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6 - Orono Weekly Times, Wednesday, November 18, 1998 Murder he wrote Clarington hydro-electric commission news Inspector Marcel Montclair - John Thomson (L) is joined by Lome Allin and Yvonne Maitland, just two of the many who had a part in Friday-night's Murder Mystery put on by the Orono Business Improvement Association. The script was carefully crafted by the Inspector himself, and patrons were kept in the dark till the very end as to who killed Sherry Frambois. This event was another in ' series put orf by the BIA in the Orono Town Hall to celebrate the Hall's 100th anniversary. by John O'Toole, MPP This week, the Ontario Legislature is not in session but several of the Standing Committees are holding public meetings on legislation. As chair of the General Government Committee, we will be gathering input on Bill 55, An Act to revise the Trade & Apprenticeship Act. This legislation will, if passed, replace the 30 year old Trades & Qualification & Apprenticeship Act. There has been a discussion paper on this legislation over the past year. Our government believes that the present system is not keep- ing pace with the changing nature of jobs and technology. We further believe that appren- ticeships and skilled workers are essential for our future health in a knowledge-based economy. Anyone wishing to forward written submissions should contact the Clerk at 416-325-3509. There were a couple of arti- cles in the news that I take some exception to. First is the one that suggests that some MPP's were issuing incorrect information on the current municipal tax and provincial downloading issue. I take exception to this blanket style statement and can assure con- stituents that having served as a municipal councillor, I am con- fident that the information we communicate is accurate. We provided on request, informa- tion to help people understand the changes. I try and save political finger poînting to face to face discussions with the people I am dealing with. I try not to blame elected officiais as I know they are trying to do their job as best they know how. The second issue was on Bill 70 dealing with highway 407. In this article, it appeared that I was contradicting myself. In fact, I have spoken on the record about the 407 legislation both in the house and locally. I know how important this issue is to my constituency. For over ten years, the prospect of a highway through Durham has been on the books. The previ- ous government entered into the agreement that gave us the 407 toll road. Inevitably, it is coming here. There are very valid reasons for the highway. Our Durham economy needs it and highway 401 is congested. My statements have always addressed the 407 route and my regard for our agricultural sec- tor and our fragile environmen- tal countryside. Last week, ail area MPP's met with the Peterborough, Northumberland & Clarington, Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board #14. We dis- cussed a number of current issues including the school accommodations, the new text books, the number of new teachers, the board budget and their decision to ignore the bud- get deadline. After ail the polit- ical statements for the benefit of the press, I believe it was a very worthwhile meeting. The real issue is to keep the com- munication channels open and listen to each other's concerns. We must ail put the students first. These past weeks, I have had occasion to attend a few of our secondary school gradua- tion ceremonies and other exer- cises. The best occasion was the Cartwright High School commencement. The entire community, students, teachers, parents, administration, local business and community lead- ers participated. It was a terrific positive celebration. On another occasion I was as a participant at a Bowmanville High School OAC economics class. The stu- dents were great and the teacher was a terrific facilitator. It was wonderful to be invited and to witness the beauty of youth learning without all the political battles. On the topic of education, I know there are a couple of poli- cies currently being discussed. One is a Safe School Arrival Policy that many schools already have in place. The other is a Safe School Policy. Violent incidents and unaccept- able school behavior must have consequences. Teachers and students must not be intimidat- ed by bullying tactics. It goes right to the heart of the Young Offenders Act and the attitude that no one can hold me accountable because I am a youth and I have rights. Most youth are not in question; it is the few who ruin it for the majority. I support a strong vio- lence free school policy. I would be interested in your views on this or any topic. Please call me at 697-1501 or 1-800-661-2433. This year's Remembrance Day will be hard to duplicate. Mr. Fred West, a 99-year-old First World War veteran received France's highest hon- our. Consul General Pierre-Jean Van Doorne came to the Bowmanville Legion Branch 178 to present Mr. West with the Knights of the Legion of Honour medal. Congratulations Fred and thank you and al the veterans for giving us the tradi- tions, values and democracy we enjoy today. CLARINGTON HYDRO COMMISSIONER RECEIVES INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION Pauline Storks, Vice-Chair of the Clarington Hydro- Electric Commission has been inducted into the International Who's Who of Professionals. In addition to her position as a hydro commissioner, Mrs. Storks is Chair of the Municipal Electric Association. The Municipal Electric Association is the association representing Ontario municipal electric utilities. CLARINGTON HYDRO ANNOUNCES RELIABILITY IMPROVEMENTS Clarington Hydro has sig- nificantly improved power reliability to its customers. David -Clark, General Manager reported at the November 12 Commission meeting that power interrup- tions for the first 10 months of 1998 were down to an aver- age of only 3/4 of an hour per customer. This is a marked improvement over past years. In 1996, Clarington cus- tomers were interrupted on average over 4 hours. The average customer power interruptions for other municipal utilities in Ontario is one hour. In 1998, Clarngton Hydro line crews built and replaced key power lines that will con- tribute to improved reliability. They also continued to promptly respond to any power interruption 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Ontario Hydro has also made improvements to its supply lines for Clarington. Responding to a request from Clarington Hydro, Ontario Hydro replaced an older sup- ply line that was suspected to be the source of nunerous power interruption problems. The Commission is appre- ciative of the combined efforts of Clarington Hydro and Ontario Hydro employees to improve the power reliability to the customers in Bowmanville, Newcastle and Orono. orrection In last week's Food Column the receipt for Fruit Cake should have read 1 1/2 lbs. bleached raisins. Sorry for any inconve- nience. PUBLIC NOTICE 1999 Municipal Grant Program The Municipal Grant process was initiated to assist organizations with funding for programs and services not provided by the Municipality. Applications for Municipal Grants are now available for local orga- nizations that provide social, health, recreational and/or other ser- vices that directly benefit the Municipality of Clarington and its residents. Applications can be picked up at: Community Services Department Municipal Administrative Centre 40 Temperance Street Bowmanville, Ontario Monday - Friday (8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) APPLICATIONS COMPLETED IN FULL WILL BE CONSID- ERED FOR A 1999 GRANT IF RECEIVED ON OR BEFORE FRIDAY, DECEMBER 11, 1998. MUNICIPALITY OF iaringlon ONTARIO Date of Pubication wednesday, November 18 1998 PO #6819 Staying in Touch Vla