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02 | 02 | 2017 VOLUME 22 | ISSUE 05
PUTTING A CELTIC SPIN ON HIS GUITAR WORK THE ARTS PAGE 18
COMMENT PAGE 6
MUNICIPALITIES FAILING TO DO RIGHT BY CITIZENS
Woolwich now eyeing 3.13% tax hike
Taking a sauna takes a turn for the worse as fire breaks out
Councillors continue to trim at the margins of 2017 budget, lowering general hike to 1.63% plus special infrastructure levy
WHITNEY NEILSON
STEVE KANNON TRIMMING A FEW DOLLARS at the fringe of their 2017 budget, Woolwich councillors got this year’s proposed tax hike down to 3.13 per cent – a 1.63 per cent hit to the general levy and 1.5 per cent for a special infrastructure fund. The tweaks made at a special council meeting Jan. 26 cut some $35,000 from the budget, dropping the tax hike from the previous target of 3.55 per cent. Some additional changes made Jan. 31 dropped the number to the new target. Among the spending cuts was $10,000 in part-time wages at the WMC swimming pool (lower turnouts for Sunday public swims require fewer lifeguards), $10,000 for signage and $5,000 in reduced springtime turf maintenance. Council also dropped $5,000 from a proposed sump pump program, agreeing after some debate that developing a policy means it might be next year before spending ramps up. The idea is to deal with problematic cases where homeowners’ sump pumps discharge water onto sideTAX HIKE | 5
www.OBSERVERXTRA.com
Firefighters from Elmira, St. Jacobs and Conestogo were on scene at 1880 Three Bridges Rd. for three hours on Monday afternoon after a sauna lit on fire while in use. The occupant escaped unharmed. [WHITNEY NEILSON / THE OBSERVER]
A RELAXING STINT IN the sauna turned out to be a little more toasty than a St. Jacobs resident bargained for when the outbuilding burst into flames Monday afternoon. The occupant escaped unharmed and damage is estimated at $500 for the shed-turned-sauna. Woolwich fire chief Rick Pedersen says firefighters were on scene at Three Bridges Road for three hours to put out the fire and knock out walls that were still smoldering. “He came out of the sauna because he could smell something. Then he saw what was happening on the roof, then he went up the laneway to phone 911,” Pedersen explained. They’re looking into the cause of the fire, with all signs pointing to an improper use of the woodstove used to heat the sauna. Firefighters responded from St. Jacobs, Conestogo and Elmira. Pedersen notes it’s protocol for three stations to respond to any structure fire. “Any kind of woodstove there has to be proper clearances and when you have combustibles too close to the woodstove, that’s when you get fires.” He explained a regular wood stove must have at least 18 inches of clearance between it – including flue pipes – and all combustibles, and the minimum was not met in this case.