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Serving the Mapleton Community
Community News Volume 45 Issue 16
Drayton, Ontario
1 Year GIC - 2.20% 3 Year GIC - 2.42% 5 Year GIC - 2.76% Daily Interest 1.75%
Friday, April 20, 2012
Optimists propose big mural for downtown Moorefield
Township will fix signs rather than remove them by David Meyer MAPLETON TWP. Councillors here have decided to fix entrance signs to the municipality rather than take them down. Councillor Jim Curry had stated he wanted them all removed because they are in such poor condition they reflect badly on the township. Mayor Bruce Whale said the one on County Road 8 is still in good condition and Curry agreed, but said the others need to come down. Councillor Mike Downey said, “We’ve spent good money on these signs. Why don’t we spend a little to touch them up?� Curry said he would, but only one is good enough for that. “The rest, I’d be hard pressed to accept.� Whale asked how many signs there are, and Curry said eight. Councillor Andy Knetsch said the signs are in poor condition, and he has issues with signs at the entrance to Drayton. He said the backs should be replaced, and there should be signs at the exits urg-
ing people to return. Whale recommended a staff review rather than pulling all the signs down. Public works director Larry Lynch said it is the superstructure and not the signs that is the costly part. Downey favoured a “touch up� but Curry said many need “a complete overhaul.� Lynch noted there are different prices for signs that are painted as opposed to those with letters coated with plastic and stuck on. Curry said the lettering on the signs was once reflective, but that wore off. Whale said something must be done, but noted the county is considering standard signs, and “I don’t want to spend a lot of money if we are going to be a part of that.� Council then voted, with Curry and Knetsch in favour of taking down the signs, and Downey and councillor Neil Driscoll opposed. Whale broke the tie by voting against the motion. He asked that staff bring back a report on the issue.
Council to reconsider defeated zoning plans
by David Meyer MAPLETON TWP. Council is going to reconsider two defeated proposals. Council had voted against selling a road allowance in Rothsay that would make legal a building for which the township erred in providing a building permit. The other issue is just north of Glen Allan, where a land-
owner wants to extend a closed Sideroad 46 road allowance in order to obtain frontage for two house lots. Mayor Bruce Whale had given notice of motion to reconsider both issues. He said for one there is new information and for the other there have been changes to the proposal. Council voted unanimously to reconsider both issues.
Building destroyed - Shortly before 8am on April 15, emergency vehicles responded to a large fire at Woodland Horizons Furniture on County Road 11 northeast of Drayton. Mapleton Fire Chief Rick Richardson said 46 firefighters from Mapleton, Minto and Wellington North fire departments spent three hours battling the blaze, which was likely caused by a malfunction of the company’s sawdust collector. Officials were able to save office equipment and computers but “everything else is completely gone,� Richardson said. No one was hurt in the blaze, and as of Tuesday the company and its insurance provider were still working on a damage estimate. photos by Quinton Mol
Service clubs seek funding partnership by David Meyer MAPLETON TWP. - It appears there are numerous groups in the community here that like council’s policy of providing half the cost of community projects. Drayton Kinsmen Club president John Klaasen was the second delegation at council on April 10 with a proposal to take advantage of the 50:50 township funding program. Klaasen said his club was applying to upgrade the park on Elm Street in Drayton. It also applied to bring up-to-date equipment to the Moorefield park. His club is taking partnerships to another level, too. Klaasen said the Drayton
Kinsmen Club was partnering with the Moorefield Optimists and Opti-Mrs. Club to get those projects done. “Given our service clubs’ combined past experiences in fundraising and community improvement, we are the best choice for this project,� Klaasen said in a report to council. He proposed the Kinsmen park in Drayton receive $15,000 from the club, and that be matched by the township to create a pool of $30,000 for that park. At the same time, he said, the Moorefield Clubs each already have $5,000 and the Drayton club yet another $5,000 to total another project worth $30,000 when combined
with possible township funding. Klaasen suggested $30,000 in funding from the township would allow parks in the two communities to be done, and “not disturb the funding of other service and recreational groups looking for 50:50 funding.� Klaasen said the three clubs would be a part of the sourcing and approval process of the equipment being installed, with a barrier-free design. Further, manual labour for the installation stage would primarily be done by club members and volunteers, under the supervision of the qualified equipment Continued on page 3
by David Meyer MAPLETON TWP. Moorefield could be first of three communities here to get a large mural in its downtown. Dave Campbell of the Moorefield Optimist Club said on April 10 the group is proposing a large mural in the community and would like to do so under the township’s program that supports community groups with half of a project’s cost. The mural would be 12 feet high and 32 feet long, and be placed on the north wall of the K.A. Hammond building at the corner of Adam Brown and Hendrie Streets. Campbell told council preliminary talks about the project started last year with public works director Larry Lynch, and the club is hoping for council support. It has approached artist and muralist Allen Hilgendorf, who has done numerous similar projects. The cost would be $9,600 for the 384 square foot picture on four by eight foot panels at a cost of $1,200, plus $1,404 HST. The total cost is $12,204. Campbell said Hilgendorf has already visited Moorefield two or three times, and presented a possible mural sketch. it features the railway, a truck backed under a grain bin, cattle and four baseball players. Campbell said with a grin that some of the boys in the sketch would have to be changed to Continued on page 2
Mapleton Township unlikely to upgrade rural road anytime soon by David Meyer MAPLETON TWP. - After hearing a report from its public works director, council here indicated on April 10 it is unlikely to favour paving a rural road in the immediate future. Residents on Sideroad 6 of old Maryborough Township came to council on March 27 with a request for paving and road improvements. Trevor Misch gave council a petition from 22 residents living on Sideroad 6 between Concession 8 and County Road 8 - a stretch of about 1.5 miles. He said the road is getting worse and, lately, it was dangerous. He noted he had lost control of his vehicle on that road this spring.
Public works director Larry Lynch told council on April 10 he travelled the road immediately upon his return from vacation. “In the big picture, I don’t see Sideroad 6 performing unlike any other gravel road. I would not recommend doing any more,� he said. Lynch’s report spelled out the problems the township has with a deteriorating road system. Mapleton roads are given one of three classifications: - urban: includes curbs and/ or gutters and storm sewers (about 2.04 per cent of the township’s entire road system); - semi-urban: road design includes open ditches or swales and not curbs and gutters or
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storm sewers (5.54% of the township’s roads); and - rural: roads that abut farm and residential development or open space (92.4% of the township’s road system). Lynch said Sideroad 6 between County Road 8 and Mapleton Concession 8 is a rural roadside environment, 2.6km long, with a gravel surface drainage through roadside ditches and an average annual traffic volume of 50 to 199 vehicles a day. His report noted, “A minimum level of service for rural roads is generally based on traffic usage; both the overall traffic volume using the road and the type of traffic.� He noted the maintenance system takes into account roads heav-
ily used by trucks and farm machinery. “For example, to minimize maintenance concerns it is suggested that roads that have traffic volumes exceeding 200 vehicles per day be considered for a hard top surface,� his report said. It added, “For those roads where the traffic volume exceeds 500 vehicles per day or where there is a high percentage of truck traffic, the preferred surface is asphalt, to maximize road life. Roads that provide access and have an average annual daily traffic of less than 200 vehicles per day are normally a gravel surface.� Further, his report said a 2009-10 road management plan, prepared for the town-
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ship by R.J. Burnside and Associates engineering firm, identifies about 52km of gravel roads that need immediate attention, including the road where the petitioners want upgrades. Lynch said 52km represents about one third of the entire township gravel road system. He said the engineering report indicates the work needed now on those roads encompasses: - building of existing base with 150mm of granular A gravel; - 150mm of earth excavation for 30% of the road length; - ditching for 30% of the road length; - topsoil and seeding for 30% of the road length; and
- miscellaneous minor work. Lynch concluded, “The estimated cost of this upgrade is $234,000 and would not include asphalt.� Preparatory work would have to be done first if the township plans to pave the road. Lynch told council he does not believe that section of road, with 37 residences on it, should have an upgrade to hard surface. He said this winter was particularly hard on all gravel roads right across the province, and neighbouring Centre Wellington Township has faced similar road conditions and complaints. He explained the problem Continued on page 6
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