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* j By Mike Kowalski Town council's recent award- ing of construction contracts to two non-Durham Region com- p anies has drawn the wrath of a ocal business organization. The Oshawa Chamber of Com- merce has criticized council for its decision last week to reject a Whitby firm's bid on two park construction projects. In a letter to Mayor Tom Edwards and councillors, the chamber says council was wrong in not awarding Oshawa Garden Service (OGS) the contracts even though its tenders were nearly $1,300 higher than the success- ful bidders. The chamber argues the dif- ference was not sufficient to war- rant giving the jobs to two com- anles located outside Durham Reion. ased on a mere $1,300 variance in price (this) is a dangerous practice to employ,» chamber general manager Doreen Smyth writes. Noting that Durham's un- employment rate is higher than the national average, Smyth says government must 'set the pace by directing as much work as possible to local business. The Oshawa-Whitby area saw 1,628 indefinite and permanent layoffs in 1992 and 45,751 tem- porary layoffs, Smyth notes. «Considering this desperate situation, why are our tax dollars being so freely spent outside of this region?" she asks. "There is no excuse for these business practices by publicly funded organizations such as yours...Give preference and opportunity to your tax-paying community," she adds. SgE PAGE 12 By Mike Kowalski No end is in sight to a strike at Woodbridge Foam in Whitby. As of Monday afternoon, no talks were planned between management of the Forbes Street automotive foam plant and its striking workers. The employees, members of Local 222 of the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW), went on strike May 10 to back up their demands for a new collective agreement. "The union's position is the same, we'll go back to the bar- gaining table any time they BILL EGAN helps son Martin dig in Saturday at Lynde Shores Conservation Area where hundreds of local Scouts and Cubs and their parents planted 15,000 trees. The project was supported by Tree Plant Canada and Trees Ontario. Photo by Mark Reesor, Whitby Free Press (company)-like," said plant chair Bill Donohoe. "Whenever theyre willing to meet with us, we1l be there, he said. Donohoe insisted that morale on the picket line is high and that the workers are prepared for a long strike if that's what it takes to obtain an acceptable settlement. "The membership is strong, they will stick it out," he said, adding that "response from the communityhas been great.» Local restaurant owners have donated pizzas, chicken wings and donuts to the workers, Dono- hoe said. Woodbridge Foam manufac- tures material used in the pro- duction of automobile seats for General Motors' Buick Regal and Chevrolet Lumina models. The car seats are built at Lear Seating which is immediately adjacent to the Woodbridge fac- tory. Under the previous three-year agreement which expired April 15, the average hourly wage for the 117 employees represented SEEPAGE 19 Chamber.... ..r.t....al..f Town....tender.. deci......ion.. By Mike Kowalski Proponents of a non-utility generating station planned for Whitby must reduce its size in order to win Ontario Hydro approval. Due to a recent Hydro deci- sien, officials of Atlantic Packag- ing and British Gas are consider- ing their options with respect te an on-site power plant proposed for the Thickson Road South paper recycling factory. If the Atlantic power plant is te be producing electricity by 1997, then the original 60- megawatt project will have to be scaled back. But whether this can be done on a cost-effective basis is un- known at this time, project offi- cials admit. The Atlantic site is one of 16 Ontario locations proposed as potential djtes for a Non-Utility Generator UG). A joint venture of Atlantic Packaging and British Gas, parent company of Consumers Gas, the generating station will serve a two-fold purpose. Not only will it supply power te Atlantie's recycling plant, but it will make use of the massive amounts of steam exhaust pro- duced in the recycling process. The original $85-million pro- ject would have consisted of a 40-megawatt gas-driven turbine and a 20-megawatt steam-driven turbine. Since December, it and 15 oth- ers have been on hold while Hydro officials reviewed their commitment te cogeneration. Last week, Hydro announced that it will go ahead with the program, but on a greatly redu- ced scale. Developers of the 16 projects will be offered new in-service dates and capacity targets that better reflect Hydro's expected need for electricity purchases. The new offers are expected te save Hydro about $415 million over the next three years, while providing a basis for the projects toproceed. British Gas spokesman Scott Stevens said the Whitby proposal must be downsized to 50 megawatts as a result of the Hydro decision. 'Te question is, can we make a viable project out of the new offer?" Stevens asked. "We'll have to run it through the computer and have our experts look at it," he said. Stevens said three alternatives will be examined but he could not predict if any will prove successful. 'Tm hopeful we can make it fly, but I don't know if we can," SEE PAGE 19 Atlantic power plant project must be downsized Woodbridge strike: No talks planned Cottage Lhing, Boating & Camping Pages 13 - 17 tn m - tc - tn 1