News

 

The lead up to the July 16 South Dundas Council meeting foreshadowed of lively debate and potential conflict, but the end result was quite the opposite.

Those opposed to the potential grain terminals at the Universal dock along Lakeshore Drive, the owner of the dock, the Grain Farmers of Ontario, and South Dundas’ planning department, were all on the agenda for the meeting, to make presentations, but a lawyer’s letter presented to council by the initial delegation of concerned citizens put an end to any potential council or staff input, feedback or questions.

So, each group was given about 10 minutes to make their planned presentation, and did so. 

An estimated crowd of about 150 had gathered to watch the proceedings.

Chris Rowntree, spoke on behalf of the citizens group, saying that allowing the grain terminal to be built on this land does not conform with its light industrial zoning. And that allowing it under the guise of calling it a warehouse is indefensible in a court of law.

He then had Gerben Schaillee, who is part of the concerned citizens group, read aloud a letter from the group’s lawyer, Donald R. Good of AGB Lawyers in Ottawa.

Good maintains that classifying a grain terminal as a grain warehouse is erroneous.

“This appears to be a deliberate misuse of the word ‘warehouse’ to simply avoid  the proper re-zoning process which would allow public input into the addition of this new permitted use in the M1 zone,” said Good.

“To proceed to issue a building permit, will subject the Township to potentially expensive litigation,” said Good. “I encourage the Township to reconsider its position and not issue a building permit until the property has been properly vetted through the re-zoning process.”

Following Rowntree and Schaillee, Tom Kaneb, owner of UTI made a presentation. 

He noted that  these lands have been industrial since prior to 1967, pre-dating some of the neighbouring homes and many of their current owners. 

“The tension that we have here is often felt when residential areas expand close to older industrial areas,” said Kaneb. “We know that we need to try and reach an accommodation.”

“We are designing into the project modern dust controls and low noise aeration fans to minimize dust and noise,” he added.

Kaneb spoke of the local economic benefit to farmers and to South Dundas and to the support that the project has from area farmers.

“We intend to proceed with the support of the community and will do our best to meet all laws, regulations and zoning requirements,” said Kaneb.

Again, because of the legal involvement brought on by the concerned citizens group, council did not question or comment on the matter.

Following Kaneb’s presentation, Grain Farmers of Ontario delegate Warren Schneckenburger, told of the need and importance of this new terminal in South Dundas.

“We are fortunate here to have two end users, Ingredion (formerly Casco) and Greenfield Ethanol, but their maximum capacity has been realized,” said Schneckenburger. He explained that the result is a reliance on the Port of Prescott, which fills very rapidly in the fall.

“This issue is bigger than South Dundas,” said Schneckenburger, pointing out that grain regularly flows to this area from a much larger region regularly coming from about 5,200 producers.

Once again, South Dundas council refrained from questioning or commenting on the presentation.

Included in council’s information package was a key information report from Donald Lewis, manager of planing and enforcement, regarding the status of the status of the project.

Council did not allow Lewis to speak to the report.

According to the report, a peer review with planning consultants has confirmed that the grain terminal proposal meets zoning requirements and currently staff are in the process of determining if all applicable laws have been satisfied.

The proponent has secured the required County Road setback permit, and have sufficiently addressed truck traffic concerns. 

In its current form, the proposal does not require any South Nation Conservation permits. 

Ministry of the Environment staff are in the process of reviewing the application.

[…]

 

 Morrisburg’s popular Playhouse will sizzle with laughter for the entire month of August with the classic hit comedy, No Sex Please, We’re British.

The hilarious farce, by Alistair Foot and Anthony Marriott,  played in London’s West End from 1971 to 1987, keeping packed houses laughing for 17 solid years. It was later made into a movie starring popular British comedian Ronnie Corbett. With this track record, artistic director Donnie Bowes is confident this third comedy of the summer season will make for a riotous month of August. 

“We’ve gotten off to a great start this summer,” says Bowes. “We expect the parking lot will continue to overflow with this next classic comedy hit. And it’s one of the largest casts we’ve had in a long time.”

 The show has all the elements that make a farce such an entertaining audience experience. Characters are caught in a difficult predicament with something to hide; inept friends are recruited to get them out of the trouble they’re in;  a whole army of unexpected people arrive on the scene to crank up the tension and make the cover-up even more difficult.

The frantic action begins quite innocently when Peter and Frances Hunter send away for some glassware. To their horror they receive a shipment of lewd photographs instead. The nightmare continues when they are inundated with boxes of blue films and pornographic books. To make matters worse, they live in an apartment over the bank where Peter works and they are about to be visited by his boss and a bank inspector. 

All of this unfolds on the very day Peter’s mother-in-law also decides to visit. 

In a desperate effort to dispose of the unexpected shipments of unwanted goods, the couple recruit the help of Brian Runnicles, a bumbling and inept bank employee, who only makes the situation worse in his half-baked efforts to help. 

Audiences will be happy they’ve dropped by the apartment to experience first hand the hilarious goings-on in this high stakes adventure. 

Director Richard Bauer, and Brian Young, who plays Brian Runnicles, know very well the comic impact this show will make having both performed in the play years ago at other theatres. Bauer has both starred in and directed many of the Playhouse’s hit farces including last season’s hit Wife Begins at Forty, which also featured Young, and veteran  actor Walter Learning, who is returning to play Bromwell, the bank boss. 

Joining them will be Katie Lawson as Frances Hunter and her real life husband Derek Moran as stage husband Peter Hunter. Lawson has starred in several Playhouse farces including Not Now Darling, while Moran makes his Playhouse debut.

Linda Goranson, playing the mother-in-law Eleanor Hunter, starred in last season’s Nice Family Gathering and will appear later in the season in The Cemetery Club. 

Returning to The Playhouse after a 13 year absence is Shaun Clarke, who takes on the role of Mr. Needham, the bank inspector. Clarke appeared in Seduced by Moonlight, one of the first shows in the theatre’s current toothbrush factory venue. 

Rounding out the cast are new-comers Katie Leamen and Jackie English, more unexpected guests who arrive in the middle of the mayhem, along with Ottawa actor Zach Council, who turns up the heat as the prodding Superintendent.  

The Playhouse is happy to once again treat audiences to a cast of recurring and returning favourites as well as some talented new faces. The set design is by John Thompson with lights by Sean Free. 

No Sex Please, We’re British runs August 1-25. For tickets call: 613-543-3713 or go to uppercanadaplayhouse.com. 

[…]

 

John Ross and his volunteers (Ross Video people in the kitchen, other helpers landing and guiding planes) looked tired Sunday afternoon on July 21. However, everyone was smiling.

“I think this Fly In Breakfast may be one of our most successful ever,” Ross said. “We served 700 breakfast. It would be impossible to run this event without these wonderful volunteers.”

The annual Fly In, which makes Iroquois the ‘go-to destination’ for pilots and planes, and those who are simply interested in seeing the aircraft and chatting with the flyers, saw 60 planes arrive before 9 a.m. All told, as many as 80 or 90 dropped in during the morning.

After some definite weather concerns Friday (high winds, downpours and tornado watches), Mother Nature decided to co-operate. The skies were sunny, the humidity gone, and the crowds were out in force from 7:30 a.m.

Pilots registered from such places as Rockcliffe, Beaver Lake, Montréal, Belle Isle, Kingston, and even farther afield. Many, like Henri Monnin, who brought his yellow Murphy Rebel in from Indian Creek, were return visitors who look forward to the annual Iroquois Fly In Breakfast.

Jean Sebastien Dominique, who arrived in his Piper Cherokee 140  shared a story with people. He flies with the registered charity, Pilots and Paws Canada. Its members, volunteer civilian pilots, transport abandoned or abused dogs to adoptive homes all over Canada. They have also flown animals out of the North for emergency treatment and care. As    Dominique said, with a laugh, “I’ve flown my Cherokee with a St. Bernard and a Great Pyrenees acting as my co-pilots.”

Also garnering much crowd interest were a World War II Harvard trainer, and a group of Ultra Lights that dropped in from Belle Isle. 

Pilot Richard Hudin described his Ultra Light as a “weight shift.” “I fly it by shifting my weight from side to side in the seat. The craft’s top speed is around 85 to 90 miles and hour. It took us about 90 minutes to fly here.” 

He pilots a Quik R model Explorer, an ultra light that comes from the United Kingdom, and has earned the nickname, the “Trike,” for its three landing wheels.

Joining the Fly In again this year, were members of the Golden Gears Car Club. The crowd was eager to look at the nearly 40 models on display in the field next to the landing strip, and to talk to owners and restorers. A little “cruisin’” music playing in the background set the mood.

“I believe that the combination of cars with the flying added hugely to our attendance at this  local event,” said John Ross.

Funds raised at the Fly In Breakfast are employed in the maintenance and care of the Iroquois airport.  

[…]

Messy Day on July 19 is one of the special beach days sponsored by South Dundas Recreation and the Ontario Early Years Centre. The beaches project is now in its third season with events also taking place in Iroquois. Dozens of children gathered in Morrisburg to enjoy exciting and delightfully messy activities under the supervision of Ben Macpherson, recreation program co-ordinator and Fiona Carr of the Early Years, and the Morrisburg life guards. With magic mud, gooey slime, volcanoes in the sand, face painting, the Duckie wading pool, a slip and slide, Pie in the Eye, and of course, Shaving Cream Musical Chairs, there was little doubt that everyone could be just as messy as they wanted.

[…]

 

The antiques themselves were wonderfully old, but the location of the 2013 Antique Festival in Morrisburg was very new. This year, the Festival, which was held July 20-21, was set up in downtown Morrisburg, in the plazas.

“From all that we are hearing, we have a success on our hands, said Gerri Fitzsimmons, manager of the South Dundas Chamber of Commerce. “The vendors (about 20 this year) told us they were very happy with the new venue. We found that we had steady visitors to the tents both Saturday and Sunday. Everything set up on the main mall, and really visible,  which seemed to attract a lot of visitors. Also there was no admission price for the Festival.”

This year’s Antique Festival was operated for the first time by the Morrisburg Business Improvement Association, after the Morrisburg & District Lions Club indicated they were no longer able to operate the popular event. Carl McIntryre served as the chair  of the committee, which assumed responsibility for organizing the festival in May.

“Earlier this year, our mayor outlined goals for South Dundas,” McIntyre said. “An event like this festival, bringing partnerships with business, government and local groups, really speaks to those goals. Doug Grenkie and the Pinkus family were very generous in donating their buildings to our  event.”

“From a business poll we took,” Fitzsimmons said, “local businesses saw a substantial increase in traffic and revenue. Many felt that this move was a great idea. We are going to use feedback from the surveys to determine where to concentrate advertising in the future and to determine improvements for next year’s event.”

Shoppers could visit places like the tent of Brian Wildsmith, a specialist in antique ‘advertising.’ “Signs and any kind of advertising  materials are top sellers in the antique market today,” he explained.

Mistralle Brouillard of Ottawa was interested in old books, while Susan and Chris Dwyre of Brockville were “looking for old toys.” Donna Leroux of Glen Walter came to Morrisburg’s Antique Festival to examine estate jewellery.

Times Past Antiques, from Ottawa, specialized in silver and antique objects from England and the continent. There were booths showing  furniture,  china, music and other collectibles and even a display of Ken Carter memorabilia.

“We talked to visitors from as far away as Pennsylvania,” said Festival volunteer Kim Morrow.

“The response has been wonderful this weekend,” said Helen Laurin, also manning the welcome desk. “This is the Morrisburg BIA’s first time running the Antique Festival, and we will use what we learn this week to make the event even better next year.”

[…]

 

 It was supposed to be an ordinary Sunday afternoon, July 14.

“We’d just come home from playing golf,” said Walter Reid of Bridlewood Crescent in Iroquois. “I’d noticed that the brakes on my golf cart seemed to be sticking, so I thought I would fix them. While Lyse (partner Lyse Scharfe) made lunch, I put the front of the cart up on a block so  could get underneath to spray the brakes with oil.”

This is the point that an ordinary day turned into a very frightening one for Walter, Lyse and their neighbours Mike and Donna Zeron and Kirk Hunter and Tracey Beckstead-Hunter. 

As Walter lay under the 1,000 pound golf cart, “I reached for something and accidentally hit the accelerator from underneath: the cart suddenly came off the block and ran over me.”

Walter said that, had the machine not somehow caught his arm and rolled him over on his stomach, the full 1,000 pounds would have come straight down on his chest, crushing it immediately. As it was, he was pressed face down, deep into the dirt,  tightly jammed there, unable to speak or move, in terrible pain and slowly being smothered.

Lyse called him from the house, and when he did not answer, she came out. 

“I started screaming right away,” she recalled. “I could not shift the cart at all, and Walter was turning blue.”

Still screaming, she ran next door to the Zeron home, “and burst through their front door.”

Mike Zeron immediately raced over, but he too, could not shift the cart alone. 

“I remembered seeing Kirk (Hunter) out cutting his grass down the street,” Mike said. He leaped into his truck, flew down the street and yelled at Kirk to get in immediately.

“I didn’t completely know what had happened,” Kirk recalled much later. “But I got in right away. Mike drove me to Walter’s so fast I thought we’d go through the garage.”

Donna Zeron and Tracey Beckstead-Hunter, both of whom have taken first aid courses and know CPR, also rushed to the scene. 

“By now,” Walter said quietly, “I was in a really bad way. I remember heavy, heavy pain. Suddenly I know I saw bright lights, and then the pain just stopped. I think now, that for a minute, I might have actually passed away.” 

His condition terrified his rescuers. Walter, they say, was blue down to his shoulders. “His lips and ears were blackish purple, like he’d had a severe beating. We were really afraid he was gone,” Mike recalled.

Zeron and Hunter, with strength they didn’t know they possessed, flat lifted the golf cart off Walter, actually suspending it in air for nearly four minutes while the women grabbed Walter’s legs and dragged him to safety.

Donna immediately started CPR compressions. Suddenly, they heard Walter gasp, and then he began to choke.

“I heard Donna say he’s got a pulse,” Tracey said. “When he began to choke, I said get him into the recovery position. We immediately began talking to him, reassuring him, trying to keep him conscious. He was moaning and couldn’t form words at first.”

At that point, the Iroquois Emergency Fire Rescue vehicle pulled into the Reid driveway, responding quickly to Lyse’s 911 call. “I heard Walter suddenly ask for his phone,” said Mike Zeron, smiling now. “That’s when I began to think maybe everything was going to be alright.”

Trevor Riopelle, Andre Menges, Bill Ewing and Rick Cogdale of the South Dundas Fire Emergency Services “knew just what to do,” said Lyse. 

“What a huge relief it was to see them arrive. They set up oxygen, put on a neck brace and started alert tests.”

Gord and Cheryl Barton, who had just been passing by, also stopped and promptly looked after all the Zeron and Hunter children during the emergency. 

Walter was ultimately transported to the Ottawa Civic Hospital, which has a trauma centre. He suffered three broken ribs and bruising. 

He and Lyse are certain that he would not be alive today had his friends and neighbours not responded so fully to the crisis.

“I can’t thank everybody enough for what they did for me,” Walter Reid said. “They absolutely saved my life. I really wanted to recognize these good neighbours for their quick thinking and for helping me when I was in trouble.”

Incidentally, Walter says that “from now on, I will definitely not be fixing my golf cart myself.” 

[…]

The 30 mega-watt, 10 turbine South Branch Wind Project that will bring 10, 500’ tall industrial wind turbines to the Brinston area was approved, July 11, by the Ministry of the Environment.

Proponents of the project, EDP Renewables Canada already had a public construction meeting scheduled for July 17, at Matilda Hall in Dixon’s Corners.

Those opposing the project are disappointed to say the least.

The South Branch Wind Opposition Group had just recently met with council for information purposes and presented them with over 100 signatures of those in the Brinston area who support the idea of South Dundas declaring themselves ‘not a willing host’.

SBWOG had asked South Dundas council to vote on a resolution declaring that position, however, South Dundas council put off the motion until EDP was given the opportunity to make a similar presentation.

EDP was scheduled to make that presentation at this week’s council meeting.

In the meantime, the project was approved, making the resolution basically pointless, with respect to this project.

“I’m disappointed, but there is nothing I can do,” said Leslie Disheau, president of the South Branch Wind Opposition Group.

There is a 15 day appeal period to take the decision to Environmental Review Tribunal, but Disheau says the SBWOG will not file an appeal, as they do not have the resources to bring people in to testify on their behalf. 

“If this council truly values the residents of Brinston, they will put in the bylaws to protect them,” said Disheau. 

Disheau has suggested that nuisance bylaws for such things as noise and shadow-flicker be implemented and enforced by the Municipality of South Dundas, to protect area residents.

“The fight is just beginning,” said Disheau.

[…]

 

 Get out your lawn chairs, picnic blankets and picnic baskets and head for Cruickshank’s Amphitheatre on Saturday, July 20, from 3-5 p.m. Local musician, Cory Coons, will be putting on an outstanding free concert for every one at the amphitheatre that afternoon. 

Already a well known and popular artist in this area, Coons will be accompanied on stage Saturday by harmony vocalist Michelle Arthurs, with Mike McNeil on percussion. As a bonus, musicians Lana and Labarr, an exciting pop rock duo from Oshawa, are opening for Coons.

I had the opportunity to chat with Cory Coons about his music and his concert on July 20.

“I love music,” he explained. “It’s basically my passion in life, writing, creating and performing. Anything musically related I love.”

While he says that he doesn’t necessarily come from a musical family (“My mom played the organ, my dad loved to sing big band numbers.”) he laughed that “Michelle (Arthurs) is actually my sister-in-law, so that does sort of make it a family tradition.” 

He has been performing in concerts for over two decades now.

“I’ve been playing the guitar since I was 17 years old, still attending Seaway District High School.  I really love harmony. I turned professional around age 20.” He played for 12 years with a band called the Tycoons, but then decided to strike out in a solo recording career. His long term goal is to eventually work as a musician full time. He also shares his love for music as a Freelance Guitar Instructor.

Coons feels that certain other artists have served as an inspiration for his work.

“The 70s and 80s style of classic rock and newer country appeal to me. I enjoy Keith Urban and Neil Young, pretty much good music of any type. I would characterize my original work as roots rock meets country rock.” His most recent CD release (2012) is Here and Now and his single, Roses Need Rain, has generated some local airplay and interest. In the fall, he is looking at creating a new video.

I asked Cory about his song writing, since much of the work he will be performing at the Amphitheatre will be original.

“Every song is different,” he said. “Sometimes the melody comes first, and then the lyrics, sometimes the other way. I like to tell stories with my music. But I do have one rule. I believe that every listener should take his own elements out of my music. When they hear my songs, I want there to be a bit of a mystery there that they can solve themselves. After a concert, I like to talk to people, and I often discover that they have found ideas in the music that I hadn’t even thought of.”

Coons has opened for April Wine, Kim Michell, Glass Tiger, David Wilcox and Prairie Oyster. He has been in demand locally, performing at the Spencerville Stampede, Chesterville Hotel, Papa Gus in Chesterville and in Kemptville at the Old Coach House. 

The Cruickshank Amphitheatre is the perfect venue for an afternoon of great music with local artist, Cory Coons. The entire concert is free, and everyone is welcome. “People will enjoy themselves,” Coons said. “The whole event will be laid back, but lots of fun.”

[…]

 

A tradition several decades old will come to an end at Seaway District High School in 2014. Graduation October 11, 2013, will be the last one held in the fall for senior students.

“Our graduation committee has considered switching to a June graduation exercise for the class of 2014 and beyond. We have decided to make this change,” said principal, Terry Gardiner. “This change has been made to facilitate student attendance at the graduation  exercises and to align our practice with other schools in the Upper Canada District School Board.”

Friday, October 11, 2013, the last graduation on the Thanksgiving weekend will take place. In 2014, on a date to be announced later, graduation will be held in June. 

“Graduation is one of the highlights of our school year,” Gardiner said. He emphasized that the ongoing support of businesses and the community has always been very important to the school. “We hope that (businesses and organizations) will be able to continue supporting our graduates, and the fact that we will be having two graduation ceremonies in closer proximity to one another will not pose a problem.” 

[…]