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4- The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday May 31, 2008 www.oakvillebeaver.com Annual restoration budget is $50,000 Continued from page 3 Turenne said every effort is made to prevent tire damage to the markers when heavy equipment is brought into the cemetery. This includes the laying of plywood in the paths of the vehicles. Wayland, however, said he has witnessed a contrary practice during one visit to Oakville and St. Mary's Cemetery when he saw a large truck parked on the grave of Joshua Leach, a prominent sawmill owner in the mid-1800s for whom Joshua Creek is named after. "I'm surprised it didn't break," said Wayland. As far as damage to the graves of Oakville's historical figures is concerned, Turenne said the Town does have an annual budget of around $50,000 for cemetery restoration, but the historical figures will have to wait their turn to get access to it. "When we are restoring headstones our first and foremost concern is safety, the safety of visitors coming onto the property and the safety of our staff," she said. "We will perform the required restoration when we get to that headstone, but it's prioritized, not based on who the monument is for, but based on safety." Some of this prioritization could be seen in Palermo Cemetery where more than 100 of the marble headstones have been restored and reinforced with new foundations. The names on the headstones are also being catalogued, so that even if the marble fades to the point where it is unreadable, the Town will know who is buried where. While Wayland is pleased to see these innovations, he feels more needs to be done to prevent the headstones from being damaged in the first place. "They're missing the point," he said. " All the GOOD AS NEW: Restored graves at Palermo Cemetery. big stones are falling over now, so what they should do is fix the big ones before they fall over then fix the ones that have already fallen. If you're a doctor, you don't treat a guy's foot when he's got a bullet in his lungs. You fix the lungs first." While Turenne noted the Town is in the process of cataloging what every grave in Oakville needs in terms of restoration, barriers lay in the way to getting repairs completed as quickly as she would like. "It's a very seasonal type of job. There's only so much work you can do in a given year. There's only so many companies that know how to do it properly using heritage techniques and they are also working at other cemetery properties," said Turenne. "With the harsh winter that we just had sometimes we're also competing against the elements." Wayland, however, does not buy this explanation and is calling on the Town to turn over control of Oakville pioneer cemeteries to volunteers. Spring inTO SUMMER WITH ... Ein Stein's Biggest Wine & Beer Sale 5 May 30, 31 JuneONLY DAYS 1, 3 & 4 100% SATISFACTION GUARANTEED BEER, WINE, Fruit wines and wine coolers to choose from! Price 1/2 s oa ply h validrvice Rne 3 & 4 2008. Limit 4 batche 30, 31 81 NortOfferSe MaymbinedJuwith1,any other offer. Some restrictions ap 4 co Cannot be price and at regular one batch tch of Purchase r second ba receive you for sser value equal or le You on Site repared by P E -stom ER (2337) (905) 825cuB er. d W. per Ein Stein is CLOSED Mondays 3rd Line 4th Line Dorval A trusted name in Oakville since 1992 EIN STEIN North Service Rd. 481 Q.E.W. 481 North Service Road W. (just west of Dorval) HOURS: MON. CLOSED, TUES.-FRI. 12-8, SAT. 9-5, SUN. 11-3