. .. .. r ..n ..I AI4 - - - - - - - - - WhItby Free Press, Weckiescy. FebruaY 21. 1M9. Page 3 Items from Whitby councéil- agenda(s) Rtecommendlations fArom the opert#ons committee That a $5.03-mnilon tender from Dagmar Construction lnà . of Markharm for construction of a, bridge and roadway underpess et the Canadien PaMe -Ic rallways traoks on Gardon Street be acpted, subject to approval of the Ontario Mnlstrv of Transportation, the Natonal Transportation Association 0f Canada, CP Rail and Durham Reglon. Degmars tender accounits for the bulk of the bong-aWalted proJect's slightly mors than $7 million cost. Other expenses Include contingency allowances, engineering design and property acquisition. Fundlng will be shared by the Town, Durham Region, CP Rail and the federal and provincial govemnments. Work ls expocted to begin ln mld Aprldl and beompieted by Oct. 1 , 1997. The portion of Garden Street affectod by construction willl be closed to traffla for the churatlon. ROcommounded to counl That the Town treasurer be authorlzed to lntroduce a monthly pre-authorlzed payment plan for the rerittance of- -residenial, business, commercial and industriel taxes effective June 1. The processng costof thls system le 15 cents per payrnent which lMIi be cherged to perticipants. Rscomiiunded to counl Thet the, Town of Whftby petition»the OntailoMlnlstry of Tranprain for subsidies ln the aounts of *$1.6. million, pement slgn bylaw bannin large outdor,(pster panel signs In rurdamras. The signe are' curren tly permitted. on vacant lots Wthin agriculture zones and on rallway lands. Council declded earlier that the signé "contribute- to roadside cluter-in rural aroasm and direded -the >.planning department. to draft a bylaw benning thm ln 'agriculture zones. The new bykaW* would stili permit themn on rallroad Unes but oniy et raltwayistreet crosslngs, wlth no more than one sign per street frontage. Reconmmnded to co uncl Educa tion tool kit' o l eunveiled By Mlark Reesor The long-awaited provincial "toolidt" directing Ontario sehool boards how and where to'cut cots .hould b. rêeased "in the very, vory neer future." That wus lndicated by education and training mninster John Snobelen at Durham Colloge lest Thursday as ho attended the unveiling of a college/unlverslty partnership. Snobelen says the oft-dolayed package, which was promised lest yer,.will be farthcomlng "certalnly before the end of this month." Hoe was vague on the specifics of the it, though ,"it will have measures; beyond thet I can't Bey." But ho did promise that "we are not contemplating user fees as the answer to the ($400-mllllon) reduction In granta next year - wo'ro looking for real cost roductions, flot just a difforent way of raislng funds"' However ho daesn't oppose charges levied by Individual boards for *"some extra school programs," noting that they were common when ho went to school. Some of-the arees likely ta ho lookedeatfor savings include board and achooladinistration - "we think wo cen flnd somo of tho 40 per cent or seo! spending thet happons outside of the classraoma and reduco that"; transportation - 'Tool kit' coming EDUCATION and training minister John Snobelen says a guide to reducing education casts MIi soon be unveiied. User fees aren't part of the package. Photo by Mrlc Rooso, Whlthy Ff»Roms "a *600-maillion ticket; we thlnk wo cen do thet -smartor"; maintenance - "w.e pend about a billon-two <$1.2 billion) a yoar an maintenance and perhaps thore are botter ways of doing that"; teachers' productivity. Snobelon says tho ministry fels the cuts - whlch ho says amount to about a three per cent reductIon in provincial money - cen ha made without hurting tho quality of education ln Ontario sehools. Ho alsoa'defended hie government's controversfia 50 per cent cut in grants for adult education, which worrles students enrolledý in the Durham Adult Secondary Educetion (DASE) program. Thoy fear the board wll eliminate their program.> The rate le now about haîf that given for vounger students but Snohalen Beys that'. fair becauso it caste les. ta educate adulte. I thlnk theres a lot of educators who would agree tiiet thora large difference ln educating an adult and an adolescent... W. have no custady responsibilities with adulte and there are differonces legally ln how school boards cenl do training progranis and educetion programa... se aur grant.refiect roally the differonce ln comte." Snobolen Beys ho expocts boards ta continue' offoring adult' education *programs dospits the grant reduction. "The prograins may have to, ha changod. There may ha programs where adulte share space wîth adolescents thet may have ta change but 1 thlnk thase changes wo't, mean. thora'. no adult educetion." Fullutime< university now at Durham»C-ollege By Mark Reesor Durham studente -will no longer have ta beave the réglan .ta take university courses. Durham Col lego announcod Thursday tiet In cooperation with York and Trent universities, It will launch fuil-time, 'day univerulty prograngat its Oshawa campus., The prograni will begin .in Sepembr,1996 wlth three degres programs - bachelar of arts and science degrees with Trent and bachelor of a.dministrative studios with York's Atklinson, College. 1Students cen achiovo a degreo ln one o! two ways - either by beginning one of the threo 9 university courses from year one or by receiving advanced standing through recognition -of colloge credite already oarned. For exemple, e Durhem Colloge *Appraisals '-On Spot *Repairs- 3 Days *Remodelling 211 Brook »St. S., Whitby SFORTUNE This IRIRS.P. -Season Cali A Professional! rn w.CIA 666A-25, business diplome graduate with e minimum 'B' .averaeeWilll ha grantod advanced,-standing in Atklnson's bachelor program. Durham'College president Gary Polonsky was thrilled with the dovelopment saying "nobody knows for sure what will grow froni this acorn, but I predlct a rnighty and meaningful oak"e raference ta hi. -dream n"o! a Durham university Ontario oducaion and training ministor John Snohalen was among the federal, provincial and municipal politiciens presont et the announcemont. Ho offeredcongratulations on ""s etraordinery, oextraordinary yenturo" .and -predicted' the éâleg-unlversity partnorshlp will ha "duplicated across the province in the vory noar future." Gem . Birds c1 Original Handcratted Gemârds Get 3rd et 113 OFF P 666-4612 DEBRIEE MORGAN- y Mark Reesor Calllng It a "small price ta pay," Durham public schaol' board trustees Iast week voted ta pay the *77,000 1996 memharship f.. in the Ontario Public Sehool Boards Association (OPSBA). Only Uxbridge trustee Faith Neumann and Oshawa trustes Kathleen Happer opposed paying the bill. "I heven't supported OPSBA -in four yoars on principle," said Happer. "These are basically'taxes thet are levied for education and thoy're haing paid out ta lobbyists; itfs on. lovel o! government paying ta lobby another level of government - I cen't agree ta this." Happer also questioned how the board ia spending its manoy, noting it spent *12,000 ta sot up a charitable foundation. The féeeIsn't the board'. only oxpense, sho added. "It doesn't include the OPSBA- confèrences, the hotel or the travel for trustees who attend OPSDA conférences... itfs $80,000 plus, pîus'> plus." Who do.. OPSBA reprosent - school boards, public educetion, trustees, students, omployees or children, wondered, Uxbridge truste. Faith Neumann. 8h. expressed concern about the association's efficiency ,end "exorbitant salaries," 'which she said range from $26,799 ta $114,711 e year, noting 'the OPSBA fée."for 1996 could basicelly pay for two teachors and a clessroom." Neumann also wonderod how mmnyhours the assoiation spends lobbying the gavornment, a question she said she asked but ta which, sho nover received an answor. Only 91 o! tho 164 school boards in. Ontario are members o! the associ 'ation,. sho said,, addlng that Durham 'a fe. helps subsidize smalerboarXs membership in the association. 1There's meny emali schol boards ln Ontario - 40 only haVe one- school, countered Pickering, trustee Ruth Ann Schedlich, the board liaison ta OPSBA, in explaininaz the memharship figure. OPSBA bas slimmed down ta cape wlth the hard times, she sald, by reducing Its opereting expenses and froozing its staff salary for five years. "It's woll worth 'the monoy. There's so many thinge coming down right ýnow under. legal defenceý and thinge in the court... they're watdiing this and lobbying this on our hahal! and haliove me, when dollars are tight, we. really have to be together an this on.." The board's fees include the coit of. conventions- for the liaison trusteeand noted other truste.. pay thetir own way, she noted, adding that the money for the OPSBA charitable foundetion did flot corne from membershIp fées. Ajax trustee Colleon Jordan claimed the board savod $27.4 million by being a member o! OPSBA. The association has saved the board having ta hira extra staff ta deel with provincial logislation and other issues and holped it obtein money. under the infratructure program, she said. The 1996, fée for the Durham board i. 1.1 par cent les. than lest year, said Scugog trustee Bobbie Drew, who added OPSEA is a "well-respected lobby groupr wbich bas been a "tremendous benefit" ta trustees and staff. Teach ers PROMPAGE I MPPsl and "wovo had very positive conversations with them about the JK<juniorkidndergarden) program, the adult education for the high echool and prep timo. "We..gat a very favourablo response and we're hoping that wlll canvert inta some softenfing o! (educetion and traning ministor) .Mr. Snobelen's stance - that hi. caucus. mombers, will ha putting some pressure on him." Boardý will Pay ilts $77,OOO OPSBA c 1 a