The Oakville Beaver, W ednesd ay M a y 8, 2002 - A 3 Family forced to pay $3,545 hydro bill M ^ Region sM ng away compost R p o m n 'c C ' n m n n c Giveaway t Halton Region's Compost is back this spring, and runs until Saturday (8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m) at the Halton Waste Management Site, 5400 Regional Rd. 25 in Milton. As part of Halton Region's strategy to divert waste away from landfill, residen tial yard waste picked up from curbsides is recycled into rich, garden-friendly compost. Twice a year, Halton residents are invited to collect the finished product for use in their gardens. Residents must bring their own bags or containers (maximum seven per household) and a shovel in order to bag their own compost. Residents are encouraged to bring along a donation of a non-perishable food item for local food banks. H n ltrm "`Not M nt r > n l\ / i c t h ic a n great crre>ctt opportunity r > r \n r > r tiin only is this for residents to get out, meet their neigh bours and do something great for their garden, it is also an opportunity for all of us to give back to the community," said Regional Chair Joyce Savoline. Cash donations to local food banks will also be accepted in lieu of food donations for those who choose to donate. This is the eighth year of Halton's compost giveaway program; events are held in the spring and fall each year. More than 1,000 tonnes of finished com post will be available to residents during the spring giveaway. Last spring, more than 3,100 Halton residents took advan tage of the event, and donated 4,400 kilograms of food to local food banks. (C ontinued from p a g e A 1) that the true enormity of the damage hit the family: the foundation had been exca vated to bypass the hydro meter and an assortment of new hardware had been installed to handle the power required by grow lights and fans. Holes had been cut through the floors and ceilings to accom modate extensive duct work to vent fumes and heat, carpets were soaked and dirty and illegal wiring snaked all through the house. The Sandhus' were also faced with cleaning up the countless dirt-filled pots that had contained marijuana plants both in the basement and the upstairs master bedroom, where growing chemicals had been mixed in the ensuite bathroom's tub. "We lived in that house for 15 years and they destroyed the place in two months," said Satnam. The family's relationship with their insurer was fraught with problems from the get-go and, even now, six months after the raid, negotiations about what the company will and will not pay for remain ongoing. In the meantime, Harry and Michael -- who were trying to focus on their schooling and exams -- rallied friends and family together to renovate their rav aged house at a cost of roughly 200 person-hours and $20,000. This included tearing out all the jury-rigged wiring, shampooing the carpets, painting every room, clearing out the smells and patch- These two photos were provided to The Beaver from the Sandhu family. The pic tures show the mess and destruction caused by the former inhabitants of their home. Thanks to jury-rigged wiring the family was recently handed a $3,545 hydro bill. Even though the `electricity theft' was carried out by the former ten ants, the Sandhus were held responsible. ing holes. "You can't believe the stress," said Satnam. Their work done, the Sandhus sold the Greenridge Circle home in February and thought their nightmare was behind them. Wrong. In early March they received a letter from Oakville Hydro -- quoting the pot grower's billing number -- stating that the family owed $3,545.15. If not paid in full by March 21, said the letter, hydro would be disconnected and re-established only after payment. A subsequent letter -- this time quot ing the Sandhus' account number for their current address -- said that while Oakville Hydro understands the Greenridge Circle home had been sold, the money was still owed. It also said power would be cut off at the Sandhus' present home if this wasn't paid. A third letter tried to explain Oakville Hydro's position by excerpting the Ontario Energy Board Distribution Code: "A distributor may recover from the par ties responsible for the unauthorized energy use all costs incurred by the dis tributor arising from unauthorized energy use, including inspection and repair costs." Harry pleaded his case, saying the "parties responsible" for the electricity theft were the pot growers and not his family, but to no avail. Faced with having their power cut off, they settled up. "We paid under protest," said Harry, who can only imagine the bill if the grow operation had gone undetected for a year. "How can we be responsible for the crim inal acts of tenants?...Hydro pretty well strong-armed us into paying." GRAND PIANO SALE H ave you dream ed o f ow ning a Yamaha G ran d Piano? T h e n we have good news for you. T h e dream is closer to reality th an you think. The Steve Loates Keyboard Centre in co-operation with Yamaha Canada Music Ltd. are pleased to present the "The Grand Piano Dream Event". This will be your best opportunity to order that brand new Yamaha Grand Piano that you have always dreamed of owing. A factory representative, from Yamaha will be on hand during this very special promotion to authorize factory direct pricing, and to answer any questions you may have regarding Yamaha Grand Pianos. Because of the very special nature of this promotion it will be only conducted at our Burlington location for one day only. Delivery date for your piano may be requested for a future date but it must be order on the the day of this event to receive the special pricing and bonuses. TRADE INS W ELCOM E FOR TH IS SPECIAL EVENT ONE D A Y ONLY S A T U R D A Y , M A Y 11 1 0 a m - 5 p m 2388 Fairview St. (west o f Guelph Ln) B U R L IN G T O N STEVE LO ATES KEYBOARD CENTRE " (all Inclusive) T o Join Call 8 4 4 -16 10 v W N a u tilu s V o ted O a k v ille 's B e st F itn ess C l u b 1 9 9 9 , 2 0 0 0 , 2 0 0 1 Home Theatre · DVD · Karaoke Toshiba DVD Player when you prepay for one year's rentals =$ 299 `Prepay for 2 DVD rentals/week (100 total for year) only $2.99 ea. and get your free DVD player today (W hile they last. D etails instore) T h o u s a n d s o f D V D s O n S a le ! Oakville's Largest DVDSelection. New & Catalogue On Sale til May 11 Visit our Clearance Centre for savings of up to 80% on Home Theatre O U lK llr OAKVILLE B ow C um t OAKVILLE DVD P la y e r S a le WiO Toshiba S D 3 7 5 0 C a tc h t h e o n a ll a c tio n H D T V 43" HDTV Table Top Model. 1080i, 1200 lines of resolution. Reg. 3199 2501 H am pshire G a te Road - (905) 8 2 2-8444 DVD/VCR/CD/CDR/CD-RW Playback Progressive Scan Output Dolby Digital & DTS compatible 0 99 Toshiba 43HX70 SALE ^ $2,499 (905) 815-8800 Mon.-Fri. 10:30 am - 8:30 pm., Sat. 10:00 am - 6:00 pm, Sun. Closed ·AJAX · ANCASTER · BARRIE · BRAMPTON · CAMBRIDGE · KINGSTON · LAW RENCE SQUARE · L O N D O N · MARKHAM · MISSISSAUGA (2 STORES) · O SH AW A · R IC H M O N D HILL · SCARBOROUGH · SUDBURY ` V A U G H A N ` W ATERLO O · I 800 BouClair Inthe event of a printing error the item (s) w ill be sold at the correct price. M erchandisem ay vary front photos and selection may vary fromstore to store. Shop early for he$ selection. We reserve the right to lim it quantities. A ll sale prices are applicable on in-stock m erchandise onlyand are not applicable to customorders and/or Shop-at-Home. No dealers. f i v C K P t C ? * S--M i 440 Inglehart St. N. Oakville, ON (Trafalgar & Cornwall) www.laserland.com__________