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6 Independent & Free Press, Tuesday,October 4, 2011 OPINION Second best "Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing." --Ex-Green Bay Packer coach Vince Lombardi In the wake of the recent decision by Target to set up a massive 24-hour truck distribution centre on Boston Church Road in Milton, it would be incumbent on Halton Hills Town council and staff to, at the very least, take a look at how it does business. While Mayor Rick Bonnette says he is "disappointed, but not discouraged" by the decision, we take little comfort in the fact that Halton Hills made it to the "final two" after Target had looked at 30 potential sites. A loss is a loss and this is not the first time firms have kicked the tires on Halton Hills' 401 Corridor and gone elsewhere for fear of high development charges, building delays (real or perceived) or other reasons. This loss stings particularly sharply because the Town had bent over backwards to accommodate Target (i.e. quickly pushing through a rezoning in a matter of days) only to see the 300-400 jobs and millions of dollars in development charges, taxes and planning and permit fees shuffle down the road to Milton, literally a stone's throw from the planned Halton Hills site. The frustration of losing the Target centre was evident at Monday's council meeting when councillors approved Phase 2 of the Town's Rates and Fees Review, which focused on building permit fees. "Our biggest competition, and we see it regularly, is the Town of Milton," said Ward 1 Councillor Mike O'Leary. "Why don't we just put up a sign on the 401 Corridor saying `Milton this way'?" The Town has adopted a "development must pay for itself" stance, which is all well and good but what happens if no one is willing to develop here? Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Dennis Perlin said the whole principle of the Building Code Act is to have full-cost recovery with respect to building permit fees. The amounts are based on what it costs for Halton Hills staff to provide the service. Perhaps looking at those costs, and cutting any red tape possible, is a good starting point? In the meantime we harken to another Lombardi quote as food for thought: "If you can accept losing, you can't win." 905-873-0301 Publisher: Ken Nugent General manager: Steve Foreman (sforeman@theifp.ca) Retail advertising manager: Cindi Campbell (ccampbell@theifp.ca) Managing editor: John McGhie (jmcghie@theifp.ca) Distribution manager: Nancy Geissler (ngeissler@theifp.ca) Classifieds Kristie Pells (classified@theifp.ca) Accounting Rose Marie Gauthier Editorial Cynthia Gamble: News editor (cgamble@theifp.ca) Ted Brown: Photography (tbrown@theifp.ca) Lisa Tallyn: Staff writer (ltallyn@theifp.ca) Eamonn Maher: Staff writer/sports (emaher@theifp.ca) Letters policy Letters must include an address and daytime phone number. Anonymous letters will not be published. Letters should not exceed 150 words and may be edited for content and/or length. Publication is not guaranteed. Email: jmcghie@theifp.ca Steve Nease Mail or drop off: Independent & Free Press, 280 Guelph St., Unit 29, Georgetown, ON., L7G 4B1. Letters to the editor South roadway is not a speedway Dear editor, The inevitable recently happened outside my home-- a child was struck by a car on Huffmann Drive where it meets Eaton Street in Georgetown South. For the past 15 years, we've watched cars speed around the bend, narrowly missing pedestrians, children trying to cross on their way to or from one of two schools looking like a game of Frogger, boulevard trees knocked down from cars trying to make the turns too fast or in inclement weather. We've had a number of cars end up on our front lawn for the same reason and have almost been hit by cars speeding around the bend when we're slowing to turn into our drive. When we inquired about a three-way stop with a municipal council member, we were told that stop signs aren't used to control the speed of traffic. Yet, we sit back and watch as every single year, speed bumps are installed, and then removed at our cost, at the other end of Eaton Street to do nothing but control the speed of traffic. Well, today a child was hit by a car. I'd like to know what council is prepared to do to stop another incident from occurring? Ingrid Longmead, Georgetown (Editor's note: As reported last week, the child was not seriously injured.) Steeles Avenue is like a war zone right now. The faster we can get it developed the better. Nick Bruce, Georgetown Say nay to the bridge Dear editor, Not being one to write letters, but reading the article on "Residents want bridge blocked" Sept. 13, I only wish to have my name added to the list of saying nay to the bridge. I have encountered several different species of animals, as mentioned, along with minks, muskrats, white swan and the ducks and geese and the different varieties of birds. It would be so unfair to have to remove another part of Mother Nature to put in concrete (along with the dust and dirt and noise and bothersome equipment) just so that it might cut down travelling time. How hard is it to continue along 10 Sideroad to get to your destination? The pathway from the community centre is very relaxing, stress-free and just a place to go to excerise and regenerate from the everyday battles of being in a concrete jungle. C. Hoover, Georgetown Target-ing Milton Dear editor, The decision by Target stores to choose Milton over Halton Hills for their new distribution centre speaks volumes to our reputation for development. Most is good, but not this time. "Delays expected.... proceed with caution". We recognize and appreciate the Town council's efforts to get the deal done but Target could not take chances and was relying on First Gulf. They know us and erred on the side of caution by choosing Milton over Halton Hills. As a longtime resident, our family loves the idea of development along the 401 Corridor-- fabulous tax revenue, jobs, and not even in our backyard. WEB POLL RESULTS (Go to www.independentfreepress.com) Do you think the Town is doing enough to attract business to the 401 Corridor? No (63%) Yes (37%) 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.