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RK be NOEL AY Tok Vol. 131 Number 17 PORT PERRY, ONTARIO - TUESDAY, MARCH 18, 1997 28 Pages Election fever Mayor set to go, but many still undecided By John B. McClelland Special to The Port Perry Star Though it's only mid-March, politicians in Scugog Township are starting to map out their election plans. After all, 1997 is an election year, and voters will go to the polls to elect a new municipal council in November. And it's an election that local politicians and others agree is the most important since Scugog was formed in 1974 with the amalga- mation of Port Perry Village and the old Townships of Reach, Scugog Island and Cartwright. On top of the fact the Township is facing a severe financial crunch from provincial cut-backs and a strong desire to hold the line on property tax hikes, will there even be a Scugog three years from now? Will this municipality with its more than 18,000 people enter an amalgamation with one or more of its neighbours; will it be gobbled up into some kind of mega-city taking in all or most of Durham Region? Or could it be forced into an even larger mega-city, of the Greater Toronto Area, or GTA as it is called? One only has to look back on very recent his- tory and the unhappy marriage of Metro Toronto's municipali- ties to realize that the municipal council we elect in Scugog this November will be faced with some very daunting issues unlike any in more than two decades. With this in mind and with the fact that in 1997, those seeking office in November can file nomi- nation papers as of April 1, we sur- veyed members of council and oth- ers to ask if they will once more throw their hats into the political ring. We heard some very interesting MAYOR HOWARD HALL Seeking fourth term responses. Mayor Howard Hall has already said publicly he will seek another term, his fourth, and he confirmed that over the weekend. . "Oh, sure, I'll be running again," said the man who has led council for the last nine years, longer than any other mayor in Scugog's brief history. Hall believes there are changes coming in the municipal structure in the not too distant future. In fact, he is one of those who would not-be surprised if Scugog as we know "it "disappears in the next three years. Even though there is presently much uncertainty and a plethora of mixed messages coming from the Tory regime at Queens Park, Hall believes the status quo won't be an option for Scugog. "The province may let us change. If we don't, they will do i. for us," he said. He thinks it's crucial for the mayor elected this November to have an understanding of these issues and to have been part of the discussions that have gone on so far over the future of Durham and the GTA. And Hall is proud of his record in the mayor's chair over the last nine years. "We've had a good run at this. I don't think there have been too many poor decisions," he said, not- ing the fact the economy has taken a battering, the province has dras- tically reduced its transfer pay- ments, while the local council has been able to hold the line for several straight years on property taxes. In the 1994 election, Hall had a fairly easy time winning re-elec- tion by a margin of some 1800 votes (40 of 43 polls) over challeng- Please Turn to Page 2 BPEL LEP PONTIAC BUICK LIMITED 10 Vanedward Drive, Port Perry 985-8474 he gets you a... * Lube, oil & filter change Most GM « 50pt airline style inspection * Includes brake inspection nn AA ARAYA AA SARA AAPA AAA BAA Ws i 2 | i f H § i | * No Five O'clock Surprises » Factory Trained Technicians * Very Competitive Pricing » Best Available Warranties * Original Equipment Parts * Free Shuttle Service