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byh1% .Publishing and'hotography ine.I The Free Press 11uildin Voice of the County Town Michael lan Burgess, Publisher- Managing Editor 1:11i rock Street North, Ihe only WVhith newspaper independentIy owned and operated by Wýhitby residents for Whith residents. P.O. Box 206. Whitbv 0 Michael J. Knoll Community Editor Marjorie A. Burgess Production Manager Karen Thompson Advertising Manager Mailing Permit No 460 Member of the Whitby Chamber of Commercej g. nit. People must turn thoughts and efforts to Port Whitby or face its stagnation The need for development of Port Whitby is now an established, almost universally-accepted fact. In fact, the development of the original Town of Whitby located south of Victoria Street according to some is probably a greater need than the need to develop Brooklin. Politicians, consultants and residents have been saying for a long time that the Port, as it is affectionately known, is a disaster area. Reconstruction of roads, sidewalks and sewers has been a pressing need for several years. Port Whitby has greater development potential than any other part of town for residential and recreational purposes. Recreational boating, and other harbor ac- tivities, is on the rise in Whitby and the need to provide adequate facilities for this growth now is in the "absolute must" stage. Port Whitby also has a great potential in the residential sector. In many ways residential use ANCHORMAN FOR GLOBAL NEWS THE HFST OF PETER A weekly news commentary from one of Canada's outstanding news personalities A headline in a recent edition of the Toronto Star caught my eve and aroused my ire: It read: "Metro's Boat People: Jobless, Hopeless and Unhealthy." Typical Toronto Star. Above all else, cover the Metro Toronto angle, and worry about the rest of it later. The headline of course, was and is "utterly false". That's not my judgement, although I suspected as much, but the judgement of a professional who works with Vietnamese refugees, boat people if vou like, everv day of her life. There are problems. Only a lun- atic would expect otherwise. You can't plunk people down in a brand new environment after experiences that would age any of us 20 vears, without a job and without a lang- uage, and not expect to have some problems. But the truth of the matter is that afier a leakv boat on the south China seas, and refugee camps that beggar description, Queen Street East is earthly paradise. Most of the South Vietnarnese in Toronto are emploved, healthy and happy. They are an ambitious and productive people. Many of theni have not just one, but two jobs, and they are going to enrich our society in many ways before thev have done with it, perhaps even before they stop weeping with relief at being here. I don't blame the Toronto Star alone for those headlines. It's the nature of the news business to fasten on doom and gloom and wallow in it. But the story tended to make readers feel guilty without reason. Some changes are needed. At the moment, arriving boat people have to get to Manpower for a job, the Ontario Welcome House for help with things like family allowance forms, doctors offices for general check-ups, the Salvation Army or St. Vincent de Paul for furniture, somewhere else for clothes, day care and so on. If vou don't speak the lang- uage, and vou don't know anything about bus routes, that can be a problem. The Americans have learned the bard way that the only way to deal with refugees is to have aIl these services under one roof. But we'll get to it even- tually, and in the meantime, there's no need to slash our wrists over the Toronto Star's version. That's not news, but that too is reality. of the area is more desirable than commercial/in- dustrial uses primarily because residential use does not always bring pollution. At this time, Port Whitby is at a crossroads and it is time to decide in what direction it will go. If something isn't done, then quite simply Port Whitby could stagnate into extinction as a com- munity of its own. Earlier this year, Durham Regional Council shelved for one year a proposal to complete the Corbett Creek-Pringle Creek diversion sewer. This project has an estimated cost of $2.6 million and is recognized as the vital link in any development scheme. While it is indeed probable that the project will go ahead next year it is also possible that because of continuing fiscal problems, the region could shelve it permanently. It must not be allowed to do that. That sewer is needed to save the life of Port Whitby and the $2.6 million or so that it will cost will be the best in- vestment in Port Whitby in 126 years. That sewer will prevent the back-ups and flooding problems that many of the present residents have experienced. It will also pave the way for development in Port Whitby. Since 1973, there has been a freeze on Port Whitby, a freeze that has prevented any major un- dertakings in the area. Construction of the diversion sewer will thaw out the area allowing the much needed develop- ment to go ahead. In the preamble it was noted that Port Whitby should be considered prior to the development of Brooklin. While the sewer problems of Brooklin are recognized as great and weighty, Port Whitby has suffered from these kinds of problems for a much longer time. There are many arguments for and against the development of Brooklin but these are not for discussion here. It is desired to impress upon the minds of elected officials and the readership, as a whole, the problems being faced in Port Whitby. The Port existed long before the town did and it is because the Port grew, the town came into existance. Some times it appears as though the problems of this area are not considered as important as they should be by some officiais in the higher levels of government. Pollution is a real problem, one that cannot be ignored and one that can only be solved by the construction of the diversion sewer. The other need in Port Whitby is the need for new people, for people who will live in and cherish the area as our forefathers did in the last century. New people can only be brought in if there are homes for them to live in, jobs for them to go to. The growth of the Town of Whitby must be or- derly and in response to defined needs. The Port has a defined need and if we are not quick enough to respond to it, then we shail lose it. 11.1\(;lý' -4, Wi D\[Si)l\ý M)kl 1 . Wlll 1 liý , PklýSS