PAGE U, WlITBY FREE PRESS, WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 6,1988 87 REVIEW '87 REVIEW '87 REVIEW 87 REVIEW '87 REVIEW PUGSLEY MANOR Pugsley Manor, home to many former patients of Whitby Psychiatric Hospital, became the first boarding and lodging house in Whitby to receive a licence under the Town's new licensing bylaw to regulate such residences. NEW CHAIRMAN Joe Bugelli succeeded fellow Whitby councillor Joe Drumm as chairman of the Central Lake On- tario Conservation Authority (CLOCA). PETER PERRY In January, Joan Hiscox, a longtime volunteer worker with various organizations in Whitby, was named winner of the 1986 Peter Perry award, Whitby's top citizen- ship honor. HIT AND RUN Craig Holley, 14, of Whitby died from injuries received when he was struck by a vehicle while walking along Hopkins St. Feb. 1. REBUILDING On Feb. 2, then Ontario Health Minister Murray Elston announced that Whitby Psychiatric Hospital would be. rebuilt over the next seven to 10 years at a cost of about $80 million. The existing hospital, including several buildings, will become one large building complex while more community-based ser- vices would be established in the community. RECYCLING After some initial hesitation, Whitby council decided early in 1987 to participate in the Durham Region recycling program operated by Durham Recycling Centre Inc. Councillors asked to be kept informed of the cost of the program. DRUG BUST More than 50 people were arrested and $150,000 worth of drugs seized in the largest under- cover investigation ever under- taken by Durham Regional Police. The arrests, made at the end of February, came after drug pur- chases in taverns in Durham Region, including the Hotel Royale and Spruce Hotel in Whitby. SIX-STORY MAXIMUM With major developments as the exception, Whitby council in March approved a six-story maximum on building heights in the downtown area. The decision is part of the downtown secondary plan to guide future development. TAXES In March, Whitby council ap- proved a tax hike of 7.8 per cent for urban area residents and 8.1 per cent for rural area residents. In- cluded in 1987 spending was the start of three years of repairs on storm water sewers in areas where flooding occurred after a downpour i August, 1986. ALBERT WALKER of Fairview Lodge celebrated his 100th birthday -on June 18. FIRE Fire destroyed two townhouses and caused $200,000 damage in the Sorichetti condominiums on Mary St. W., on March 21. CULLEN GARDENS A newly expanded Cullen Gar- dens, Durham Region's biggest tourist attraction, opened in April. The new 39,000-sq. ft. Garden Gate Restaurant began business in May. STRIKE A 16-day strike by 75 employees of Cobi Foods Inc. ended April 12 when a new two-year;contract was ratified to provide wage increases and increased benefits. DONALD WILSON Donald Wilson, the first winner of the Peter Perry Award, in 1955, as Whitby's outstanding citizen, died on March 30,1987. He was 95. PRISON TERMS In April, two men received eight- year prison sentences and a third was given a five-year jail term af- ter pleading guilty to charges of manslaughter in the death of Walter Clark Major of Ashburn in August, 1982. BURNSIDE CLOSES Burnside Academy, an indepen- dent school for students unable to cope in a regular classroom setting, closed down in June after its seven- th year of operation. It was founded by Inez Wilson of Pickering and was in rented quarters in Whitby Baptist Church for its last seven months. ACCIDENT John Pipher of Whitby died of in- juries received in a motorcycle ac- cident in June. A member of the Whitby Warriors, his lacrosse teammates wore his number 25 for the remainder of the season. KNIGHTS WIN AWARD Whitby Knights of Columbus won the Trillium Award for overall council excellence out of 308 coun- cils in Ontario. BUFFETT RETIRES Ed Buffett stepped down as chairman of the Downtown Business Improvement Area after three years in the position. Rob Morton took over as chairman. LAND REGISTRY After problems of overcrowding at the location on Centre St. in Whitby, the land registry office was moved to a location at Dundas St. and Thornton Rd. in Oshawa for the next three years until a new building is erected in Whitby as a permanent location. A tentative site for the, building is north of Rossland Rd., opposite Durham regional headquarters. EXTENSION Work began on the extension of manning Rd. from Anderson St. to Thickson Rd. at a cost of about $1.16 million, financed by the Town through debentures. Safety con- siderations postponed the opening of the extension until 1988. ARRESTS Twenty-five people, including four from Whitby, were arrested in Whitby and Oshawa in July for traf- ficking i narcotics. The arrests came after a two-month joint in- vestigation by Durham Regional Police and RCMP. INQUEST Alexander Connelly died as a result of an accident in August at Lake Ontario Steel Companîy (Lasco) in Whitby. MUIR VISITS Marathon swimmer Jocelyn Muir passed through Whitby Aug. 25 and was met by Whitby's Anne Ottenbrite, Olympic gold medal winner. Muir's"60-day swim around Lake Ontario was to raise money to fight multiple sclerosis. LIBRARIAN Ken Roberts began in August as the new head librarian at Whitby Public Library. Margaret Mc- Fayden had resigned in December of 1986. AWARDS Recently retired farm equipment dealer Bob Heron of Brooklin was named business person of the year and Paul Visser of Anderson CVI was named student of the year at the Chamber of Commerce awards ceremony in November. TOURIST STRATEGY In the fall, the Tourist Association of Durham Region was resurrected, with new logo and a new committee chaired by David Gould, to boost the local tourism industry. NEW PRESIDENT It was announced in November that Bob Richardson would be the 1988 president of the Whitby Cham- ber of Commerce, succeeding Crystal Glaspell. * L~~v . I ~. lb a R >lt HOUSING continued to account for most of Whitby's growth over the past year with several more subdivision projects slated to get underway in 1988. WORLD TITLE Pipe major Bill Livingstone of Whitby led the 78th Fraser Highlanders to the world pipe band championship in Glasgow, Scotland.. The 78th, made up of Southern Ontario residents, is the first band outside Scotland to win the world title. ROTARY EXCHANGE Members of a New Zealand Rotary Club visited Whitby in Oc- tober as part of a study exchange. Whitby Rotary president Brian Thompson was among those to welcome the six New Zealanders and lead them on an area tour. PHILLIPS RESIGNS Georgýna Phillips, the first manager of the Downtown Business Improvement Area, resigned in Oc- tober after two and a half years in the position. She was succeeded by Stuart Craig. ANIMAL CONTROL The 1988 budget of the Pickering, Ajax, Whitby Ariimal Control Committee (PAW) will increase 25 per cent over 1987, said committee chairman Ross Batten in Novem- ber. The increase was necessary to continue improvements in service, he said. UNITED WAY The 1987 United Way campaign fell short of its $2.5 million goal by $97,000, leading to reduced funds for the dependent social service agencies on which to operate. COLLEGE Durham College celebrated its 20th anniversary. It now has 2,700 students compared to 203 when it first opened. DEMOLISHED A 140-year-old house, the former residence of some past prominent Whitby citizens, was torn down in August along with a bowling alley and another building to make way for a parking lot for the new medical clinic north of Dundas St. W., between Byron and Centre Sts. Attempts by the development firm to give the building away were un- successful. NEW SCHOOL As the school year began in Sep- tember, the new Pringle Creek public school in Whitby opened its doors. No slowdown in Whitby growth Substantial housing and com- mercial growth continued in Whit- by over the past year, as the com- munity remains one of the top ten fastest growing in Ontario and even Canada. Whitby council approved several new subdivision plans while con- struction began or continued on others previously approved. The Town also made it clear it was in support of hotel proposals for the community, even ignoring planning staff comments in one case to allow a hotel development. One hotel was planned for the Thickson Rd.·S. and Hwy 401 area; another at thecorner of Consumers Rd. and Sunray Ct.; another at Brock St. and Hwy 401. But despite announcements of construction to begin in 1987, work has yet to begin despite the urgings of council members. Also characteristic of Whitby's growth was the addition of com- mercial chain outlets -restaurant services such as Taco Bell, Moviola, Smitty's Pancake House, Gold Griddle, O'Donuts, . Pizza Delight, Country Donuts - and numerous independent restaurant operations. And almost each week, new businesses sprouted throughout the town. Canadian Tire was denied a gas station at Bowman Ave., a decision that will now be considered at an Permits hit record high Building permits totalling more than $5 million were issued last December bringing 1987's total to a record breaking $129,562,572. "Wo are in a healthy situation and we don't see any slowdown in 1988," commented Mayor Bob At- tersloy on the report. The Town Issued $4,997,983 in residential permits during last December bringing the 1987 residential total to $95,406,581. The report indicates 801 single family dwelling permits were issued while permits were also issued for 213 apartment units. Also during December, a $207,000 permit was issued for work to the interior of the new addition to the Kendalwood plaza. For 1987, the Town issued $11,336,230 in com- mercial permits and $16,975,650 in industrial permits. "Since 1976, when we issued $23 million in permits, we have progressed well," said Attersley. The Town collected $36,233 in permit fees last December bringing the 1987 total to $818,543. Attersley also told The Free Press that the Town saw a 7.7 per cent assessment growth in 1987. Ontario Municipal Board hearing. And despite opposition by some residents and the downtown Business Improvement Area, a strip plaza was approved on Dun- das St. W. Graywood Developments Ltd. announced early in '87 a huge residential development north of Rossland Rd. Durham Christian Homes Inc. followed with Dlans for a 10-story seniors apartment building, probably only the first phase of that development. Mean- while an apartment proposal by Durham Non-Profit Housing Corp. was approved off Glen Hill Dr. and the corporation also outlined plans for seniors' housing on the Fair- view Lodge property. While more boutiques opened at Pearson Lanes on Mary St. W., another "lane" development was opened in April off Brock St. N., a Steve Wagner project. Cullen Gar- dens had its own expansion, in- cluding a new restaurant, and 1988 will see much more activity at the popular tourist attraction, in- cluding a plan for some nearby residential development. The new Pringle. Creek school opened in the fall, while a dispute occurred between the Town and school board over building materials for another new school in the Kendalwood area. Bricks won out over blocks, at a substantial ex- SEE PAGE il