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Developer claims Take another look Peoples wishes ignored in plaza decision After a stormy session with Jerry of Landawn Shopping Centre Ltd accusing council of not listening to the people nor reading reports Halton Hills council Monday night reversed a planning board decision and decided to take another look at the proposed shopping centre at Highway and Churchill Road Acton Sprackman not listed on the agenda asked to speak Councillor Miller said Sprackman had been heard several times and planning board had made the recommendation that the plaza was premature and would cause a harmful impact on existing merchants if built before there are more houses In Acton Sprackman said he had been coming council for the past two years and wanted to hear from each councillor why they voted against the plaza 1 the fellow you supported to develop a shopping plaza in Georgetown You asked for theatres you got them you asked for a shopping plaza you got it you asked for an agreement you got It He contended the question was dealt with in planning board last week after he asked for a deferral because he was sick said he had spent on planning studies for Acton and pointed out council has on file a tetter showing has lease and a report from A supporting the plaza He said he was to meet the merchants of Acton but only four showed up representative of a cleaners the A Supermarket and one other person Those are all the interested citizens who showed up Sprackman said the four said they were not opposed to the shopping plaza as long as it was built after the East residential area Is built We don know if Acton East will ever be built he remarked He asked council if Ihey had read any of the studies and suggested if they had not they had nothing on which to base a decision since they had no study of their own He claimed would bring people a week into Acton He told council he had sent two em out to do a survey asking if they wished to see a modern super market at Highway and Churchill Road and the response in one day was in favor and against out of people Hi promised the survey would be con tinned all week I want to know why you don t want this development when the people of Acton do He said the study showed BO per cent of the residents in favor He said he did not think councillors had read the studies Where I come from the majority rules If you don believe us ask the people of Acton said while his employees were doing their survey they met Mrs June 0 who was doing a survey of her own and asked if she could speak Before answering Mayor Pete Pomcroy suggested if the whole matter was to be discussed again it should be referred back to planning board Councillor George Maltby said he would move It be referred He said it should not have been discussed at last planning board In he absence of Sprackman who had asked for a delay Councillor Lea said he wonted to make it clear he was not intimidated by someone telling him how his town should be planned He said council had proceeded in the proper manner No matter what we will be opposed by per cent of the people Councillor Ross said he resented Sprackman implying everyone Is stupid and said he opposed the matter being referred back to planning board Councillor Mike Armstrong said council must realize after reading the report they have to decide whether or not they are going to undermine existing Acton mer chants Mrs June Rourke said she decided to take up a petition because she and some friends wanted a plaza Out of people in the west end of Acton we have only had four refusals to sign the petition favoring he shopping plaza She predicted there would be even fewer refusals when they reached the other end of town She id people will still use the down town area but claimed residents arc en titled to a shopping plaza She said half of do their grocery shopping out of own mostly in Guelph Jake told council there were more tores in Acton when he came there years ago than there ore now and cited the population at that time as com pared to the present 8 He said Acton needs more stores and cited Strfllhroy of similar size with two plazas and a down town shopping area as an example of an area where all stores were doing well Whether It a shopping plaza or more shopping facilities it Is a must It would help the community as far as employ Kuiken said a rough study showed per cent of food shoppers and per cent of shoppers for other goods go out of town Councillor Ed Wood declared a conflict of interest One Hundred and fourth Year No ACTON ONTARIO WEDNESDAY DECEMBER Twenty Eight Pages Fifteen Cents Leather industry heel n toe over higher prices quotas About new jobs exist in the leather and shoe industries since Ottawa imposed quotas on shoe imports last year None of the new jobs are at Beardmore and Co Ltd personnel manager at and Co Ltd said in a telephone interview Tuesday We haven noticed any great change in business Most certainly the way to go is to expect changes In he next few months Mr said Five or six people have been hired in the past three months but they are replacing retiring workers Mr said About 1 000 of the new jobs created exist in the tanning industry The plant and staff at and Co Ltd amounted lo in October Another effect of the quotas the rising prices for leather and he devaluation of the Canadian dollar is that shoe manufacturers and tanners are working more in concert There is more communication between the two industries For example and Co Ltd president Peter Dunham told the Shoe Manufacturers Association Continued on Page 5 Swetman Shoes sees little effect and Co ltd President Peter Dunham assured shoe manufacturers the nation tanners are able to handle Shopping area possible at Force Electric plant There is a possibility the old Force Electric plant now standing vacant beside the CNR tracks could become an extension of the downtown shopping area of Acton Hills planning board heard a proposal last Tuesday night from Art Gordon who would like Ihe property rezoned from indus Gordon said he would like to replace the closed factory with stores and apartments He did not specify the number of stores involved He suggested such a commercial development would do a lot for Acton downtown business area and remove an eyesore Gordon said he wasn sure if the existing building would be refurbished into stores or demolished with a new being built He said hi d prefer to sec the old factory lo down and a new building constructed but would leave that decision o Ills engineers and architects Councillor Duby ob served a traffic study would be needed there is already a problem in that area Gordon concluded he thought access to the stores should be of f Eastern Avenue so traffic could tie In with I and Canadian Tire parking lots He also predicted this would solve much of the traffic problems Planning board decided to send topic to the planner for review Business is as usual at s Shoe Store in spile f the import on shoes lo owner The restricted im ports to BO per thus leav inc manufailurcrs provide the other per icnt As result some press reports claim nnnufacturers are behind in orders causing slow dclh tries to shoe stores Mrs explained lluv hau no trouble supply customers with most shoes as their stock is rdered at least eight months In ad idmit however that any especially Office closed In that the staff of The free Press may observe Christmas with their families the Willow Si office will hi closed Christmas Day Day New Itegulor business hours apply for all other days This applies also thi news and advertising departments and he composing and press The Acton Free Press will be published Thursdiy next week in of he rcguljr publication also ductoChr slims merry Christmas May you rejoice in the sprit tint this Holy ho day Limns Acton Citizen Band member proved they could sing a well as play Instruments well at the band annual concert Sunday night The vena tile musicians delighted the audience at school with Christmas martial and contemporary music See story Inside ladies dress shoes have been slow in coming in and in some cases Ihey have had to go to a new supplier pro vide them with goods We use be able to order certain shoe for a customer on Monday and have it by the end of the week she noted But now it is lied up weeks or we get a statement saying is out of stock Mrs pointed out that some BO per cent of the stores winter wear is Cina dian made anyway so Ihe quota is not forcing her to bring in brands they would However when summer comes the story will be different she claimed She explained Canadian manufacturers can not supply them with the sandals and thongs which are made in Brazil India and Spain Now the Candian Manufacturers will be forced to go into these lines she said which is good We can make a superior product and eventually service the customer batter Mrs Swetman believes that in Acton least Cana made shoes sell as quickly as imports I don t know if il Is because we are a tannery town and people are loyal to Canadian leather or what it Is but people always prefer leather She noted her store once bought a synthetic line of shoes but they did not sell People want the real Ihlng Most of the shoes sold in the owner pointed out are made by manufacturers who buy leather thus making them local shoes Buster Brown Kaufman shoes Savage all of Ihem buy local leather Production of shoes has gone up per Mrs said causing increased employment in some factories When the in three years she does not feel the production will decrease Industries are spending millions to put additions on their plants adding new equipment They are going into style they did not produce before and are not going to let this all go to waste in Ihrce years She said that within three years Canadians will have gotten use to Canadian made shoes and will be able get all styles made in Canada Mrs Swetman did however say she has heard of other shoe stores who have been having a trouble getting requested Items as hey had not ordered as far In advance as the Swetman had Mrs Swetman Is not sure how delivery will be once they have lo make several re orders She apologizes her customers who must wait if special orders are required for ladies dress shoes but she soyB It Is out of our hands Hydro corridor Ric Morrow asks independent study In one of his last nets before retiring as Halton regional chairman Morrow requested Minister of Energy James Auld arrange an independent study of the proposal to bring a transmission corridor from Ihe Bruce generating station on Lake Huron through Hills to the substation at Milton Official plan and zoning changes have been requested by Ontario Hydro to bring corridor Ihrough Hilts and the town has rejected for three reasons a belter alternatives for power transmission from Bruce exist lhan that proposed by Ontario Hydro including the alternative I even if It Is determined Ihe transmission corridor has to be brought to Milton then there is still a belter alternative route available the region of from Kitchener along the corridor to Milton substation twinning the present to Pickering line thus avoiding disturbing the agricultural setting of the rural area of Hills and unnecessary environmental blight c Further even it Is determined the line must come through Halton Hills the town believes a detailed independent study should be done lo Insure that the best route through Hills has been chosen as was done by the Government with respect lo chairman Cnvclry of the Environmental Hearing Board on of the route from point Morrow pointed it is the desire of regional council lhat Ihe minister appoint a commissioner of inquiry or some other independent person to carry a detailed study of Ihe three The letter also points that if on independent Inquiry is permitted regional council would concur with its finding Morrow wrole 11 is the Region contention Continued on Page