en ?/ou are doing your spring cleaning, it might be a good idea to check your ;ne or any electrical hazards. Check all electrical cords connected to lamps d other appliances for wear and tear. Replace all cords that are worn or maged. e (?akville Fire D%oanment recommends that you make sure that extension Es are not placed under rugs, stapled to the wall or hung over nails. The Fulation could deteriorate, exposing live wires. you have any questions about fire safety, don‘t hesitate to contact the Fire »vention Bureau of the Oakville Fire Department at 338â€"4204. They will be py to assist you. neighbours: this is bad for ‘r average home alone gunman. You see, and I believe the berts will back me up on this g, in a prolonged process of zotiation, a gunman without a tage has very limited bargainâ€" , t had to happen sooner or later. You cannot live in rural and .small town Canada without ntually being stained by the ash of bigâ€"city crime. The sad fact is that the small n of Port Colborne just had its y â€" first, its very own man/hostageâ€"taking/standoff. How small is Port Colborne, tario? Well, it‘s so small that gunman couldn‘t find a victim he took himself hostage. This is good for family, friends ur friends are no strangers to and violence. In Paris, they e the unfortunate witnesses to a bombing neat their hotel. And v, of course, they face a visit to ‘key where tourists gazing at the gnificence of Hagia Sofia risk ne blown to bits. et even they, with all their rldly demeanor, look at Toronto 1 13, 1994 ur friends, from their midâ€" ) town condominium in the " ‘city, travel the world. A days in bleak March? Just pop o Palm Springs for a few days . . annual sojourn to the south of nce to sip wine, and feast on long ners on their terrace in their rentâ€" old stone farmhouse ... and now, ust two weeks they depart for nbul. PECIAL COUNCIL MEETING â€" TAXATION MATTERS E INSTALLATION OF CENTRAL AIRâ€"CONDITIONERS REQUIRES A BUILDING PERMIT For further information, please contact the Building Services Department at 845â€"6601 Ext. 3187 exing questions in light of most recent Metro killing nd that‘s why I love small town living Monday, April 18, 1994 â€"7:00 p.m. Council Chamber Monday, April 18, 1994 â€" 7:30 p.m. Council Chamber When death occurs in the family, so many decisions must be made and a great number of these decisions involve the cemetery and the alternatives that are available. The Town of Oakville â€" Cemetery Division â€" offers a number of alternatives for you. Our courteous staff are sensitive to your needs and we can assist you in making your arrangements. ~ P The Town of Oakville operates two active cemeteries to suit your needs: Trafalgar Lawn Cemetery, located on Highway #5 overlooking the Sixteen Mile Creek, and St. Jude‘s Cemetery, located on Lakeshore Road at the foot of Margaret Drive. Be comfortable discussing your plans with us... we understand. o To receive your complimentary copy of our Oakville Cemeteries brochure, call or write: . THE TOWN OF OAKVILLE CEMETERIES P.O. BOX 310 OAKVILLE, ONTARIO L6J 5A6 (905) 338â€"4236 REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING 1225 TRAFALGAR ROAD + OAKVILLE, ONTARIO + L6H 2L1 SPRING CLEANUP The incident in Port Colborne began when the roof of the gunâ€" man‘s apartment began leaking and he fired off several shots. I know what you‘re thinkingâ€"â€"a lot The way I see it, a hostageâ€" taker without a hostage is like a driveâ€"by shooter on an exercise bike. And while they realize they must scan the world for its own violence indicator before they travel, they cannot reconcile doing that in the place they call home. I have to admit I find the level of intolerance about this crime rather incongruous, hypocritical even, in light of the crime in other areas of the city. While most people recognize the growing reality of Toronto as having the same problems as any other urban area â€" poverty, racial tension and crime, they are not quick to recâ€" When a gunman comes out holding the gun to his own head and yells: "Cash and a car or I‘m gonna pop this guy!" the emergenâ€" cy task force team is trained to stand down and let the problem pretty much take care of itself. And, after two or three or four days, a gunman without a hostage has really no one to trade for cofâ€" fee and sandwiches. The Just Desserts incident merely reinforces their own growing uneasiness with the city they used to boast to American friends and relaâ€" tives about its safety; its decency. ing power. with new eyes for the following work: Old Upper Middle road Reconstruction (Oxford Ave. to McCraney St.) Approximately 410m of road reconstruction for an 8.5 metre wide, two lane roadway, including grading, granular base, asphalt paving, subdrains, curb and gutter, 700m‘ of concrete sidewalks and 340m of storm sewers (300 to 375mm dia.). Plans, specifications and tender forms will be available on or after Monday, April 11, 1994 and maz be obtained from the Department of Public Works, 2274 Trafalgar Road for a nonâ€"returnable payment of Forty Dollars ($40.00), GST included. The Contractor whose tender is accepted shall be required to post a Performance Bond satisfactory to the Town Council, equal to 100% of the Contract price, and a Labour and Material Payment Bond totalling 50% of the contract price. A certified cheque, Bank/Trust Co. Draft or a bid bond for the amount specified in the tender documents must accompany each tender. Tenders will be opened publicly at a meeting of the Tender Opening Committee at the Oakville Municipal Building, 1225 Trafalgar Road, Oakville, Ontario on Tuesday, April 26, 1994 at 2:30 p.m. Local Time. The lowest or any tender will not necessarily be accepted. O.H. Ellis, P. Eng., Director of Public Works SEALED TENDERS, on forms provided will be received by the Town clerk, 1225 Trafalgar Road, P.O. Box 310, Oakville, Ontario, L6J 5A6 until 2:00 p.m. Local Time on of guys would have just called a plumber. Well, let‘s not be too hasty here. How many times have you banged on the top of the teleâ€" vision set before finally phoning the repairman? That‘s how these human tragedies happen. One day you‘re flicking your finger at the "12:00" that‘s been flashing on your VCR since you bought it and the next day you‘re dropping torâ€" pedoes down the toilet. Anyway, the police were sumâ€" moned and the cunman settled in Why can a murder be accepted in the suburban outskirts like Scarborough â€" as it was last week just around the corner from my motherâ€"inâ€"law â€" and yet a murder in a trendy Annex dessert bar not be It is alarming to recognize the level of intolerance about murder in a trendy dessert bar and the accepâ€" tance of crime in other area of the city. ognize just how that level of accepâ€" tance varies depending on what area of town you are talking about. TUESDAY, April 26, 1994 At some point, the police sent Freebee, their Remote Mobile Investigative Unit, into the gunâ€" man‘s apartment and he shot the hell out of the robot. This was a During the 31â€"hour standoff that followed, the police tried to call the gunman to negotiate an end to it all, but as luck would have it, the guy didn‘t have a phone. This was a real shock to residents out here in Wainfleet who already have callâ€"waiting. for the siege with a 30/30 rifle, a shotgun, a club, a hunting knife, a machete and a bow with arrows. Basically, he was better armed than the Canadian Forces we had in Bosnia but not quite as well protected as a tourâ€"bus driver in Miami. Why do people shake their heads and speak ominously of the demise of the city as though downtown crime has more importance than what happens in the place most peoâ€" ple live ... the suburbs? Some say it has little to do with location and everything to do with the terrorist feeling of that happened at Just Desserts. But I think there is more to it than that. If the same incident had hapâ€" pened in the outlying suburbs. ostensibly people would have comâ€" mented on what a terrible thing it was. But covertly, I suspect it would come down to a message all too familiar in these territorial days â€" well, you know the kind of area it has become. tolerated? by Steve Nease At precisely 4:06 p.m. on the second day of the standoff, the Niagara _ Regional _ Police Emergency Task Force Unit said enough is enough and began their "teargas campaign". They lobbed over a dozen teargas canisters at the windows of the gunman‘s apartment. Unfortunately, all of them missed the window and bounced off the side of the building. Twelve misses in a row? That‘s not a "teargas campaign", that‘s Kim Campbell‘s campaign! When the police finally did get one into the apartment, the gunâ€" man picked it up and threw it back out the window. big mistake. I‘m no expert in this area, but couldn‘t Freebee have become the hostage he never had? Think about itâ€"â€"not only is that thing very expensive to replace, if it‘s as smart as the cops claim it isâ€" â€"the robot could have driven the gunman‘s getaway car. Anyway, the good news is that Freebee is not dead. He‘s listed in fair condition in the Intensive Care Unit at Atlas Steels. He was perplexed and bewilâ€" dered. And yet, in his own way, he accepted that is the way of the city. At least, this is what people do in his part of the city. This level of acceptance and the e34NOANY 1109 SIILLIAILOY INIMOYHL 8 SNILLIH ‘ONINHNL ‘INILSIML 10 J9NVH SNOWHON3 NV 404 1Â¥0ddNS OVOH8 NI SLINSIH $3N017180 3HL SNINIHLINIHYLS YVIA V OL SHLNOW 9 NI HLINIYLS Â¥N0A 118000 ‘S3SIIUIXq SNTILNVN 82 10 L It is as though our level of accepâ€" tance for violence vacillates dependâ€" ing on the address of the place. Is that also a symptom of becoming a major urban area? These days, many city apartment dwellers just don‘t open their doors anymore. My brotherâ€"inâ€"law was absolutely dismayed to realize that no one was answering the doors of his Toronto apartment the other day as he went doorâ€"toâ€"door in search of the owner of a lost cat. If it is, I think it is a sad comment on the way we are living our lives. DAILY CLASSES FOR YOUR FREE NAUTILUS WORKOUT CALL HI LOW IMPACT STEP CLASSES. ALSO MUSCLE CONDITIONING STRETCH WEIGHT PROGRAM 169.00 4 MONTH SPECIAL May, June, July, Aug AERoBIC classes 1 ROTARY TORSO UNIVERSITY STUDENT m CA Either the police assumed he had a midget accomplice or they just gotta straighten out the barrel of that tearcas cun. And that‘s why I love small town living. Because even in the throes of a real live hostageâ€"taking standoff, neither the criminal nor the cops pose a threat to public safety. Anyway, the gunman gave himâ€" self up. I don‘t know if it was the teargas or the fear of losing his damage deposit. Personally, I think he just couldn‘t stand the brutal beating the vinyl siding was takâ€" ing. I counted 18 softâ€"ballâ€"size pock marks on the side of the building where the teargas canisters bounced off. One such dent was® two feet off the ground. The gunâ€" man‘s apartment was on the secâ€" ond floor. It was fortunate that all the neighbours who had been evacuatâ€" ed didn‘t run back up the stairs and into the gunman‘s apartmentâ€"â€" at this point, the only place in the neighbourhood with clean air. way it varies from area to area; from incident to incident is dangerous. It erodes, I think all that makes living in a place viable and healthy . . . the way people interact with one anothâ€" er. In much the same way, I think the only way a city will survive and not turn into an army of people who peer in fear from behind apartment peep holes is when its own integrity is preserved. That may be too naive in a city where many are now contemplating purchasing guns and other swear never to open their doors to strangers. I hope not. An editor I once worked for said recently that the only way journalâ€" ism was to survive was through the integrity of its writers. 844â€"1610 (Cardio Extra)