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Vol. 19 No. 34, Folio 64 Tuesday, August 12, 1986 40 cents Tiny meets tomorrow Members of Tiny township council will hold their first session of the month tomor- row at the Municpal Offices on Balm Beach Road. The public meeting will begin at 10 a.m. Chamber of Commerce marks 7,000th visitor Penetanguishene's Chamber of Commerce put through their 7,000th visitor early Friday afternoon. According to Joyce Sauve, the Chamber saw 1,000 visitors pass through their doors from Saturday, August 2nd to Thursday, August 7th. The number of tourists visiting the area is up compared to last year. The year end total for 1985 was 7,667. "T wouldn't be surprised if we hit the 10,000 mark by the end of September," Sauve says. The majority of tourists are Americans and Europeans, says Sauve. Some European countries which have been represented are Sweden, Belgium, Germany, India, Italy, Scotland, South Africa and Viet Nam. the in- flux of North American tourists are mostly from the Great Lakes region. Y sma a ? 2 Ow pincccba setae ORCUTT SS == <= OTTER mae. es iS Se oo PORTER F fay -- SORE fitieee. -- ae ' y coerce SSR cra "aa (Aer Ahoy there! Tall ships graced Dutchman's Cove Marina and Victoria Harbour over the weekend at- tracting would-be sailors and onlookers. Church dinner dance St. James-on-the-Lines Church is holding a special 150th anniversary dinner and dance on Friday, August 22. The event will be held in the Normandy Room at the Legion in Penetanguishene. Tickets are $10 for adult, $5 for children under 12. A five piece band will provide the evening's entertain- ment. Entry fee into the dance will be $7 cou- ple if space permits. For more information contact Dave Cousins at 549-8207 or any member of the Church's advisory board. Trustee says library needs money Penetanguishene library board trustee Ed Pearson, concerned about poor conditions at the library, sent a letter to town council "to make them aware of what we're operating with and what the problems are." Pearson says although he has only been on the board for a year, he has had a chance to compare the library's facilities with others. He says the town library needs new programs and books but more importantly, the centre Steps are hazardous New library board trustee Ed Pearson sent a letter to council last week to describe to councillors some of the problems with the building. Pearson says the steps to the library are hazardous and could invite a law suit from someone who is injured. As well, he says the basement of the library is loaded with books that are swollen with humidity. He wants council to provide money for a new dehumidifier and renovations to the steps and building to upgrade the facility and make it comparable to other area libraries. Traders should pay for Penetanguishene council is considering providing a space in town for transient traders but some area businesses object to the idea. Mayor Ron Bellisle says because of the traf- fic jam that occurs at Robert Street and Champlain Road with the fruit stands and the water works, council was considering mak- ing a space so that cars would not park on the side of the road. "We considered putting up no parking signs but the police department objected to adding police checks to the area," says Belli- sle. "The next option was to move the grocery stands in an area that wouldn't cause the traf- fic problems that they're doing now." About two weeks ago, the Penetanguishene Chamber of Commerce sent out a question- naire to area grocery stores asking what they thought about the idea. "We don't have any objection to new business coming into the area,' says Chamber President Bill Waters, owner of Marlynn Specialties on Main Street. "But what we do object to is the idea of council providing a space for these businesses and not charging a business tax while the year- round business pay these taxes," he says. "Area business make up 43 per cent of the town's tax collections and we don't want to subsidize summer businesses when council provides space for them. They haven't made a space for me. I think all businesses should be treated the same." Penetanguishene IGA owner Gerald Light agrees saying, "I don't think it's good business practice to treat the summer traders any different than year-round businesses. I take great exception to paying business taxes and supporting the town when council will authorize summer traders for something less." Light says he doesn't think the summer traders would put a large dent in profits made by area businesses during the busy summer months but "'the town should be supporting us first." Bellisle says he doesn't expect the plan to move the fruit stands to go through this year but "what I would like to see is a separate area for anyone who would like to set up and sell their wares. These businesses pay a licence fee for the months that they operate which is like a business tax." Bellisle says a plan to move the stands and the water works pump 'into the vacant lot bet- ween the nature trails and the Bulf station would be ideal. Then traffice would be off the main street and the business would continue on a lot that the municipality owns. needs building renovations and a dehumidifier to help bring it up to general operating standards. "Books are being stored in the basement and are swelled to more than double their original size because of the humidity," he says. "And the front steps almost invite a law suit from an injured person. The library needs money spent on renovations and a dehumidifier to protect what we have and any new books bought in the future."' According to Pearson the library has over 1,400 patrons, "which is very good for the population of this town. What I'd like to see is a higher priority placed on the library by council when they are setting the town's budget." Pearson says he was told by council the library received a 400 per cent increase in funds by council over the last ten years but last year, the library's budget was cut by $10,000. Penetanguishene Mayor Ron Bellisle says he's aware of the problems at the library, he is also a member of the library's board, but budget restraints have affected more than just the library. ""We've put most of our money into sanitation and sewer repair," Bellisle says, 'and we're working on fixing up most of the town. This has been the biggest drain on the budget this year but hopefully in my term or the one that comes later, the library will see some sort of increase." Bellisle says the library has a reserve fund of approximately $35,000 to be used to pur- chase a new building or for major renova- tions to the site. "What we (council) have recommended is that the library use some of this money to make repairs to the steps, the roof and to pur- chase a dehumidifier. In the future when more money is available from the town, then a new building or major renovations can be reviewed. It's a matter of priorities," he says. own space Objections raised Penetanguishene IGA owner Gerald Light says he objects to a space being set aside by council for transient traders because he says, "the town should be looking to promote area business instead." Tall ships... see pg. 7