WIHITBY FREE PRESS, "'OUR FISTORICAL HERITAGi"', WEDNESDAY, .IUNE il, 19 80, PAGE 19 Th 1e changies that Whitby has been through point toa great f-uture ahead By EUGENE HENRY The Town of Whitby is now centrally located in the in- dustrial heart-land of Canada-strategically sit- uated -between the two largest mast markets of our country, Metro Toronto and Montreal, P.Q. It is in fact, almost mid- way in the emrging megaloplis-like corridor of cities and towns, between Detroit-Windsor and Quebec City, a thousand miles away. Notwithstanding these ad- vantages in geography, Whitby grew slowly in modemn times. Sixty years have passed since General Motors of Canada decided to build on the McLaughlin base in Oshawa for their fir- st automotive plants in Canada. This was, of course, the one major event of modemn times that brought the town of Whitby into the industrial era of Canada. There were, however, other industrial develop- ments that were almost as important to our town plan- ners and managers., as they struggled to keep our town in close isolation from sprawling Metro Toronto and our fast growing neigh- bor, four miles or less to the east. Prior to Dunlop Tire coming to Whitby and before the arrival of Stokley Van Camp in town, we were fast becomîn a reluctant dor- mitory for Oshawa. Dunlop and Stokely, however, gave jobs to Whitby workers in Whitby, and as a result we became less dependant on Oshawa. In our course, other firms followed the Dunlop/Stokely lead and collectively they provided the assessment and revenues for sound municipal planning and development. With the addition of regional governmeflt plan- ning became a complex, multi-tiered affair but Whit- by survived thanks to fine administrative support staff for our political people on Rossland Road. The Town of Whitby is now at a critical interval in its evolving history. The tire making facility may be closed before winter comes again. Economic growth across Canada ma y be both slow and low for the next few years. Even General Motors is having its troubles. Municipliies went broke back in the depression years of 1929-34. Whitby survived- let us hope that we can do so again. Some good may corne from all this. Slow growth at this juncture may allow the Town of Whitby to diest the grandiose plans for Brooklin Development that seem to have within them a destrimental impact for the core area of our town. Surely any scenario for the future of Whitby must contain a well concerved and phased revitalization program for the central business distric. This ap- prehensive writer hopes, that the Brooklin developers will scale down their plans for 10,000 square feet of commercial space there and in this way provide sorne potential for the downtown in the future. There are, however, coun- tervailing good events in the works for the Town of Whit- by. Lasco steel is already underway with an expansion program that will double its capacity and increase its present payroll substan- tially in the next two to three years. Cadbury is expanding its whitby plant and the psychiatric hosptial on the lake is proceeding with a $27 million development program there. Competition for new in- dustry is intense and expen- sive. The Town of Whitby does seemn to have now however, the orderly development in the months that lie ahead. The population of Whitby bas grown to 33,000 from a few hundred peopi a century ago. Times have changed and our people, have changed too. Until the end of the i9th century everybody in these Simeoe had poor pressm parts was involved in agriculture as fariners, nli operators, grain brokers, elevator men, schooner cap- tains and even road repair people. They were ail part of the agricultural economny of those days. But no moxre. Before the l9th cenitury came to an end, the CanadalU.S. reciprocity treaty was not renewed and it was replaced with a protective tariff against Canadian grain. The sale of Whitby area cordwood declined as coal replaced wood as fuel on the rapidly growing railways in particular. The railways took traffic away from not only, Whitby Harbour but the "Nip and Tuck"' feeder line as well. To put it mildly-thiïigs were rather quiet in Whitby at the turn of the century. In 1914, however, the Ontario Government decided to build a hospital on the lake and more than 200 workers were employed. It gave our town a real lift in the right direction. When the provin- convert the new hospital to one for rehabilitating World War I veterans early in the 1920's a new and permanent employer of Whitby workers was in our midst. Almost at the same time, General Motors made that famous stay-in-Oshawa decision and the agricultural economy of the Whitby area came to an end. Even though farming remained (and stili remains) a vital element of the local economy today. The change in our people is profound population figures do flot tell the whole story. Back in the days when Whitby was first In- corporated as a town in 1855 almost everybody owned land they had a personal stake in the country. Today ahnost everybody is a- tenant and the urbanization process 15, taking morè and more of oui! people into the cities. Coneurrentùy thousand of city dwellers are looking for a life on the urban fringe, in Whitby, perhaps. s t 4,>' ON TE MOE. WI TH WH ITBY relatio ns CONT D:FROM PG. 17 ficials for whom a subser- vient working class would labor passively. Part of bis misconception was a national church patterned upon his own Church of England. Hie assigned to this institution one seventh of ahl the land in Upper Canada via an arrangement called "Clergy Reserves. " He wanted too. settlers who would stay on the land, be loyal to t.he Crown and if necessary help in the defen- ce of tlieir new found land. Hie offered prime farm land in Upper Canada free and added sweetners of tools, sedand supplies. There was congestion on his new roads as hundreds of land hungry Amnericans travelled north from the border states to get this land. Some of our first settlers camne here then, in this way . John Graves Slmcoe has had a poor press, many of Our historlan give hlmn the back of their hand because of his tory views and friends. His contribution as he who pulled the trigger that reallY stared the settlement action will, however, be remnem- bered always by Whitby area people. ConsolidatedJ-Bathurst is among Canada's largest manufacturing enter- prises. Much of our forest products go to other countries and we have an important paperboard and packaging subsidiary in the Federal Rebubi ic of Germany. A t home In Canada, 25 plants make us big in packaging, whether If is corrugated shipping containers, mnultiwail paper bags or plastic or glass containers by Domg las. Our box rTanufacturing plant here In Whltby is not only a corporate citizen in its own rlght, but a prof it centre and a vital mnember of Conisol idated- Bathurst Packaging's eight-piant Container Divis'ion.We're proud to be acfiveiy associated with Durham Reg ion's growth and prog ress and of what.- our people have been able to accomplish in meeting the specialized needs of volume markets for custom-buiit corrugated containers that can "ship anything ... anywhere. .." CONSOwlLIDATEDuBATHURST PACKAGI NG LIMITED Whitby, Ontario Imm>