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2 - Orono Weekly Times, Wednesday, July 12, 2000 Wf.fki.y Times S3 ISIS 64 at Subscriptions $23.36 + $1. Publications Mail Regis Publishing SO Issues Annually 5310 Main Street, P.O. Box 209, E-Mail Address: oronoti Phone/Fax (905) Publisher/Editor G.S.T. = $25.00/year [ration No. 09301 the Office of Publication Orono, Ontario LOB 1M0 ntes@speedline.ca 983-5301 Marg Zwart Conflict of realities Life's harsh realities hit hard last night as I drove home for the paper, ié last before summer sues mainly related to from a long night of typing stories Last night's council meeting, the recess, dealt with development issues such as the Oak Ridges Trail, a future lakeshore park, charging fees to build in this a Municipality, etc. Development iss recreation and leisure. Last night's council agenda had a list of 15 delegations, with four more added during the meeting. Most of the delegations delegations speaking at council last night were people who felt their rights as a citizen were being violated in some way, so they were all exercising their rights to be heard. Then when I got back to Orono after the meeting, the Main Street, in front of the Town Hall, was lit up brighter than day, and there was Christopher Plummer sitting on the Town Hall steps.' The film crew army had been here since last week, and many have been added to their numbers since then. Dracula 2000 will hopefully give good value for our entertainment entertainment dollar as it thrills millions when it hits theatres this winter When I left work in the wee hours of Tuesday morning, the top news story of the hour was the tragedy in Manila, where at least 56 people lost their lives when the mountain of garbage they lived beside,became an avalanche and smothered smothered them in their wooden shanties. Scavenging on this mountain of garbage provided the thousands who lived in it's shadow with their only source of income, The reporter stated that rescue crews did not expect to find any more survivors because they could no longer hear screams for help coming from the rubbish pile. This squatters settlement beside the mountain of trash was called the Promised Land. • Are we, as citizens of Canada; consistently rated the best country in the world to live in, doing all we can to narrow the gaps between ourselves and the developing nations? i, booksellers and the Internet are drawing away library patrons. Libraries seem to becoming becoming secondary sources of information. If library usage in Clarington is increasing, I do not have a problem with a new main branch library, however, have we exhausted all options with the present main branch library? Parking is and will be a problem period. period. Would opening the branch on Sunday and Monday spread out the flow of patrons? A renovation to a modem day standard? What about exploring other options such as converting converting the old fireball or the new Riceco Development which would keep the library in the downtown core. Other options would have been an addition to the Garnet B. Rickard Complex or to partner partner with one of the many school to be built in and around Bowmanville. The municipal building expansion itself smacks of the ivory towers that were built by some school boards. Why are the mayor, councillors and chief administrative officer getting new offices? What is wrong with their old offices? Were the retreats that these elected officials wasted? Amalgamation is coming and a reduction in the number of representatives from each municipality will occur in the not to distant future so why build lavish digs or why even proceed until the issue of Amalgamation is settled and we know Who Does What? It is obvious that a full cost analysis has not been done.' Costs are mounting. Council has approved up to $1 million for a contingency fund over and above the original budget of $7.3 million to build the new main branch library and municipal office expansion. Will the bleeding stop? Add in the cost of the L.C.B.O. property and other future land acquisitions to satisfy satisfy parking and the cost over runs which will gobble up the contingency fund and interest charges and you will be well into the double digit millions. For this amount of money, take it to the electorate. If our elected officials are really in touch with their constituents, ask if they would rather see a new main branch library and municipal office expansion or one of the many wish list items such as a recreation/ community center. Has anyone ever wonder why Olympic Stadium is not called Jean Drapeau Stadium? Regards, 'Willie Woo Dracula works in Orono Some scary stuff's been happening at the Orono Town Hall this week. The Hall has been selected for the location of a scene in the new Dracula movie, working title -- Dracula 2000. Starring in this movie, to be released this December, is Toronto . born actor; Christopher Plummer, of 'iSound ' of Music ' fame, Johnny Lee Miller, one of the stars in Train Spotting, and Mansfield Park, and Justine Waddell also of Mansfield Park„ • , The film is produced by Wes Craven, who produced Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream 1, 2 and 3. The film's director is Patrick Lussier, Filming will take place in Toronto, New Orleans and Orono. The. Orono Town Hall is decked out to resemble a Town Hall in New Orleans, at Mardi Gras time. Filming took place through the night on Monday, Tuesday, and again on Wednesday. After that, shooting shooting will take place inside the Town Hall. The Crew and equipment are scheduled to leave town Sunday night; SUBSCRIBE TO THE ORONO TIMES $25.00 a year. •*« Letters I July 3, 2000 The Editor Orono, Weekly Times ' When all the plaudits are in for Orono's bold entry onto the big stage with the Great Canadian Town Band Festival, please add one more for Mr. and Mrs. Sonny Young. Having long known of their, ambition to retrieve and enhance the glory of the former former Forestry Headquarters as a unique community resource, it was especially inspiring to see them pull out all the stops for this resounding resounding event. What a setting! Keep ft up, Sonny. We may yet have the natural beauty of a Butchart Gardens, with an ongoing trumpeting of Orono brass and much more. Henry Sissons Orono 1 y Dear Editor: "The more things change, the more they remain the same!" The lack of sufficient lot parking at the Clarington Senior Centre on Beech Street has still to be resolved and now the Municipality is forging forging ahead with another major project,- a new main library and a municipal building expansion, knowing full well that there is no parking on site. The Library Board has stated that there is declining library usage throughout the province however usage in Clarington continues to rise. Libraries are sources of information and knowledge and arb as fundamental as is access to education. The use and borrowing of books is free so it confounds me that book stores such as Chaptérs and Indigo and the dot.com