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Halfon faces High unemployment an increasing number of deserted wives and mothers and an Increase in the number of persons suffering from physical disabilities counts or County highest welfare bill in at least years Jim Gray director of Social and Family Services for claims the current situation is the toughest he seen in his 1G years In the business In January oE there were 240 welfare recipients In the county Two years later that figure has swelled to 850 Until 1070 most cases stayed on the rolls not more than one or two months The stay has been extended to four or five months called unemployable Part of the raise is due to an unusual increase in unemployable persons Until this figure was usually reflected In the population increase on a constant basis Since 1969 the figure has moved from to 309 and la null moving up The high Increase In the unemployable is partly due to two basic factors first an increase in desertion and secondly the absence of small menial Jobs for the handicapped A job that a handicapped person may have found a couple of years Is snatched by a student or person In search of work now The heavy pressure to bear on the county welfare department has made It necessary for the staff to grow Calls handled through the main hove tripled since the county formed the department just a year ago At various times during the day it becomes impossible to get a free line in or out of the Social and Service office the county buildings In Milton Fight field workers Three Intake girls sit with ears glued to the phone as recipients and potential recipients make contact The intake girls record the initial Information later one of the eight field workers will visit the applicant and decide whether or not help Is warranted rhe heavy pressures arc probably shown most dramatically In the budget that Jumped from to this yenr liist year the budget was overspent by Even at that has the lowest percentage of residents on welfare of any county in Ontario As of December 1970 per cent of Halton people were on the rolls compared to tent in Rjssell and counties which top the list flu picture is grim one and there seems to be no in the offing not just yet anyway According to Mr Gray one the figures from April and May are In the story for the rest of the year 111 be a more clear Permanent eases Among the unemployables who collect i are many students deserted women an physically disabled These persons arc pem welfare cases Often 11 collect from the county department for the first few months and later mother allowance disability pension or some other form of assistance from the federal or provincial government to the thoughts of many those bus the system account for a small percentage of the those who earnestly need ret help If a man if found pi and refuses to accept his assistance is ait off I in according to the director problem Is n sticky one While the Director and his staff can discontinue support it any time the decision Is subject to an appeal board in Toronto and an has a better than average chance of the support In Toronto that he In Student supper is a difficult problem as well With the appeal board as lenient as It Is it Is theoretically possible for students to leave a happy home and collect welfare for living expenses the next day A resolution initiated from Hie Department of Social and Family Services welfare directors be given more autonomy received favorable support from more than counties In writing and some conveyed support to Mr Gray by phone Currently there are students collecting welfare in According the Director the legitimate reasons for their claims In homes where alcoholism ml or psychological problems are suspected the youths are removed from the I to me and provided for as long as their les are and attendance school is rcjul We arc satisfied students we supporting need assistance We don t have the problems that exist In some places where students are leaving homes and winning appeals for support Cray said Association Minor award for the player In the Legion House League best combining ability and sportsmanship went to bantam player Tim Mclntyre Acton chief Barry made the presentation rum pages for more details ACTON ONTARIO WEDNESDAY APRIL Eighteen F Reeve warns shape up or ship out I m not going to lose any sleep It this year cause 1 11 down That warning Issued by Reeve Tom Hill summed up the feelings of the majority of the township council towards operation of Golden Horseshoe on the Fifth tine cast of Acton Lawyer Wall representing new operators of the dragway Ed and Pratt appeared before council last Wednesday night to make application for an operating license for this season Mr told council his clients have to begin booking cars approximately days ahead of the time they are to race Although he agreed it was an oversight that application was not made earlier he asked that council discuss practical hours of operation for the dragway that night Need time Deputy reeve Russell Miller felt council needed time to talk the matter over We didn have that good cooperation last year on some regulations in the by law he reminded Mr Sopinka Freshman Councillor Dick Howltt indicated he wasn t prepared to issue a license that night without becoming better acquainted with regulations in the present by law Mr Sopinka answered council his clients are anxious to co operate with the township He explained both have had previous experience operating drag strips He said the same limited company Golden Horseshoe is still in ownership of the strip but that It may be operated under the name Toronto International Dragway When Councillor said he like some guarantee management will be backed up by ownership in complying with township by laws Mr said he will be directly responsible for the operation Carl Bristow will have nothing to do with this operation he said Mr operated the strip last year Mr Pratt told council he has operated a similar strip at for the last three years and has experienced no curfew problems There was a church nearby and we never began operating until 15 minutes after if had emptied he told council Admits fault Reeve Hill admitted per cent of the trouble the township had with the dragway last year was flight Upcoming Saturday the Citizen of the Year dinner and dance at the Music Centre Honored will be Ted Tyler Sr with a special citation for Ron Dancing follows to the Tickets are almost all sold for the annual highlight of the Chamber year council own fault because they don t have anybody to enforce by laws However he warned the new operators they 11 be held strictly to the line this year And If you don t your license Is going to be revoked he said Councillor Ien Coxc backed the reeve stand This there 11 be no question of whether they re prepared to cooperate or not it simple either they will or it be revoked Ijist year it was alleged operators of the dragway violated the township racing by law on three occasions Charges were laid against the operators by Peter Bowman whose property adjoins the property Earlier in the meeting council received a letter from the North Fsquesing Ratepayers Association asking that they be allowed to have representatives meet privately with council before they issue this year license to the new operators Council decided to have representatives of the ratepayers and the new operators come to a private meeting the same night to discuss the matter Asks When he heard about the private meeting Mr Bowman who was attending the meeting as a spectator asked for an invitation Reeve Hill originally refused on the Mr Bowman had nothing to bring before fContlnu on Page Market value reassessment program start CHAMPION BIRD CHASERS of the Acton another successful season for the Acton Badminton Club were decided at the final They had 70 players registered in playoffs Thursday night it the high school the club this year for the twice weekly with Don Price and Joan Morris emerging s sessions of bidminton Staff Photo of the pairs The tourney ended New commuter service coordinates bus train Peel office started re assessment program In Acton Monday and expect to start In Milton shortly Regional Assessment Commissioner Robert II Be told this newspaper The proam Is part of the province wide re assessment at market value to be conducted over the next three or four years Although the assessment office expects to have the whole of North done this year residents are being assured that the old assessment on their house will be used until the entire county is reassessed Townships next rhe townships of and Nassagaweya will be done after Georgetown Acton and Milton are complete Assessors started In Georgetown several weeks ago Then it will be Oak ville and Burlington Mr Beach that at least one of the former assessors from each town would take some part In the re assessment program assessor has proper identification to produce for home owners in the event there are recognition problems five assessors will work in each of Acton and Milton A new coordinated rail and bus service aimed at commuters between Toronto Brampton and Guelph has been devised by Can National and Gray Coach Lines It will commence April Operating daily except Saturdays Sundays and holidays the service will enable passengers from Guelph Rock wood Acton creek and Norval to use Gray Coach lanes to Brampton where they can transfer to the 15 commuter tram to Toronto HISTORIC STONE GATES located at the Ransom Street entrance to Fanview Cemetery are being moved this week to a new location near the Road entrance to the cemetery Mover Doug operation Staff Photo supervising In the reverse direction evening commuter train from Toronto Union Station will connect with the bus at Brampton station at p m Additional service The transfer between services at Brampton is in addition to regular bus and rail services between Toronto and A combination CN and Gray Coach ticket will be accepted on the train and bus Combined fare from to Toronto one way is from Acton and The Free Press contacted officials of the and asked what advantage the new co ordinated schedule would offer residents of and Acton since the early morning train leaves 17 and 16 minutes later from the two places respectively arriving in Toronto minutes earlier than the bus An official of the CN public relations department said the major change in services was the coordination between bus and Turn clocks Ils that time of year again when the dawn comes so early in the morning we mortals must turn clocks ahead to keep time with Old Sol Daylight Saving Time will be ushered la Sunday morning at a and stays with us until Sunday October For some it means an hour a sleep they 11 miss until November For others it means an hour s more daylight they 11 enjoy Take your choice tram a suggestion emanating from the hearing in Acton concerning closing of the station where more cooperation between the two services was urged to accommodate commuters The combination ticket offered a third option to either bus or tram He suggested commuters along the bus route would also benefit since they could now board the bus and transfer to the train at Brampton without driving to the station Not Georgetown The Free Press enquired why the bus would not stop at Georgetown although commuters from and on either side of Georgetown would be picked up But the official had no answers This newspaper also suggested that it would be ridiculous for anyone to board the bus at any places along the route and then board the tram at Brampton when sealing would be at a premium Far better to board at Acton or when seats were plentiful The railway official said they felt someone boarding the train in the morning before Brampton would also have the option of taking the bus from Brampton and journey to parts of Toronto along the bus route Would this have anything to do with eventual closing of the Acton station by eliminating a stop the reporter asked the official None whatsoever the official replied The scheme was merely another service for commuters not an attempt to establish an alternative to stopping the morning and evening trains at Acton Members of County are readying themselves for a battle over representation on the county council The trouble first began to brew last when Burlington representatives on county council made it known they were going to press for greater representation at the county level A meeting has been slated for May 12 to try to resolve the problems between the north and south but reporters have been banned from the meeting Burlington Reeve Jim Swan bo rough presented county with a notice of motion at their meeting Tuesday afternoon The motion urged council to support a private member bill calling for greater representation for Oakville and Burlington Greater strength If passed the bill would increase Burlington representation from two members to five and Oakville from two to four The weighted votes that now allow for votes Continued on Page Report theft vacant house CNR police reported to Acton police the theft of a water heater from Eastern Ave on Monday The water heater was valued at between and The house is vacant Police are still making inquiries about the desecration In the cemetery last week but so far they have not determined the culprits assessment was a by local municipalities and counties but on January 1 the Province of Ontario assumed the assess ment role endeavoring to bring consistency and equality to the podge throughout the province the tusk of converting assess ment to market value was broken into districts with and I eel counties lumped Into me region under Mr Beach Hie Assessment Act defines market value as the amount a property might be expected to realize if sold on the open market by a willing seller to a willing buyer Value of different properties the government maintains should be reflected In assessment suggesting the old and still existing assessment values are open to inequities Fair way Government studies have indicated that reassessment Is the only fair way Co find out if you are paying too much too little or Just about the right amount of taxes compared to other property owners in the area means your assessment will go up but does not mean your taxes will necessarily rise If your taxes go up when the re assessment program Is completed It will mean You were previously under assessed or 2 your local council or school board has increased taxes to raise more revenue for local services Assessors are handing out explanatory booklets about the new assessment program as they re assess properties Ask the man who assesses your property for one No grass widows Acton firefighters just sure whether they should rejoice yet or not over the so far unusual grass fire situation this Spring they have one lost weekend filled with smoke and burning grass annually that sends them scurrying In all directions There were three calls this week but not one of them amounted to any more than a run to Sunday just before noon where they discovered the Georgetown brigade had been railed prior and extinguished the blaze Grass Monday at about 30 In the afternoon the alarm went for another grass fire in the Eden Mills district but they were ad vised it was out before they left the hall Tuesday at 30 a m another call came from Sideroad where a man was smoking out bees from under eaves but they never had to leave the truck Meanwhile they are crossing fingers and hoping the growing season Is well enough advanced that no further grass fire calla will be necessary Wives of the volunteers especially enjoy the respite from grass widowhood