SERVING MAPLETON AND MINTO
THE
COMMUNITY NEWS VOLUME 51 ISSUE 45
1 Year GIC - 2.82% 3 Year GIC - 3.10% 5 Year GIC - 3.33% Daily Interest 1.40%
638-3328
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2018
www.jackfinancial.ca
Dryer fire - Mapleton firefighters cooled down a set of propane tanks to prevent a potential explosion when fire broke out at a corn-drying operation on Wellington Road 8 on Nov. 1. BELOW: A tractor and truck located near the dryer were completely destroyed, said Fire Chief Rick Richardson. Submitted photos
Firefighters extinguish corn dryer blaze By Patrick Raftis
Furrow princess - Mapleton’s Tate Driscoll, left, outgoing Wellington County Princess of the Furrow and reigning IPM Princess of the Furrow, was on hand on Nov. 2 to crown new 2018-19 Wellington County Princess Shayna Morphy of Moorefield. The presentation was part of the Wellington County Plowmen’s Association banquet in Alma. Photo by Jennifer Goertzen For more coverage see this week’s Wellington Advertiser.
Two accidents cause serious injuries MAPLETON - Two people sustained life threatening injuries in separate automobile accidents here early last week. On Oct. 30 at about 6:15pm emergency crews responded to a motor vehicle collision at the intersection of Wellington Roads 8 and 10, near Moorefield.
Police report a northbound SUV on Wellington Road 8 collided with a minivan that entered the intersection from Wellington Road 10. OPP, Mapleton Fire/ Rescue and GuelphWellington Paramedic Services attended the scene. The driver of the minivan, a 59-year-old man from
London, suffered life threatening injuries and was transported to a local hospital. A passenger from the minivan suffered minor injuries and was released at hospital. The driver of the SUV, a 35-year-old female from Morris-Turnberry, was uninjured. SEE INJURIES Âť 2
MAPLETON – Local firefighters minimized damage in a potentially explosive situation when called to a fire at a local grain-drying operation last week. Firefighters from Drayton and Moorefield stations were called to a fire involving farm equipment at Wellington Road 8 near Sideroad 16 at around 11am on Nov. 1. Mapleton Fire Chief Rick Richardson said the proximity of a set of propane tanks to the blaze was an immediate concern for firefighters. happened “Something between the tractor and the dryer to spark it, which caught the building on fire, which was over top of the propane tanks,� said Richardson, who was at the nearby Mapleton administration centre when the call
came in. “I came out from the township building, saw the flames coming out and the three tanks together and I said ‘Oh my gosh, here we go,’� he recalled. “It wasn’t a tough fire to put out once we could get past the propane tanks. We
got them cooled down first and ‌ we shut the propane off and got the fire in the little building put out.� While no official damage estimate was available, Richardson said a tractor and truck near the dryer were destroyed and repairs to the dryer will be necessary.
Mapleton plans public meeting on cannabis legalization issues MAPLETON – Should retail marijuana sales be allowed in the township? Citizens here can have their say on local legalization issues at a public meeting on Nov. 22. Council set the date for the meeting, which will run from 7 to 9pm at the PMD arena, at the Oct. 30 meeting, after receiving a staff report from CAO Manny Baron. “The main decision that council needs to make is whether or not to allow retail stores,� said Baron. Recreational cannabis was legalized in Canada on Oct. 17. In Ontario, legal sales are currently allowed
only through the government’s online cannabis store. However physical retail outlets can be opened by licensed operators in April. Baron said he anticipates some handouts will be distributed and a “general overview of what the cannabis industry looks like� will be provided at the public meeting. “Our goal is to 100 per cent listen to what the attendees say and, I guess, help educate council on making appropriate decisions related to retail stores,� said Baron. He explained other issues surrounding legalization may be addressed at the meeting, but “the main decision is coming fairly quickly
NOW SHOWING
THE HOUSE WITH A CLOCK IN ITS WALLS
Fri. and Sat. 8pm & Sun. 7pm
RATED PG & 105 MINUTES
BIG FILM FEST: Nov. 19 @ 7:15pm featuring “The Bookshop�, Admission $10 MAIN ST. W. PALMERSTON 519.343.3640 www.norgantheatre.com
and council does not have a lot of time to make that decision.� The province is requiring municipalities to decide by Jan. 22 if they will allow retail sales within their borders. However Baron noted in his report “if a municipality opts out, they will have a second opportunity to opt back in at a later date.� Councillor Lori Woodham asked if any clarification was provided on the question of whether municipalities opting out of retail sales will receive any of the funding designated to compensate for costs of implementing the new legislation. Baron’s report indicates the province is promising a
minimum of $10,000 to each municipality to help with any costs incurred. “You can read that two different ways,� Baron told council. “The way I read it is we will, regardless, receive revenue because even if we don’t open a store, the municipality as a whole would have to spend some money on bylaw enforcement as well as policing. So the way I read the comments and provincial guidelines is, we will receive it.� Councillor Michael Martin, who chaired the meeting in the absence of Mayor Neil Driscoll, asked how the municipality would deal with the “perceived contradiction� of marijua-
WEEKLY WAG
“Journalism is what we need to make democracy work.� - Walter Cronkite
‘‘
By Patrick Raftis
na smoking being legal “in many public spaces� but not allowed within specified distances of public facilities and some public spaces, such as playgrounds. “The province is saying you can smoke marijuana anywhere you can smoke a cigarette or vape,� replied Baron. “However, and this is probably part of the discussion at the open house, do we even take it a step further and, any municipality owned property, do we allow smoking on it, marijuana?� Baron pointed out the municipality could technically ban the smoking on municipal roadways. “If you look at Halifax, they banned smoking and
marijuana smoke essentially in the entire city,â€? he noted. “All those rules, then you have to enforce them. Who enforces all that?â€? wondered councillor Marlene Ottens. “What are you going to do at the arena if someone is smoking tobacco or marijuana in the arena, or outside of it, whether they’re nine metres (away) or not? Are you going to call the police every time? The more rules the more enforcement and I’m not sure how you get around that in a small town that doesn’t have its own police force.â€? Noting the township, in August, declined a proposal from a trucking company to purchase land in the Drayton SEE MEETING Âť 3
'5$<7216725$*( FRP ,QGLYLGXDO 6WRUDJH 8QLWV Individual Storage Units [ [ [ [ 5x10 10x10 10x15 10x20 6HDVRQDO ERDWV FDUV 59V ODZQ WUDFWRUV Seasonal VXPPHU ZLQWHU WLUH VWRUDJH boats, cars, RVs, lawn tractors, summer/winter tire storage