T h e Oa kv ille Beaver Oa&r%? ksfw anT- tidhwiicf Ccmtuauty fflm sypqtw - ' f ' i ^ M O M 'S -JlU to Bulk Foods Now Available p i i 4 i - . j Honour Roll j M tr a D w S T s n j i INSTANT CASH 337-7700 ______Spoktc __1 f o o d & d r u gUpper Middle/8th Line AMetroland Publication Vol. 37 No. 42 FRIDAY, APRIL 9 ,1 9 9 9 Kerr S t Constable homeless By Howard Mozel OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Kerr Street's Village Constable is looking for a place to call home. Constable Ellie Van Vliet was forced to vacate the storefront office where she was stationed for six years after the absentee landlord demanded prohibitive rent. Without money in the police budget to cover the cost, Van Vliet says the owner was "very gra ciously" told she would be out by March 31st. "That spot has been ideal," says Van Vliet. "It's central and accessible and the community got to know that's where we hung our hat." The office was located in the com mercial portion of the John Scott Building in the heart of the Kerr com munity. The address also houses the Roedean Co-op, a separate entity whose residents bent over backwards to see that the Village Constable settled there after being housed in a basement down the road. The builder even went so far as to cut into the commercial space next door to accommodate the substation. The co-op assumed the hydro bill so all the police had to pay for was the phone. No one, said Van Vliet, was more disappointed with her departure than the co-op residents. "There has been incredible support from the community," said Van Vliet, who stresses that this situation was in no way the co-op's doing. "I just think the world of this community and the people in it." The unique arrangement began falling apart about a month ago when CMLQ Investors Co., the company (See 'Village' page 4) Photo by Barrie Erskine Kerr Street Village Constable Ellie Van Vliet's reflection is visible as she looks inside her former storefront office in the John Scott building. & 32 Pages 7 5 Cents (Plus GST) O ak w o o d s p a re d Uncertain future for two new north Oakville schools By DENNIS SMITH SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER Plans to construct two new elementary schools in north Oakville are in limbo following the Halton District School Board's refusal to close two sparsely populated schools in Oakville and Burlington. Motions to close Burlington's Fairfield and Oakville's Oakwood public school were defeated by a 5-5 vote at Wednesday night's public school board meeting. A proposal to close Burlington's Champlain school was shelved by the board March 23rd. Rejection of the three school closures has put plans on hold for new elementary schools in Burlington (Millcroft), Oakville (River Oaks and West Oak Trails) and south Georgetown. "We have said, in our report, the recommendations are a package," said Education Director Dusty Papke. "No new schools can be built unless you deal with surplus spaces." The board must eliminate about 1,800 surplus elementary spaces to obtain provincial funding for new schools. The staff plan to build four new schools hinged on closing three existing schools, having increasing enrolments and using provincial top-up maintenance funding for interim financing. Following the deadlocked closure votes, trustees were still hoping creative solutions could be found to build new schools. "I 'm coun ting on ou r com m unity to w ork to find private (See 'Board' page 7) t o d a y 's p a p e r 1 1 1 1 Q CO Classified.... E ntertainm ent.... 15-22 Sports._______ 23-24 Business._________.25 ~26-29 Special Supplements: Canadian Publications Mail Product Agreement #435-201 Future Shop, Food Basics, Michaels o f Canada, Mark's Work Wearhouse. College Pro Printers, Simply Creen, Adreanna's lot. Salon iiVliko MnrmiHisfii A 0 R N 1 N G S T A RTAEKWON-DO i necessary • Safe, comfortable atmoshphere • Men, women & children • • Discipline & Respect • Learn self-defence • Teaches self-control • special programs LEARN THE ORIGINAL! CALL 8 4 7 -8 9 5 5 w w w .it f- ta e k w o n d o .c o m 1 4 1 0 S P E E R S R D . (just ecast of 3rd line) 1 SAVE $ 2 0 | w ith th is coupon. New m em bers only. I .... ico u p o n . I O nly $79.00 http://www.itf-taekwondo.com