R I C H M O N D H I L L’ S C O M M U N I T Y N E W S PA P E R S I N C E 1 8 7 8
THE LIBERAL $1 STORE SALES /32 PAGES
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Thursday, July 26, 2012
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Gardeners swap secrets of success
‘I’ve done nothing wrong’: MP Calandra Radio station bidders donated money to Oak Ridges-Markham MP
Enjoy edible gardens learning tour Saturday
BY SANDRA BOLAN
sbolan@yrmg.com
BY ADAM MC LEAN
Paul Calandra says he has done nothing wrong. The two-term MP for Oak Ridges-Markham is being accused in a national publication of accepting money at fundraising parties in Markham and Richmond Hill earlier this year that involved people attempting to secure a new Toronto radio station licence. The MP is also parliamentary secretary to the Canadian Heritage Minister, which oversees the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, the body that is reviewing bids for the FM station. “I’m not too worried about it,” Mr. Calandra told York Region Media in a telephone interview from Minden yesterday afternoon. “I attended two fundraisers, we took in money, followed all the rules we were supposed to with Elections Canada,” he said. The value of the donations is more than $20,000. However, according to the MP, the money was not accepted by him, but by the electoral district association. None of the money in question has been returned, he said, noting they have until the end of the fiscal year, December, to report contributions. “We continue to do research. If a cheque or donation shouldn’t have been made ... we will return any funds that are inappropriate,” he said. Returning contribution money is nothing new for the MP. From his 2011 campaign, eight donations See DONATIONS page 17.
amclean@yrmg.com
STAFF PHOTO/SJOERD WITTEVEEN
Larry Jeffers grows his tomatoes straight up and suggests new gardeners can’t go wrong with the hardy vegetable. He and seven other back yard gardeners will offer tips and tricks Saturday at the horticultural society’s edible gardens learning tour.
As Larry Jeffers rhymes off the veggies growing in his garden, it sounds like his back yard could double for a supermarket produce section. Carrots, beets, potatoes, zucchini, tomatoes, peppers, garlic, lettuce, cabbage, even corn grow in the back yard of his Don Head Village Boulevard home. “I grow a bit of everything,” said the green-thumbed resident who has grown vegetables in his back 40 since he moved to Richmond Hill 28 years ago. You can visit Mr. Jeffers’ garden and seven others in town this Saturday, as part of the Richmond Hill Garden and Horticultural Society’s edible gardens learning tour. With a $10 ticket, you can admire the gardens, ask questions of the owners and view styles of gardening that could inspire your own vegetable garden. As a preview, Mr. Jeffers shared some of his know-how and some of his gardening struggles. While the dry and hot summer has caused havoc for crops of large scale farmers, Mr. Jeffers said he’s been able to push through an arid July thanks to his water barrels. Taking advantage of what was a wet See RABBIT, page 15
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