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A Independent & Free Press, Wednesday, October 25, 2006 3 Roofer fixes problem-- free of charge Homeowner `moved' by responses to her plight of a leaky roof TED BROWN Staff Writer It appears there are some very caring people in Halton Hills. In the Friday edition of The Independent & Free Press, a story appeared about Norval area resident Helena DeSalvo's plight in trying to get her leaking roof repaired. Her calls to seven local roofers had fallen on deaf ears for more than three weeks. Within 36 hours of the story appearing in the newspaper, DeSalvo received 11 calls from roofers willing to help, and Independent & Free Press reporter Ted Brown received seven e-mails offering to assess the problem as well. Local roofer Kevin Blondin, proprietor of KB Enterprises, was at the DeSalvo house at 8:30 a.m. Saturday morning with his helper Al McGyver as they checked out the leaky roof problem. "My wife called me at work yesterday afternoon (Friday) said Blondin, "And she just said `Kevin, you've got to help this lady'." "We pulled off the flashing-- it was a complete mess," said Blondin, "It was nothing short of atrocious, the job the previous roofer had left behind. He'd used the incorrect material to flash it, he hadn't used step flashing at all-- it was just all wrong. I'm surprised Helena hadn't had the ceiling fall in off her living room, with water damage." Where the roof met the chimney at the peak of the house, Blondin found a gap, almost an inch across, where he could look directly into the attic. "It makes me angry to see such poor workmanship as this," said Blondin, "It gives all of us roofers a bad name." Blondin and his helper tore off all the old flashing and applied `ice and water' Local roofer Kevin Blondin, proprietor of KB Enterprises, checked out the leaking roof at the DeSalvo house Saturday morning before correcting the problem that has caused owner Helena DeSalvo three weeks of grief trying to track down a roofer to address the problem. Photo by Ted Brown sealer around the chimney, then installed step flashing, which is placed under each shingle, and goes up the roof like little steps, sealing each shingle individually. The flashing is custom cut to fit the join of each brick/stone of the chimney, and then caulked at that join to seal out any chance of water coming in. The best part-- Blondin did the entire job for free. "I didn't come here to fix it for the money or the recognition," said Blondin, "I just came here to help out someone who was frustrated and needed help stopping the rain from coming into her house." DeSalvo was overwhelmed at the response to the story, and equally amazed at Blondin's offer to do the work on such short notice, not to mention the fact he was doing it for free. "There are a lot of wonderful people around here," said DeSalvo, "I'm so moved at the number of calls I received from people willing to help. It makes me feel so good, knowing there are so many good people like that out there." DeSalvo said she would be personally responding to all those who contacted her offering to help, to thank them for their concern and quick response. But she said there was another person she would be looking after personally. "I'm going to get Kevin Blondin's wife a huge bouquet of flowers," smiled DeSalvo, "She must be a very special person." (Ted Brown can be reached at tbrown@independentfreepress.com) Helena DeSalvo was delighted with Kevin Blondin after he repaired the flashing on her chimney. The Norval woman had been trying unsuccessfully for three weeks to have a roofer repair the leak. Photo by Ted Brown Council okays crossing guard for busy intersection Commercial plaza CYNTHIA GAMBLE Staff Writer Walking to school has become much safer for kids after an adult crossing guard was posted on Churchill Rd. at Tanners Dr. in Acton. At the urging of the Acton councillors, Halton Hills council approved the move at the October 2 council meeting, and three days later the guard was on the job. In response to concerns by parents-- one of which saw a six-year-old brushed by a car-- the Acton councillors spent a day at the T-section across from McKenzie-Smith Bennett School. They, too, witnessed close calls, speeding cars, and uncertainty by both drivers and pedestrians. "We saw an issue that needed to be addressed immediately," said Councillor Jon Hurst. Hurst and Councillors Mike O'Leary and Clark Somerville determined the best solutions were to immediately hire a permanent adult crossing guard and to install an all-way stop on JON Churchill Rd. at HURST the intersection. To conform to Town policy on distances between stops, the all-way stop on Churchill Rd. at Norman Ave. will be removed. "The reality of the situation is that I think this is an extremely dangerous intersection. I can't believe anyone on this council would put a child's life in jeopardy because of numbers on a report," said O'Leary, referring to a staff report that the intersection had not yet reached the warrant level for a stop sign. And none did. All councillors unanimously approved the three recommendations. According to Bob Butrym, Town traffic co-ordinator, the all-way stop at Tanners Dr. will likely be installed next week, while stops signs on Churchill Rd. at Norman Ave. will be removed concurrently. Hurst, who returned to watch the crossing guard at work last week, described the solution as successful, especially as the younger children learned the new experience of crossing the road with a guard. More importantly, he said, the guard has eliminated the uncertainty for drivers on whether children would be running into the road. "This way, it's cut and dried," he said. (Cynthia Gamble can be reached at cgamble@independentfreepress.com) being considered for Queen Street Halton Hills planning staff are considering a proposal for a commercial plaza on Queen St. at Tanners Dr. No one attended a public meeting held this month at the Civic Centre on the proposal. The property will be developed in conjunction with properties at 391 and 395 Queen St. There are currently two residential homes on the lot. The developer, Rinarin Ltd., is requesting an expanded range of retail and service commercial uses in the Official Plan and zoning amendments. These include retail, medical offices, daycares, fitness centres, commercial schools, restaurants, etc. Halton Region has placed a hold on the zoning until confirmation of servicing. Council will vote on a staff recommendation on the project at a future council meeting. --By Cynthia Gamble, staff writer