg out of sight in the car fortunately no one was in jured Neighbors said the car owned by Jean Parker Tldey Ave had parked on the School Lane alongside Mrs K Browne store on Main St When she went into the store the car moved out onto the highway where it turned aimlesslv before being driven by David Eaves of Rock wood The car left the road and banged through the fence into the home of Mr and Mrs Woods i the car at MOO and the house I and fence There was no damage to International I and Mrs Woods said KROES MODELS the latest fashions ihev were thankful no one which were used the dressing relay race at the was injured and t field fey penny carnival at Prospect Park ESS So Sto US day events for front door More details inside