THURSDAY JANUARY 26, 2017
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Richmond Hill resident Sherry Bennett shows a cannabis oil bottle and eye-dropper that measures her required dosage accurately.
KIM ZARZOUR kzarzour@yrmg.com Mona Belczowski was never one to live on the edge.
The 78-year-old doesn’t smoke, never drank and as for marijuana, "I didn’t want any part of that. I love life and having my brain as aware as possible.
Don’t give me anything that wold make me so-called high." But the Richmond Hill resident is getting old. With age, comes aches and pains, a body
that no longer functions as it used to and a medicine cabinet filled with prescription drugs to
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l See PUBLIC page 2
EDUCATION
Trustee should resign over racial slur: parents TERESA LATCHFORD tlatchford@yrmg.com Parents are calling for the resignation of York Region District School Board trustee Nancy Elgie. The Georgina trustee was recently the subject of an investigation into calling a black mother the N-word. Following the conclusion of the investigation, Elgie emailed apologies to all of the parties involved. However, a petition of more than 1,000 signatures is calling for her resignation points to parents believing a letter is not enough. "If YRDSB has a zero-tolerance policy for discrimination, how can they allow Ms. Elgie to represent them?" the petition states. "Thus, we are calling for
the immediate resignation of Ms. Elgie for her violation of (policy 240), her complete disrespect of a Black parent and our community and her blatant use of the racist and violent slur ’n-----’." Newly appointed board chair Loralea Carruthers has heard the parents, but points out YRDSB staff and trustees don’t have the authority to make Elgie resign, not even under the trustee’s code of conduct mandated by the province. "We are limited because she is an elected official and our code of conduct doesn’t have the teeth to force anyone to resign," she explained. "Basically, people will have their say at the ballot box." YRDSB Education Director Philip Parappally made the decision to investigate the incident
under the respectful workplaces and learning environment policy and not the board’s code of conduct. It couldn’t be both. Carruthers says that, if she had been chair at the time, she would have dealt with things a little differently and in a more transparent manor. "I have asked her how she wants to proceed because it is now up to her, but I have yet to hear back from her," Carruthers said. While she agrees there is no excuse for what happened, she also points out Elgie is the longest serving trustee currently on the board and she has a long track record of being a good trustee. "In my experience working
Toronto Star
York Region school trustee Nancy Elgie, shown at her home, originally claimed there was "no merit" in an accusation that she uttered a racial slur about a black parent after a recent public school board meeting.
l See SCHOOL page 8
BUSINESS
Chamber shines light with ideas to reduce cost of energy TERESA LATCHFORD tlatchford@yrmg.com
The Aurora Chamber of Commerce is calling for an auction to make energy more affordable for residents and small businesses. In partnership with the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, the local business group is calling on the province to address the high costs of energy in Aurora and the rest of Ontario. Under the current government’s Climate Change Action Plan, industrial energy rates in the province have increased by 16 per cent, while households
and small businesses have seen rates increase by 25 per cent since 2013. The price of electricity is undermining business’ capacity to grow, hire new workers and remain competitive, according to the chamber. "Ontario is at a turning point in its planning process regarding the future energy needs of the province," Aurora chamber board chair Javed Khan said. "In order for businesses in Aurora to grow and succeed, it is imperative that future energy policies respect the concerns of businesses and support future economic growth." The OCC penned a 27-page report to be considered by the
provincial government as it develops its long-term energy plan this year. The top recommendation calls for the adoption of a capacity market system, much like an auction-style process, that would see resources, such as 105 generation facilities, imported resources, electricity storage and demand-side resources compensated for the potential energy they could produce. Consumers would see a significant costsavings through the procurement of shorter term supply on a cost efficient basis, according to the report. Steve Somerville/Metroland
l See ONTARIO page 8
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