Year-in-review: 2011
January
The Blyth Bantam Rep Bulldogs were champions of the Bantam C Silver Stick Tournament in Kincardine, defeating Seaforth in the final to win the tournament.
The Blyth Festival posted a small deficit for the 2010 season, falling just over $31,000 short of expectations.
Blyth-area native Mark Nonkes was featured in a photography exhibit at the Goderich Co-op Gallery. The pictures featured natives of Namibia the recipients of the area’s Bicycles for Humanity projects that collected over 800 bikes and shipped them to the country.
The Huron Business Development Corporation was granted $1.1 million in funds to be loaned out by the federal government’s Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario.
“That’s a lot of money, even for us,” said the corporation’s economic development manager Paul Nichol.
Huron East Clerk-Administrator Jack McLachlan officially announced that he would be retiring later that year, giving six months notice. McLachlan had been with Huron East since amalgamation and with Tuckersmith Township for decades before that.
Greg Dodds, a Belgrave-area hockey player, participated in a prospects game held in Guelph, hoping to catch the eye of a scout or two.
The Blyth and Brussels Hockey Associations voted to amalgamate and become the Blyth Brussels Hockey Association. More than 80 per cent of the Brussels association’s members cast votes and 99 per cent of the votes cast called for the associations to join forces and amalgamate, while in Blyth 75 per cent of members cast a vote with 78 per cent of the votes cast calling for amalgamation.
The Vodden Consent, a controversial severance application in Central Huron, continued to divide representatives around the Huron County Council table, as many saw it as a larger issue attacking the rural way of life, but leading to population decline throughout the county.
Longtime Blyth Fire Chief Paul Josling officially hung up his bunker suit, retiring from firefighting after 36 years.
Huron East Mayor Bernie MacLellan proposed a smaller-look council in Huron East in addition to complete eradication of the ward system. He said the wards were useful training wheels in the early days after amalgamation that were no longer necessary.
A fire agreement with North Huron made its way back to Ashfield-Colborne-Wawanosh (ACW) Council. Council members wanted to re-evaluate the proposal they turned down months earlier.
February
Official closure dates for Blyth, Brussels and East Wawanosh Public Schools were set by the Avon Maitland District School Board (AMDSB). Students, depending on their ages, from the three schools would be moved into two centres at Turnberry Central and Wingham Public Schools in September, 2012, if the new school near F.E. Madill Secondary School is not yet completed.
Residents of Auburn began consideration of a zoning petition to gauge residents’ interest in being rezoned so the entire village would be located in one municipality. Which municipality it would be located in, however, was yet to be determined.
For the second time of the winter season, delivery of The Citizen was delayed due to extreme snow conditions.
The Brussels Agricultural Society held its 150th annual meeting at the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre.
Remunerations came in under budget at Morris-Turnberry Council. The year’s remunerations came in just over $97,000, over 15 per cent lower than the $115,000 budgetted for the year.
Brussels reggae musician Lyndon John X was nominated for a Juno award for his second full-length album Brighter Days. John X’s first album Two Chord Skankin’ was also nominated for the best reggae album Juno years earlier.
Central Huron Council officially enlisted the help of the YMCA for its soon-to-be-built community centre.
In light of it being the backdrop for two memorable losses, County Road 12 was to be dedicated as Police Memorial Road.
OPP Staff Sergeant Shawn Johnson said the dedication was important to “ensure the lives and sacrifices of [officers who lost their lives in the line of duty] are never forgotten.”
Huron East Council decided not to change its current system, leaving the ward system as it had been since amalgamation and not reducing the number of representatives on council.
March
North Huron Council voted to not take part in a wind turbine study being proposed by Huron County. Since wind turbines had not been proposed in the township, council felt it was unnecessary for North Huron to take part.
Hospitals in Wingham and Listowel ranked above the provincial average in patient satisfaction according to the website www.myhospitalcare.ca
Both the hospitals had scored above provincial averages in 2008, 2009 and 2010, as well as 2011.
Central Huron Council began its consideration of a new contract with the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP). The new contract would beef up the municipality’s OPP coverage and would give the officers more power to enforce municipal bylaws.
The debate over fire coverage in Auburn continued with ACW Council being back at square one, faced with a coverage agreement from North Huron to consider.
World-renowned livestock behaviour expert Temple Grandin was in Ethel for a seminar where she discussed animal handling techniques to over a dozen farmers in attendance.
Raymond Walter and Kenneth Rea, two volunteer Listowel firefighters, perished in a fire at an area business when the building collapsed while they were inside.
Local firefighters were also mourning. Fire Department of North Huron Chief John Black said “This is a somber reminder of what can happen to firefighters.”
A non-confidence vote passed on March 25 ordering that a federal election take place throughout Canada on May 2, putting local candidates like Huron-Bruce MP Ben Lobb into election mode once again.
Huron East Treasurer Brad Knight suggested a six per cent tax increase averaged out over the municipality’s five wards, but then lowered that suggestion to a three or four per cent increase.
April
A comprehensive Risk Management Program (RMP) was announced to be included as part of the 2011 provincial budget under a Liberal government.
The official announcement was made by Huron-Bruce MPP and Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Carol Mitchell at a farm in ACW.
Mitchell called the 2011 budget “The Farm Budget” saying that $150 million had been earmarked for the RMP in a program that began in Huron County as far back as 2005.
Central Huron Council presented a 3.95 per cent tax increase to the public for its 2011 budget. This came after council turned down a six per cent tax increase.
Despite poor weather holding up the construction of the Emergency Services Training Centre just south of Blyth, the project remained on budget, according to Fire Department of North Huron Chief John Black.
A breakfast to benefit the families of firefighters Walter and Rea who perished in a fire earlier in the year was set to be held at the Old 86 Farmers’ Market just west of Molesworth.
Huron County Council decided to raise its tax levy by 2.74 per cent, which would be imposed on all Huron’s nine municipalities.
Dozens of supporters of the Regional Equine and Agricultural Centre of Huron (REACH) were in attendance for a public meeting being held to present Central Huron’s budget.
Residents had heard that the centre could possibly be closed by the municipality and came to support it, despite council not considering anything of the sort.
Canadian environmentalist David Suzuki screened his new film in Stratford for students of the AMDSB. Several students from local schools were in attendance and able to ask Suzuki questions about the world around them.
Huron East concluded its budget deliberations and settled on a 2.17 per cent tax increase averaged out over the municipality’s five wards.
Ben Lobb, Charlie Bagnato, Grant Robertson, Eric Shelley and Dennis Valenta said their piece at the Huron County Federation of Agriculture’s all-candidates meeting in Holmesville.
Valenta, however, was not invited to take part in an all-candidates meeting held at the Goderich Legion, which he wrote to local media outlets to explain.
Huron East Council authorized a $20,000 payment to be made to the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre for various upgrades and maintenance issues.
May
Huron-Bruce MP Ben Lobb retained his seat in Ottawa after a landslide victory.
Lobb won nearly 55 per cent of the riding vote and not since 1984 when Murray Cardiff won the riding had there been such a lopsided victory in the area, he said.
Lobb finished over 15,000 votes ahead of Grant Robertson, who finished with over 13,000 votes and Charlie Bagnato of the Liberal Party, who garnered 8,784 votes throughout Huron-Bruce.
Shortly after Lobb was declared the riding’s representative, the Conversative Party was named the majority winner of the election.
The Walton TransCan received an award acknowledging its 40-year commitment to tourism in Huron County from the Huron Tourism Association. Chris Lee, owner of the Walton property beat out 12 other events vying for the award.
A workshop for Blyth Festival opener Hometown was held in Blyth to help familiarize the actors with the music of David Archibald.
Locally-grown beans that made their way through Howson & Howson Limited’s Elevator and Feed Mill were Korea-bound. Bruce Howson said the market for the beans was large, but that there was already plenty of competition between Howson & Howson and several different American and Chinese producers.
Dr. David Colby, Medical Officer of Health for Chatham-Kent, made a monumental presentation to Huron County Council stating that wind turbines are 100 per cent safe and that adverse health effects associated with them were not coming as a direct result of the wind turbines, saying that would be impossible.
Blyth’s Mikayla Ansley had been declared symptom-free upon returning from a trip to Disneyworld with The Sunshine Foundation.
The Brussels Fall Fair began its historic 150th season with an official kick-off event at the Brussels Legion.
The Blyth Festival was nominated for the Premier’s Award for Excellence in the Arts for Best Arts Organization.
The award served as somewhat of a lifetime achievement award. With it also came a cash prize of $50,000.
June
Area farmers were concerned with the previous two months, which had been filled with cold, rainy weather that was making working in the fields next to impossible.
With the exception of one week in May, farmers were unable to work, but Brian Hall of the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said that one week made all the difference.
A national project called Portraits of Honour was scheduled to make a stop in Wingham, in honour of fallen local soldier Matthew Dinning. The touring mural featured an image of every Canadian soldier who lost their life while serving in Afghanistan.
Over 200 wind turbine protestors were in attendance in Seaforth for a meeting organized by Huron East Against Turbines (HEAT). The rally included several guest speakers and over 40 tractors parading down the streets of Seaforth.
The Auburn Playground Committee reached $18,000 raised after a donation of $5,000 from Central Huron earlier in the year.
Huron County Council took a definitive step in the debate on wind turbines declaring it would support a moratorium being placed on further wind turbine developments.
A Business Improvement Area (BIA) was proposed for Blyth, but it would need approval from North Huron Council before it could proceed.
Rev. Gary Clark of Blyth United Church was named President of the London Conference of the United Church of Canada.
The Belgrave Women’s Institute marked its 100th anniversary at the Belgrave Community Centre with several special guests in attendance.
Grant Sparling was named to Canada’s Top 20 under 20 for his efforts in leadership and business courses.
Sparling was included as part of the list largely thanks to his performance at Shad Valley International, a camp where he and over 500 other high school students aimed to use their brains to create a product for Canada’s aging population. Sparling and his group developed a capsulized vaccine, that they have since patented.
Sheila Richards, a dedicated volunteer and co-founder of The Citizen passed away in London following a three-month hospitalization.
The appeals standing in the way of the AMDSB’s new school in Wingham were officially pulled, meaning that construction on the school was cleared to proceed.
Alice McDowell, principal at Blyth Public School, would take over the principal position at the new school scheduled to be built in Wingham.
Huron East Mayor Bernie MacLellan declared his intent to run for the position of Huron County Warden.
MacLellan said he had considered the move before, but never had the time to dedicate to the position, which he now has.
“I’ve been nominated by my peers a lot at the Huron County level,” MacLellan said. “I take that as a vote of confidence.”
A new name was chosen for Grey Central Public School. The school would now be called North Woods Elementary School for the 2012/2013 school year.
Hometown, written by six different playwrights, including former Blyth Festival Artistic Director Peter Smith, opened the 37th annual edition of the Blyth Festival.
July
The man convicted of killing York Regional Police officer and Auburn native Robert Plunkett was sentenced to 12 years in prison for manslaughter.
Joe Seili, longtime Huron East Mayor and Brussels Councillor, announced his official resignation from Huron East Council at the July 5 meeting.
Seili’s announcement caught many councillors off-guard, but Seili insisted that being a councillor was negatively impacting his personal and professional life.
Seili cited his battles with the AMDSB and HEAT as large factors in his decision.
A 44-year-old Kitchener man was killed at the Walton Raceway when he lost control of his bike and struck a tree. Peter Zandersons was an experienced racer wearing all the correct protective equipment, yet he was pronounced dead on the scene by Huron County EMS.
Huron East welcomed a team of two new doctors to the area with Dr. Andrezej and Dr. Kluz moving from Saskatchewan to Seaforth in the coming months.
The Brussels Tigers held their 40th annual fastball tournament at the Brussels Optimist Ballpark. A total of 12 teams would take part in the tournament.
The Sifto Canada Corporation was fined $140,000 in the Ontario Court of Justice as a result of the 2009 incident that claimed North Huron Councillor Murray Nesbitt’s life. In addition to the fine, the court also imposed a 25 per cent victim fine surcharge.
A new Ontario Heritage Trust plaque was unveiled at Ball’s Bridge. The plaque is the 22nd to be placed in Huron County.
A by-election was set to be held for the Brussels Ward of Huron East with the sudden resignation of Seili.
Council had considered appointing a replacement, but said there were over three years of the term remaining and it was only fair that the public had its say once again.
A lawsuit with four Huron County municipalities, as well as Huron County itself, on one side and the other five municipalities on the other began. Huron East Council was notified of the lawsuit at its July 19 meeting by a letter from the municipality’s solicitor Greg Stewart.
August
Four competitors would be vying for the title of Ambassador of the 150th Brussels Fall Fair. Colleen Edgar, Natalie White, Hannah McCutcheon and Matt Cardiff all expressed a desire for the title.
Grant Robertson, who represented the NDP in the year’s federal election, said he too would be seeking to represent the NDP in the provincial election later in the year.
The first-ever Phillips Studio Series was set to begin at the Blyth Festival with The Hanging of Françoise Laurent and Miss Caledonia. Both plays garnered rave reviews at the 2010 SummerWorks festival in Toronto.
After receiving a $25,000 Trillium grant earlier in the year, the Auburn playground was officially approved by Central Huron.
Ground was officially broken on the Habitat for Humanity project on Sports Drive in Brussels. The family of the late Henry Exel was on hand to break ground and help complete the project.
At the groundbreaking ceremony donations were made to the project from the Brussels Optimists in the amount of $5,000 and $10,000 from the Brussels Community Trust.
All of Huron County paused when a devastated F3 category tornado thrashed through Goderich and parts of Central Huron and ACW.
In addition to millions of dollars worth of damage, one man was dead as a result of the tornado. Norman Laberge, 61, was working at the Sifto Salt mine in Goderich when the tornado hit and there wasn’t enough time for him to reach safety.
Jim Johnston of Blyth was also severely injured in the tornado. Serious damage was done to his leg as a result of a trailer being blown over him by the tornado.
Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty travelled to Goderich to assess the situation personally and pledge $5 million in aid to the people of Goderich and the surrounding area.
Provincial NDP leader Andrea Horwath visited Brussels to support Grant Robertson in his bid to become Huron-Bruce MPP.
Morris-Turnberry Council said it would once again examine the ward system and consider abolishing it for good.
A detailed expansion and renovation package was proposed for the Wingham and District Hospital by Huron-Bruce MPP Carol Mitchell.
Mitchell made the announcement on the hospital’s front lawn saying that she hoped the project would be seeking tenders in 2013 or 2014.
Sparling’s Propane in Blyth celebrated its 60th anniversary.
September
The Blyth Legion received a $45,000 Trillium grant for an extensive renovation project to the building. The first phase of the project will cost $100,000 with the Legion and the Legion Ladies Auxiliary raising the $65,000, more than necessary. The remaining funds would go towards the second phase of the project.
Ground was officially broken on the new AMDSB school in Wingham with Huron-Bruce MPP Carol Mitchell doing the honours.
Grey-area resident Lexi Smith was named princess at the annual Huron County Plowing Match. For her winning speech, she discussed small town living and how it has affected her life.
The Huron County Federation of Agriculture and the Ontario Federation of Agriculture held a joint celebration highlighting 70 and 75 years in the world of agriculture respectively.
The Emergency Services Training Centre held its grand opening on the same weekend as the 50th annual reunion of the Huron Pioneer Thresher and Hobby Association in Blyth.
Benmiller was officially declared a disaster area as a result of the Aug. 21 tornado. Being a disaster area is one of the requirements for an area to tap into the Ontario Disaster Relief Assistance Program.
Huron East Council decided that the Brussels Library would be renovated, despite a decision being made years ago to build a new library.
Huron East Mayor Bernie MacLellan said one of the biggest factors in making the decision to renovate was having a strong presence on the main street through Brussels.
Central Huron Council officially made the move from having a reeve to having a mayor. The switch came out of several councillors reporting confusion among ratepayers who were confused as to what a exactly a reeve is.
The final Belgrave, Blyth and Brussels School Fair was held featuring exhibits from the fair’s decades-long history in the community.
With the opening of the new Central Huron Community Complex coming up fast, Central Huron Council decided to freeze its ice rates in order to phase in an eventual increase over time.
Candidates for the provincial election debated the issues in Holmesville at an all-candidates meeting, which included plenty of questions on the Green Energy Act and wind turbines throughout Huron County.
Huron East Council decided to delay the purchase of a new pumper truck for the Grey Fire Department until 2012 due to a conflict of opinions as to what truck should be purchased.
October
A pair of dancers from Blyth, Les Cook and Anne Elliott, took home the grand prize at a Dancing with the Stars fundraiser in Goderich. The fundraiser helped benefit Huron Victim Services.
The readiness of the Central Huron Community Complex came under fire as several issues such as a leaky roof were discovered.
Conservative Lisa Thompson was elected as the new MPP for Huron-Bruce, defeating long-time representative Carol Mitchell. Thompson defeated Mitchell by nearly 4,500 votes, 42.7 per cent of the riding’s vote share.
Mitchell was short with the media following her defeat, making just a simple statement before asking members of the local media to leave her party’s headquarters at the Clinton Legion.
Blyth native and aviation pioneer Lorna deBlicquy was honoured by being placed on a stamp. An open house was held at the Blyth post office to honour the release of the stamp.
Blyth resident Bill Knott called for North Huron Deputy-Reeve David Riach’s resignation after an interaction Knott called an abuse of power.
It was disclosed that clean-up and restoration at the Goderich Courthouse, after the Aug. tornado, was costing $150,000 per day, a figure that was to be split up among the Ontario Courts, Huron County and the county’s insurance provider.
The concept of making the Town of Clinton golf cart friendly was to be investigated by Central Huron Council at the recommendation of Councillor Brian Barnim. Not only would it help with transportation around town, Barnim said, but it could be a new direction for municipal branding.
Controversy over A Harvest of Memories, the Morris-Turnberry history book in the works continued to rage after discussion around the book continues with Morris-Turnberry Council.
November
The Blyth Brussels Minor Hockey Association announced that the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League would be coming to Blyth for a practice and an autograph signing.
The Blyth Festival announced its 2012 season, with Artistic Director Eric Coates saying the season would focus on farmers.
It was announced that a Huron County EMS rapid response vehicle would be stationed at the Emergency Services Training Centre in Blyth.
The Central Huron Community Complex was officially opened with a ribbon-cutting ceremony held the same night the Toronto Maple Leafs alumni team took to the ice.
Blyth Ward Councillor Brock Vodden expressed concern in his ability to represent the people of Blyth at North Huron Council.
Vodden has recently been silenced on the Blyth Public School issue and felt that action was unfair to the people of Blyth. He said he was representing the people of Blyth and their concerns, so for him to be silenced and accused of having a vendetta was false.
Councillors throughout Huron County were waiting patiently for a decision on the composition of Huron County Council from Superior Court Justic Kelly-Anne Gorman. Gorman heard arguments from both sides on Nov. 9 in Goderich before rendering her decision.
Huron-Bruce MPP Lisa Thompson was officially sworn into her new position at Queen’s Park in Toronto.
Blyth-based architect and Brussels native John Rutledge said he would present Huron East Council with plans for the soon-to-be-renovated Brussels Library before the end of the year.
John Bokhout and Blake Hesselwood, both 22, perished in a house fire in Bonnyville, Alberta. The pair had moved west to work for an oil drilling company in Alberta. Both were planning on returning to Blyth for the holidays.
December
After receiving word from Waste Management that it would be pulling out of all Central Huron routes in the new year, Central Huron Council began to investigate providing waste and recycling co-collection throughout the municipality.
The annual Santa Claus Parade was held in Brussels to its usual level of fanfare.
Four Huron County Council representatives, one each from North Huron, Huron East, Central Huron and South Huron were informed they were no longer needed after Superior Court Justice Gorman rendered her decision.
The ribbon was cut on the new playground equipment in Auburn after a lengthy local fundraising effort.
Central Huron Council launched an official appeal of Gorman’s decision, which would be joined by Huron East Council later that month. The appeal will be handled by a law firm in London.
Huron East Mayor Bernie MacLellan was acclaimed to the position of Huron County Warden on Dec. 7. MacLellan said he would strive for transparency during his time in the position and would make his time sheets part of the monthly council package available to the public.
The Blyth BIA named its first-ever executive and its inaugural meeting.