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•Th e IF P• H al to n H ill s • Th ur sd ay , O ct ob er 3 0, 2 01 4 6 OPINION The voters have spoken and it will be déja vu around the Halton Hills council table for the 2014-2018 term as all incum- bents including Mayor Rick Bonnette were re-elected Monday night. The lone newcomer will be former Independent & Free Press photographer Ted Brown, who will take the seat of retiring councillor Joan Robson. The campaign and voting are done-- it's time to move on. There's tough work ahead for the mayor and his crew. It's time for councillors of all political stripes to sit down and work together to keep the Town's agenda moving. What is clear is that voters like the direc- tion the council has taken Halton Hills. "It's a solid mandate by the public," said Mayor Bonnette. "I am quite humbled by the results." However, we hope some councillors do not stand in the way of the Town moving forward with a progressive agenda-- Halton Hills sits on a very uncertain point in his- tory when it comes to growth. Working with our partners in the GTA will be paramount to ensuring Halton Hills is on the right path when it comes to sprawl, growth and transit. We'll be watching and we hope our coun- cillors will fight for their constituents and go after those things that Halton Hills needs-- infrastructure funding, crime con- trol. The turnout of 33.61 per cent was higher than the 2010 election (25%) and thus the voters have spoken and they are never wrong. The Independent & Free Press is published Thursday and is one of sev- eral Metroland Media Group Ltd. community newspapers. Editorial and advertising content of The Independent & Free Press is protected by copy- right. Unauthorized use is prohibited. The Independent & Free Press is a member of the Ontario Press Council, which is an independent ethical organization established to deal with editorial concerns. For additional information or to file a complaint, contact info@ ontpress.com or call 416- 340-1981. The Independent & Free Press The people have spoken Letters to the editor Did you vote in the Oct. 27 municipal election? • Yes (84%) • No (16%) WEB POLL RESULTS (Go to www.theifp.ca) 905-873-0301 Publisher: Dana Robbins General manager: Steve Foreman (sforeman@theifp.ca) Retail advertising manager: Cindi Campbell (ccampbell@theifp.ca) Managing editor: Chris Vernon (cvernon@metroland.com) Distribution manager: Nancy Geissler (ngeissler@theifp.ca) Classifieds/Real Estate Kristie Pells (classified@theifp.ca or realestate@theifp.ca) Classified Call Centre 1-855-415-8237 haltonhillsclassads@metroland.com Accounting 1-866-773-6575 Editorial Cynthia Gamble: News editor (cgamble@theifp.ca) Lisa Tallyn: Staff writer (ltallyn@theifp.ca) Eamonn Maher: Staff writer/sports (emaher@theifp.ca) Get the latest headlines delivered to your inbox by signing up for our twice weekly electronic newsletter. Go to www.theifp.ca and click on 'Newsletter sign-up' at the bottom of the homepage. I was hoping if I send you this message perhaps you would be kind enough to share it in our local paper so harmony can be restored to our neighbourhoods. I've noticed over the last couple of years the population of squirrels and chipmunks in my neighbor- hood seems to have exploded. The squirrels became a problem for me after the ice storm and I found they made their way into my soffits above my carport. I addressed this immediately and in the end this cost me well over $1,000 to have all possible entry points blocked off. As well, I've been unsuccessful at overseeding my bald spots on my yard as the squirrels are all so busy trying to bury and/or dig up their treasures they seem to find along their way. Peanuts! Chipmunks are another problem for me. They have taken up resi- dency under the floor of my shed in the backyard. By the time summer came I noticed my interlock patio was sinking in. Why? Because the chipmunks were tunneling their way around underneath. I knew at this point I would have to replace my patio so I wouldn't have any water problems come winter so I went to buy a cage so I could capture them safely and relocate them to the wild, far away. This project has taken me all summer and so far I've relocated 18 chipmunks, two squirrels and one possum. Just when I thought I'd won the battle I had my patio replaced costing just under $5,000 . Less than one week later guess what? I see a chipmunk going into my shed and what does it have in its mouth? Peanuts! This brings me to my point. Why are people feeding these crit- ters? Don't they realize that by feed- ing them it gives them an opportu- nity to reproduce more abundantly, not to mention invite other wildlife to the neighbourhood as well? I'll tell you why they're feeding them, because the problem is not in their backyard. I can say that if it was in their backyard or costing them money to repair damages, I'm quite certain they wouldn't be leav- ing any more peanuts lying around. I think the township should pass a bylaw prohibiting any feeding of wildlife. Let's face it, people are not do- ing the critters any favour, nor are they considering the consequences to their neighbours. Pass on the word. No feeding wildlife. Jackie Milburn, Halton Hills Feeding wildlife is not a good thing: reader Letters must include the author's name, address and daytime phone number. Anonymous letters will not be published. Letters should not exceed 150 words and may be edited for con- tent and/or length. Publication is not guaranteed. Email: cvernon@metroland.com Mail or drop off: Independent & Free Press, 280 Guelph St., Unit 77, Georgetown, ON., L7G 4B1. Letters policy