pecial to the Beaver Halton Region‘s 1995 operating udget holds no property tax increasâ€" y ANGELA BLACKBURN tandâ€"pat budget freezes Halton Region taxes another $5/vear for fire prote NO DOWN PAYMENTS, NO INTEREST NO PAYMENTS ‘TIL 1996""* Store Hours: Monday to Friday 9 am to 9 pm; Saturday 9 am to 6 pm; Sunday Noon to 5 pm Phone: 560â€"3303 / 643â€"4121; Out of town call 1â€"800â€"263â€"8575 Lewis Rd. and the QEW, S. Service Rd., Stoney Creek, Ontario (between the Fruitland and Fifty Rd. exits off the QEW) *0.A.C. Payment due January 2nd, 1996. No delivery charges, no administration fees. Full details in store. All taxes payable at time of purchase. 25% deposit required on custom orders. A world away from the everyday "Stoney Lteek_ Core CurricuLum SoFrTtWARE c Educational software gives your child a passport to adventure without ever leaving your home... Where else can children take on the role of inventor. . .explore the human body and solar system while riding the Magic Schoolbus"Y. .. take an interactive reading journey. .. take part in the legendary Gold Rush or take a tour of encyclopedia topics with one of the Vid Kids? Learning Can be fun. And today‘s software is visually exciting, interactive, and easy to use. And for every child, a unique learning adventure awaits. At Core Curriculum Software, we offer parents the opportunity to try firstâ€"hand the software that we feature in our Buyer‘s Guide to Educational Software. Tha way, we can help you choose from a variety of learning adventures that are sure to challenge, entertain and interact with your child. t Great Inâ€"Store Specials. Drop by our location to chat with our friendly staff and to pick up your child‘s passport to countless learning adventures! 740 Bring Your Child‘s Creations to Life â€" In Colour! 49° t us h d ol Canon BJC â€" 4000 Colour Bubble Jet Printer * specially priced demo models also available es, but hikes water/wastewater user fees by 3.1% â€" adding $10.50 to the averace household‘s tax bill. The water rate increase will help raise the $9.46â€"million to be spent on Santa told us it was better to give than to receive. So in the spirit of goodwill to all, Stoney Creek Furniture continues the tradition of No Payments for a whole year. One more reason § to celebrate this season. Merry Christmas to all and to all a free year. Hurry! Santa says there‘s no time like the present. Canotl upgrading aging water infrastructure (still $1.43â€"million short of identified 1995 needs); and will pay most of a fiveâ€"year, $4.6â€"million watermain upgrade plan. That upgrade is needed to ensure adequate water supply for firefighting, predominantly in Burlington, where earlier this year, firefighters couldn‘t access water to battle a house fire. In the final analyâ€" cic, 1995 regional taxes â€" property taxes and user rates combined â€" will be $741.46 for the average Halton residence. That means $387.85 in property taxes and $353.61 water/wastewater user rates. far, cen tax dee ove inc1 dat hik Regional property taxes have actuâ€" ally dropped by $1.98 since 1993. So TRAFALGAR QEW (Oakville Place) FOR RESERVATIONS 338â€"6330 sPM *Eor every entrée ordered one child ten years under eats free from the children‘s menu. An American Italian Eatery C )McCutcheon‘s 226 Lakeshore Road East, Oakville, Ontario L6J 1H8 OPEN NIGHTLY ‘TIL 9:00 P.M. Barney Lovers â€" The Purple Dinosaur will be here with his Baby Pal! *KIDS Eat Free! Mom‘s Dad‘s Only! Wanna be in a movie? Sharp Viewcam VLâ€"E36 3" colour viewscreen Instant playback with builtâ€"in speaker Slow motion capability Remote control far, they‘ve dropped by only four _ another $5/year for fire protection cents for 1995 over last year. security. The regional budget meets a no tax increase target set by council, deemed to be the preferred option over a staffâ€"recommended 1.5% increase that would have accommoâ€" dated inflation, but tacked a $2.34 on the property tax bill. The water/waste water user rate hikes mean taxpayers will cough up about $5 extra a year to pay for water system infrastructure upgrades and foto source" Bonus Booklight! With Fuji multiâ€"pack tape purchases. ME es Booklight! With Fuji multiâ€"pack tape purchases. Fuji VHS Fâ€"120 3 pack $999 Fuji gmm PGâ€"120D8S 2 pack NN Fuji gmm PGâ€"120D8S 2 pack $ 12 99 d3 e# uq FUJI LK The treasurer said the region‘s $199â€"million 1995 expenditure budâ€" get holds no decreases in services, but will see staffing cutbacks at Allendale, the region‘s home for the aged, primarily because of reduced provincial funding. In 1995, the Region‘s 1993 1,081 staff compleâ€" ment will shrink again to 994 â€" almost a 10% reduction. Last week, standing committees reviewed departmental budgets. The Health department brought in no budâ€" getary increases, while the Social Services department‘s budget dropped 1.4%. Halton‘s health budget is $28.5â€"million; however, funding is provided provincially for all but the $8.2â€"million general health program. Within that, $6.7â€"million is for staffing and that‘s funded in a 75/25 provincial/regional ratio, leaving the Region to pay $1.7â€"million. And chief medical officer of Health, Dr. Bob Nosal, reported a 12% staff decrease â€" from 131 in 1990 to 115 in 1995. "General health programs are essentially the guts of public health," said Dr. Nosal, explaining public health is health promotion, protection, and disease prevention. A focus on those areas could work towards alleâ€" viating the crisis facing health care today, he said. With 54% of the social services budget devoted to welfare, Ewart said a continued leveling of cases is expected in 1995. "I think what will happen in 1995796 is that the decline will settle at a base, but that base will be considerably higher than what it was (in the late 1980s)," said Ewart. Changes that now allow welfare recipients to work, and still be subsiâ€" dized to a degree, could mean welfare cheque numbers are up but average cost per cheque is down. With 1,500 subsidized child care spaces available through the region, there‘s still a waiting list of about 200; however, that compares favorâ€" ably to the waiting list that has topped 600 to 1,000 in recent years. Allendale, Halton‘s home for the aged, is a potential concern. A change in provincial funding formulas â€" and the province‘s potential clawback of an assistance subsidy connected to that change â€" could create a $1.7â€"milâ€" lion shortfall at Allendale this year, paving the way to hard decisions on closing beds or finding alternate fundâ€" At Allendale, about nine fullâ€"time equivalent job reductions will be addressed by not filling vacancies and cutting partâ€"time nursing hours. (905) 844â€"6991 ing Some regional staff will be added, but to regional programs fully funded by the province. The jobs relate to tobacco bylaw enforcement, Hepatitis B immunization, a welfare fraud investigator, and a social assistance caseworker. LAKESHORE RD Sharp Viewcam VLâ€"E42 1599" 4" colour viewscreen Instant playback with builtâ€"in speaker 270° variable angle recording 8x variable power zoom Remote control December 21, 1994 VISA