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6 stouffville suntribune thursday oct 19 2006 istouffvuie suntnbune a metroland community newspaper 6290 main st stouffville on l4a1g7 publisher ian proudfoot editor in chief debora kelly business manager robert lazurko director advertising distribution barry black director interactive media technology john futhey director circulation systems lynn pashko marketingpartnerships director debra welter york region printing general manager bob dean editorial growing pains must be eased growth is no longer a rumour or a promise in stouffville it is upon us every quadrant in the community has been ripped up new streets and homes are going in newcomers have already moved in in some cases and there will be plenty more where they came from the population of whitchurch- stouffville which was 24343 last year will grow to 32343 by 2008 42343 by 2013 53321 by 2021 and 62321 by 2026 i areweready were we ready what else can we doto prepare they are excellent questions to ask the candidates for mayor and council in the nov 13 election privately some members of council admit that the town was hot properly prepared the town has put an inordi nate amount of pressure on in its staff to deal with growth it is now playing catchup to be fair to the municipality this is new ground growth in stouffville oyer the last 25 years meant a couple of streets a year at most new construction was limited by the size of the old sewage plant in memorial park and any possible upgrades it was slow growth at its roots by hooking up to the yorkdurham sewage system near unlimited growth is possible and with stouffville being one of the closest small towns to toronto its a natural its proximity to hwy 404 the schedule of commuter buses and trains and its small town charm make stouffville a developers dream but developers and consultants come and go to the next boom town residents are left with the results of their work good and bad weve already experienced some of this a sales pavilion was constructed without permission a home towering over an existing neighbourhood went up residents have fought drainage ponds road openings railway crossings and signs advertising new houses its too late to curtail growth approved a few councils ago but we can learn from our mistakes and those of neighbouring communi ties growrth appears inevitable but while making room for newcomers we must also think about those exisitng residents the transition must be eased letters to the editor sue sherban not wayne emmerson up for reelection this time i received a brochure in the mail last week urging me to reelect wayne emmerson to the post of mayor of whitchurchstouffville since ive lived in this town for more than three years i am aware the only person who could possibly be reelected mayor of our town in 2006 is our current mayor sue sherban mr emmerson is no neophyte in local poli tics and with that in mind i conclude this is a deliberate attempt on the part of mr emmerson to mislead new residents by using the term reelect to imply he is the incum bent and to profit by the generally accepted incumbents advantage an advantage to which he is not entitled mr emmerson should make it clear to all residents especially the many who have arrived since the end of his term as mayor that he is not the incumbent mayor and that a vote for him is not a vote to reelect anyone if he fails to make this clear to everyone immediately his honesty ought to be an issue very closely associated with his candidacy mattdouris stouffville whitchurchstouffville leads the way by introducing roundabouts re get ready to drive in a roundabout way stouffville motorists column by jim mason oct 12 the stouffville suntribune welcomes your letters all submissions must be less than 400 words and must include a daytime telephone number name and address the stouffville suntribune reserves the right to publish or not publish and to edit for clarity and space write letters to the editor 6290 main st stouffville l4a 1g7 emailjmasonyrngcom or fax 9056408778 congratulations stouffville youre helping lead canada into the 21st century by using roundabouts instead of traffic lights and those useless stop signs which merely tell the driver to stop just think a driver doesnt have to risk his life making a left turn to go left all he has to do is make sure no one is coming from his left and if clear without stopping he can continue on his way by turning right then turning right again into the road he wanted in many cases accidents occur because people cannot see traffic coming from the left at regular crossroads due to obstructions on the corner intersections with twoway stop signs are often confused with four- way stops a driver having stopped thinks the approaching cars from either side will stop for him or her the intersection at warden avenue and vivian road is a good example of this problem and the scene of many accidents including one on thanksgiving weekend walter bumby whitchurchstouffville editorial editor jim mason jmasonymgcom assistant editor rickvanderlinde tvandetundeymgcom interactive media marketing advertising manager dawna andrews dandrewi9ymgcom advertising classified manager ann campbell acampbellymgcom assistant classified manager bonnie rondeau brondeauymgcom retail manager staceyallen sallenymgcom new business development manager mikerogerson mrogersonyrngcom production team leader sherry day sdayymgcom editorial 9056402612 fax9056408778 advertising 9056402612 classified 18007433353fax 9058531765 distribution 9052942200 cwudun ontario camlij p fed bead member qpb a sififtribune a york region newspaper group community newspaper die suntribune published every thursday and saturday is a member of the metroland printing publishing and distributing ltd a whollyowned subsidiary of torstar corporation metroland is comprised of 70 community publications across ontario the york region newspaper group includes the liberal serving richmond hill and thomhillvaughan dozen the economist sun markham the erabanner newmarketaurora georgjna advocate york region business times north of the city yorkregioncom and york regon priming off the top with jim mason turn off tv for some live drama at tonights debate so you just got off the go train or the 404 youll pour a cool one have a little din ner and embrace the sofa for the night the leafs have a rare thursday off but theres always a my name is earl marathon or what must be the 87th edi tion of survivor forget it turn off the sony and dust off yourself youve got a date at stouffville district secondary school call it your civic duty you owe it to your tax ml mrs and mr resident the suntribune and whitchurch- stouffville public library are hosting an all candidates meeting from 730 to 930 pm on nov 13 six councillors and a mayor will be elected by fewer than half the people if history continues to repeat itself the other half have no right to gripe when their garbage isnt picked up or their culdesac isnt plowed on time you can jump into the world of municipal politics at tonights debate everyones in there are races in all six wards plus the featured bout the race for the mayors office should be interesting if not confusing with 23xandidates on the stage at the old school but even if there isnt time for your can didates to field a question youll hear them introduce themselves in public you can pick up their brochures research them and grab them later for a little oneonone time do they share your vision for the future of this town are they aware of the neighbourhood issues in your ward what roads will be reconstructed are sidewalks going in its mindblowing the number of peo ple who vote without ever attending a council meeting or preelection debate the postelection party of about 15 years ago was welllubricated by the time i arrived to quote the candidate they had won in a blowout and the massive gathering of supporters was high on newfound power and liquid courage some supporters were talking about taking their chosen one to the next level be it regional provincial or federal poli tics what qualified their candidate i asked the election team members hadnt graced a meeting at the municipal offices and didnt know exactly what their candi date did or how good they were at it but theyre a good person they live around the comer and their kids went to school with ours they said sorry but those are not enough cre dentials for this voter jim mason is editor of the sun- tribune