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The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday July 16, 2003 - A 3 Elementary teachers want parity with high school counterparts (Continued from page A1) ETFO Halton membership have a meeting planned for Aug. 26, she said. Weinberger, head of the 1,600 teacherunion, said local educators are demanding wage parity with their secondary school counterparts. For the 2002-03 school year, the entry level for Halton public school elementary teachers was $33,701 and top scale was $70,062. The entry level for public sec ondary school teachers was $33,762 and the top scale was $72,169. The secondary school figures included a three percent retroactive pay increase to last September achieved in the union's recent contract set tlement. Halton's public elementary have been without a contract since Aug. 31, 2002; they have been in a legal strike position since June 30. The ETFO recently asked teachers not to apply for jobs at the HDSB. The sanction is called `pink listing'. "It will be interesting to see what her definition of parity is," Beckett-Morton said of Weinberger's comments on wages. "Sixty-eight per cent of our elementary teachers will be paid higher than secondary, across the grid, as of June 2003." BeckettMorton said, referring to the impact of the board's last contract offer if it is accepted by ETFO Halton. Halton is the last elementary panel in the province without a contract Weinberger said the issues for the ETFO are salary, part-year grid payment and some working conditions items. Liesa Kortmann · Oakville Beaver SHOW OF SUPPORT: The Underwire Crew (dressed in blue t-shirts) -- Monica Batista, Kathy Bass, Leigh Craney and Michelle Rene -- were recently surrounded by their Royal Bank. Oakville Branch supporters, who have been raising funds for the team 's participation in The Weekend To E nd Breast Cancer 60 km-walk in Toronto on Sept. 19. Each teram m ember must raise $2,000 for the event and Oakville Royal Bank employees have been selling Underwire Crew t-shirts to raise $1,000 for the cause. Three m em bers of the Underwire Crew are RBC Dominion Securities, Oakville Branch employees. M id -S Council adopts drive-through guidelines By Kim Amott SP E C 1 A LTO T H E BEAVER Sometimes a half a donut is better than no donut at all. That seemed to be the consensus of Town councillors Monday night, as they voted to adopt a series of guide lines to govern the establishment of new drive-through operations. While a number of councillors sug gested they would prefer stricter and more enforceable rales than those out lined in the guidelines, council eventu ally agreed to try a cooperative, volun tary approach for the next two years. "What we are trying to do here is achieve the best results, with the least amount of regulation," explained Town planning director Peter Cheatley. "We haven't precluded our opportunity to get more aggressive in the future if need be." The series o f 39 guidelines outline the Town's perspective on how drivethrough operations should be designed in order to mitigate their impact on res idential neighbourhoods, contribute to streetscapes and ensure traffic and pedestrian safety. One key guideline notes that drivethrough facilities will be discouraged in the downtown area, Kerr Street corridor and Bronte village. Another guideline suggests avoiding the placement of drive-through facilities adjacent to residential properties. "W here this cannot be achieved, locate all parts of drive-through facili ties as far away from a residential prop erty line as possible," it adds. If facilities are built adjacent to resi dential uses, the guidelines suggest a minimum landscaped buffer zone of 7.5 metres. Still, councillors questioned the use of phrases like "where possible," and "where appropriate," wondering aloud whether developers would find ways around the guidelines. "It seems to me that we have to prove the site won't work, rather than the applicant proving the site will work," noted Ward 1 Councillor Kevin Flynn. Ward 3 Councillor Tedd Smith ques tioned the use of the word "discourage." asking, "Does that somehow imply pro hibit? Or permit?" Cheatley reassured councillors that staff will monitor the guidelines, and their success, over the next two years. Although the city of Toronto has imposed strict bylaws on drive-through operations and their locations, Cheatley noted that the viability of those bylaws is currently under review in an Ontario Municipal Board hearing. The Oakville guidelines, developed through a public consultation process, appear to be acceptable to the drivethrough industry, added Cheatley. While they outline the Town's prior ities and wishes, they also allow Town planning staff the flexibility to address site-specific issues, he added. "We recognize that, to a certain extent, this is an experiment," said Cheatley. "But we think this is a far more reasonable way to address theissues." Representatives from McDonald's and Tim Hortons who spoke to council lors at the meeting suggested small wording changes to the proposed guide lines, but were generally supportive of them. Oakville currently has 32 drivethrough restaurants and 10 drivethrough banking operations. u m m e rs n c e r t co 27, 2003 S u n d a y , J u ly at 3pm (time changed in consideration of West Nile Virus) C o ro n a tio n P a rk (s ta g e ), O a k v ille , O n ta rio F R E E A d m is s io n ! A G o spel C oncert F e a t u r in g : T h e b a n d - " P r o m is e ", s o lo is t I s a b e l S a m o s , I t is W ritte n S i n g e r s . T h e B r o n t e C h u r c h C h o ir , a n d m a n y m o r e ... B ring a picnic blanket, folding chairs, take up y o u r spot and enjoy a great all-m u sic concert at the lakeside. S ponsokm j b\ Br o n te FR EE G if t * * The f i r st 50 people to present this advertise ment at the Pavilion will receive a fre e concert '/-shirt o r fa n n y pack, limit 1 p er person 'con cert participants am ! their fam ilies excludedi A d v e n t is t .S e v e n t h -i w am uon 905-825-0230 www.brontechurch.com Review of sewage treatment plants racks up savings for regional taxpayers By Jason Misner S P E C IA L T O T H E BEAVER " in s p ir in g a rtis tic e x c e lle n c e " Halton's detailed review of how its seven sewage treatment plants operate has saved millions of taxpayers' dollars in infrastruc ture costs. An information report recently released to the Region's planning and public works committee shows the optimization review that started a decade ago is paying off in fewer dollars needed to build more plant capacity while produc ing all-important clean effluent -- clean water flowing out of the plant. "We've found fantastic results from that," said Patrick Murphy. Halton's commissioner of plan ning and public works. The report noted Halton has received some awards and recogni tion for its sewage review pro gram. The optimization review stud ies various steps along the treat ment process, from the time sewage enters the plant to the treat ed effluent that leaves, to see how they're all operating. It helps determine if the exist ing plant can be improved in some form to handle additional human waste without having to expand them, which typically is an expen sive venture. Burlington Skyway and Milton's wastewater treatment plants are the best examples of facilities that didn't need massive physical upgrades, the report points out. The Region saved $17 million in Burlington and $6 million in Milton. At Burlington's Skyway, for example, the Region maximized the existing plant capabilities by reducing the amount of phospho rus and ammonia outfall. The Region sets aside an aver age of about $700,000 a year to make any changes through the review process. Despite the success of the review program, sewage plant expansion is still necessary at times. The Region earlier approved expanding the mid-Halton sewage treatment plant, on North Service Road, by tens of thousands of cubic metres a day. at a cost of $25 million. It will service massive growth needs in north Oakville, as well as south Milton and part of Halton Hills along the Hwy. 401 corridor. The expansion upset residents living near the plant who felt increased flows could harm the environment. Oakville Regional Councillor Allan Elgar was among the opposed. Elgar is concerned by the con tinued formation of smelly algae along Lake Ontario's south shore line, and he feels the mid-Halton plant is a culprit. Elgar said the total phospho rous coming from the mid-Halton is double what's coming out of the Skyway. (The outflow from both plants exceed the provincial O a k v iH e A c a d e m y )r th e Presenting... R oyal A ca d e m y o f D ance D a nce Technique Ballet, jazz, tap. aero, stretch & strength Arts O ffering O a kv ille the finest in arts exploration and developm ent. C o m p e titive D ance Please call to arrange an audition. 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