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All around the world thousands of boys and girls are celebrating Scout and Guide Week with many events For more than years millions have passed thrbugh Scouts and Guides and their younger counterparts to become healthy earned individuals Acton as small us the town Is when compared to the rest the world has put nut lis share of Tine men and women Included arc Jell right Brownie Guide Beaver An drew McVeigh Venturer Eddie beaut Andrew Ferguson and Cub Kenneth Philips Jr Ell Most at meeting want new plaza A forest of exposed palms indicated favor with the proposed store and plaza on the east end of town at last week public meeting of Hills Planning Board Most of the approximately people voted with raised arms in favor of the plaza proposal About people opposed the for one reason or another The public meclingat the high school Wednesday was to be a sounding board of opinion by planning board The board is to hear at least one more presentation next week and a decision expected by town planner Mario Vendilti towards the end of March There were about twice as many people who said hey favored the plaza than those who spoke against the proposal during Ihe two hour meeting Some people came to the meeting with their minds made up A provincial ministry of housing official Lakoseljac said he was asked which side he was on before the meeting in the cafeteria started There were men and women standing at the back of the room and near the door throughout the meeting Some people who identified themselves as being in favor of the project at the corner of Highway and Churchill Road South also levelled charges against downtown merchants This town has deteriorated because of the parking Ralph Denny an R Acton resident said It s not worth coming to town to shop boys cause Im not walking halfway home with the groceries Mr Denny lives on Highway Seven near the Fourth Line Lack of parking places for downtown shoppers was the target of many barbs while the stores One Hundred and Fourth YearNo 34 ACTON ONTARIO WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 1979 Twenty PagesTwenty Cents Town hall question goes before council Representatives of the and the Chamber Acton Town Hall of Commerce have alion Committee will en lo council expressing appear before their support in pro- Hills general committee next Monday in a bid for funds to go towards restoring Ihe old town hall Vicechairman of the committee Doug told the Acton Free Press over had been raised in pledges in the past few months with some coming from former Acton residents now living in Toronto In addition he said the Acton Rotary Club the Ontario architect puts the total costs of re storation both interior and exterior at J The Chamber of Pledges can still be Commerce at their last made at Swetman Shoes meeting voted and or with committee mem agreed that in the event George Elliott of restoration of the town Yvonne and hall the Chamber of Lou Charlcbois Commerce will take If the committee can responsibility of main raise Mr Fread and lease of its said and the town is operations according willing to give a sub- president Jake Kulken donation grants meantime the will be available from the own hall once a meeting Ontario Heritage Found and Pol nek Coles a London place for happy occas ions sits empty after being declared unsafe Noise buffering for Highway Wallace Foxshot Five members of the Legion ladles Auxiliary could put and Anne worked hard behind the Sanders out of business Left to right Doris cook fried chicken at the I family pic Foley Ruth Courtney Grace Townlej The 11 acre parcel of than any future industry land on Highway If we say do this and do between the railroad that will say tracks and Wallace hey will go somewhere Street must have noise and sight buffering Clerk Administrator from the industrial area Ken Richardson said the according to the Ministry town already has control of Housing in pari under Section The land being of he planning Act developed as housing by Councillor Marilyn North Halton Real agreed the Estate has no require- developer should do the for buffering at buffering since it is his present The application land that is being re- for re zoning from in zoned residential is Councillor Ed Wood before the Ministry of said the project had been Housing at present on the way for live years Councillor Roy Booth and he didn t want to see contended it Was up lo the ii held up any longer He Roy Booth and Walter north after it failed residential developers to if any more items Biehn opposed the mot inside a dog pen ai home developer he doubled if he could carry on Councillor George asked who owned abutting land and was told It was So the land Is not up for sale at this time he com men led The town agreed lo add a statement requiring buffering between the re sidences and the abutting land and said new in dustrial development within feet of the lands would bo subject to a development agree ment Councillors Lea Duby inside Editorials A rabid fox was shot and killed by Anthony Williamson on his farm near Acton High School Thursday An Animal Control Unit member from Lime- house cautioned the high school about the incident DUDV Councillor Sports Council urges 3 year term Elected officials should It pointed out munici have a three year term of pal government is instead of the pre- creasingly complex with Two dogs and a cow had to be destroyed last November after con trading rabies Foxes a pup and an adult were spoiled in the area north of the curling club One animal was seen by a police sergeant Sunday what is thought to be a rabid fox escaped made his first appear at council Monday night after a lengthy illness He was welcomed back by Mayor Pomeroy and had a warm hand hake from every areas where regional government has been established Hills council decided Monday night Only Councillors Walter and Ross apposed the motion backing a resolu lion from the Peel long implications ior residents and Ihe higher cost of electioneering every two years could limit local politics to he wealthy Councillor Roy Booth argued a I wo year term of does not give new time to become Nurses want 40 An almost per cent hike in wages and benefits Is being sought by Hall on public health and registered nurses Although a news black out has been imposed on negotiations for the 1979- contract a copy of a confidential report by personnel director Dennis Camm was leaked to the press Hal on Region currently employs registered nurses ear between J 13 and and public health nurses earning between and according reports The salary and benefit ilc See olols a per cent increase Negotr- are also underway on some monetary issues which were not revealed in the report The salary increases will odd a reported to the regional budget The nurses are also seeking changes in the dental plan five weeks holidays after eight years Instead of after 22 years and a revised formula for mileage which could end up giving nurses who use heir cars on the Job about 40 cents a mile facilities also took a licking Were fed up with the little dinky things downtown complained Mrs Fritz of Walter Gosbury drew on his knowledge of Zehrs store at Elm Ira He said the business situation improved there in spile of the fact or because of the food store He went on to say would Im prove business here too Mr also said Actons business area is not as good as in the early 1940s Developer Jerry Sprackman of Landawn Shop ping Centres told the gathering he is proposing a plus eight retail stores with room for ex pansion We also believe in proper planning Mr said Mr said consultants have indicated a store can do well in Acton without adversely affecting the downtown He invited people to check on the effect of his previous projects at and Mr Sprackman has a conditional offer on the eight and a half area site Many of the people at the meeting were handed a two page document titled Acton Shopping Centre One part of Ihe paper from the developer slates studies indicate a strong market for development and a nominal economic impact on existing facilities The Zehrs plaza may close one of the existing supermarkets admitted Mr Sprackman In the public part of meeting Anna Conigho echoed One of the charges made by Mr against the Business Improvement Area She said the BIA which receives a special tax is using that money to fighl the plaza rather than improve the downtown BIA chairman Henry drew cries of where from the crowd when he said Weve outlets from Crewsons Corners to Churchill Road Giving background lo the meeting he said council ruled against giving time for the BIA to make a market study The he said welcomes com petition However he encouraged such develop ments as Zehrs downtown where there are existing services The BIA then presented a film which described in detail the purpose of the provincial program However when the soon after wanted to show some colored slides the meeting chairman in formed Paul Nielsen that his time was up Mr Nielsen speaking for the managed to Indicate the effect on the business community of the proposed plaza There are people who say while we can still show a reasonably good balance sheet lets get out He like later merchants indicated here is land for sale downtown Youve been speaking for about minutes Its now lime for people to speak Councillor Arm strong said The ruling was greeted with applause Mr Armstrong also directed an architect Ehzabelh Davidson from Toronto to make her submission to he planning board clerk rather than take time in the public meeting One woman indicated she favored the plaza In part because of the jobs it would create for young people Its we people in Aclon that are concerned Were paying out taxes so give us something for It Ruth said While some merchants at meeting spoke against the plaza proposal there were some others residents who sided with them Long time resident Vic Bnstow said ho believed the downtown business men are doing a good Job He countered much of criticism concerning prices in own and distances people claimed they had lo walk from the shops lo their cars Mr made a good smooth and convincing presentation to impressionable minds Mr Bnstow said He continued by saying the plaza may use he balance of the sewage treatment capacity left in the plant The people of Acton will pay for sewage expansion not Deborah Sankey R opposed the plaza She also recognized he parking problem in town but went on to say she has never been without a parking space within a block of her destination or behind the store She observed the results of the plaza at Milton rather than strengthening the business core it caused a shift Within a period she thought residents should give the local merchants a chance Mike Franklin Road said there is a tremendous amount of popular support at the meeting which he said was probably more a con demnation or the downtown rather than support for the plaza the do the buffering rather asked He said he was still taking it easy but felt pretty good The Peel resolution really with the Ministry of own mailers before its Intergovernmental time to face on election Affairs to introduce No other comment was legislation implementing made as the motion was the year term approved Aim for maximum 5 tax hike A determined effort to keep any lax in crease for town purposes this year to a maximum of five per cent is being made by Hills council Monday night at the insistence of Coun Waller Biehn a storm sewer project Crescent was cut out of the draft capital budget The town share of this cost would be 61000 with the half a pro vincial subsidy The budget committee headed by Coun cillor Harry Levy followed town policy using the pay basis Incurring no deben ture debt To reach the goal of taking from the operating budget to cover capital Hems the budget must be pared by Levy ex plained The cutting of Stevens Crescent storm sewers an amount of 61000 has helped further cuts will be made Cuts already made reducing the draft budget from Include the deletion of work on Charles Churchill and Bard Lane at a town cost of the paper mill dam ice and flood control at central works yard at two riding lawn mowers at and two trucks at 20000 Levy pointed out Ihe education and regional taxes will be on top of the town axes He said many items had lo go and more will have to go in order to be realistic Before his successful bid for the cut Councillor Walter questioned addi tion of Stevens Crescent storm sewers when cuts were being made in places He said he knew of no complaints from the area Councillor Roy Booth asked why Charles Churchill Crescent and Bard Lane at a town coat of was cut then Stevens Crescent at a own cost of was added Levy replied over past two years no road work had been done in Ward Booth said he understood all the engineer ing work has been done on the Churchill- area but no engineering has been done on Stevens Crescent Engineer Bob Austin when questioned said the ChurchillBard area was the last year of a four year program in the area He said Stevens Crescent may be more functional He said if Stevens Crescenl is done this year Ihe engineering would have lo be done by a con He said engineering in the Bard Lane- Churchill Charles area is completed pointed out Stevens Crescent was never in the budget and should be cut This business of ward politics I find disagreeable He moved Stevens Crescent be dropped Councillor Miller agreed and suggested Ihe contention no road work In Word Four was a parochial He reminded council he Metcalfe ravine would cost almost a million dollars over three years and would be paid by everyone in Sooner or later the taxes have to level off people in the rural ureas have had their taxes doubled since regional government Levy argued Ihe cuts should be made where no provincial subsidy money would be lost taken out was and Stevens Crescenl which was put in had a subsidy Councillor John McDonald said he was disillusioned at the ward politics in drafting a budget Work should be done on a priority basis no matter where it is Biehn and Miller contended he town should not money just because subsidies are available said it would be better if the pro vincial government cut subsidy allocations the same amount all municipalities Councillor George Mnllby said as a Ward Two representative he fell the two garbage packers could be cut He said he feels it is wiser cut Items the town is paying per of the cost as opposed to Ihose they are only paying per cent He said the operating budget still to be drafted may have further to be made Levy commented the will go back and attack the draft budget some more now we have council direction Parking critics wont use plaza BI A says Critics of Actons lack The only that open air plaza Is obsolete of parking spaces did not bugs me is the people by todays standards seem to bother Business who said they wanted a said the chairman Improvement Area plaza wont end up using What is being offered Is BIA chairman Henry it Mr Stachyra said not much of an Stachrya during last Tuesday ment People indicated Why Because the Mr prefer square feel of enclosed malls because school He even went as space offered by going to them amounts to far as to later make a developer Jerry Sprack- an prediction about them man Is not large and on Continued on Page Most of the r wide at last Wednesdays public meeting at Ihe high school voted In favor of a new shopping plaza