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-Whltby Free Pres, Wqdnesday, August 23, 1995 Page 3 G;uyana confere.nce. has Wïhîtby fie-tin By Mike Kowall Whitby councillorJudi Longfilid is South America bound. The west ward representative will take part in a three-day symposium on mun icipal governmnent in Guyana this coming weekend. Longfleld will be the sole Canadian on an international panel that will instruct Guyanese officiais on a variety of subjects pertaining ta municipal goverriment. Sponsored by the University of Guyana, the Caribbean Association of Local Govenment Authorities and the Washington-based ,National, Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI), the conference will be held in the capital city of Georgetown. Longfield, who only learned of the event three weeks ago, was ffabsolutely astounded" when she received a telephone caîl from an NDI official inquiring about whether she would be interested in participating. She suspects her name came to NDrPs attention as the resuit of her long involvement as a political WEST WARD councillor Judi Longfield collects beer bottles which were discarded alongside Whitby's waterfront trail. Longfield is cailing on local residents to curb their ittering habits. Photo by Mark Reesor, Whltby Free Press Litter on trail FROM PAGE 1 underneath a tree. .The part of the trail running through the park and immediate viciity seems to be attracting most of the damage, Longfleld said. "It's not only litter; people are pu]Iing out liners and caris are being tipped over," she said. "Some people may not agree, but I think overturning- garbage cans and strewing* it about is vandalism." While that is a more glaring example of the problem, most of the littering stems from offenders not considering the consequences of their acions or not caring at all, By 741k. Kowalski A former bulk ail distribution plant i Port Whitby will be cleaned up and sold. Imperial Qil intenda ta remove any and ail contaninated material that May be contained on a 10-acre site the company currently owns east af Whitby Harbour. However, company officials must flrst evaluate a recently prepared environinental assessment of the Water Street property, said spokesperson Heather Sibley. Only then will work be able ta commence on bringing the site up te Ontario Ministry af Environnent standar4s, she said. "We've finished the testing and naw we're determining a long-term strategy," said Sibley. "The plan is evaluate the envirorimental asseàsment and then do the cleanup. When that's done, it will go ta market." Imperial Oil has no plans ta develap the site for its own use, Sibley added. Previously a Texaco bulk ail facility whicli sold gasoline, diesel Longfleld feels.' 'rIt seema that a lot of people will bring a drink or something from their car and when they're finished they'll just toss it on the-ground," she said. "Iseasy to say we've got the staff to dlean it up, but who wants te stop and* pick up someoe else's garbage?" With the cost of repairing vandalism and cleaning-up littering in Town parks alone approaching $50,000, Longfld said Whitby residents must stop and reflect on what they are doing. "I dont think we can attribute this te people outside the community. These are our taxpayers," she said. fuel and heating ail, the site has not been used since it was- closed by Texaco i 1985. All tanks, equipment and machinery bath above and below the surface were removed prior ta Imperial Oil's acquistion of Texaco's Canadian holdings a few years ago. "This particular site is over 50 years ald," said Sibley. "Any contamination would be from inadvertent leaks or spilîs that were typical of aider operations," she said while quickly stressing that it is not considered dangerous. "Our assessments don't show any health or safety concerns." Sibley estimated the cleanup could take as long as five years. This would depend on whether contaninated material is remaved and hauled away or left on site and made safe through a process known as "bioremediatian," she said. Either way, the propert3i will nat be sala until the cleanup has been coinpleted, Sibley said. organizer for the Làiberal- party. A non-partisan organization created by the U.S. Congress in 1983, NDI has been active in Guyana since last summer after the country held its first local government elections in 25 years. This weekend's schedule of panel discussions and individual workshops stems from -an earlier. five-month program to train Guyana's 1,131 newly-elected councillors in such matters as financial management and community development.. "Three months ago they asked for a national conference . of municipal officials from across the country," said Longfleld. "They have a lot of new councillors who really don't know where ta, start," she said. In addition to the group discussions, each of the five panel members will be conducting their own workshops on Saturday. Longfleld's workshop will deal with community development and focus on the importance 'of preparing a "town mission" and methods for involving citizens in the process. Other workshops will include Renit limaits set The rent control guideline'set by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing for 1996 will be 2.8 per cent. The guideline is the amount by which a residential landiord can increase the renit once each year without maing an application under the Rent Control Act. Most tenants in Ontario receive a rent increase each year at or below the amount of the guideline. Under the Rent Control Act, the guideline i. calculated each year uin a formula which includes an amount to caver the cost of inflation -in operating a rentai building, and a constant amount of two per cent te cover the cost of capital repairs te the building. For the 1996 guideline, the inflation amount is 0.8 per cent and the capital repairs amount is the constant of two per cent. The Rent Contral Act aliows a landlord ta appiy for an additionai rent increase of un ta three er cent above the guideline ta caver the cost of necessary major repairs or very high increases in property taxes or utilities. 'The lanciiorci must justify the costs at a rent confrol hearing. The 1996 guideline takes elle t for rent increases which occur between Jan. 1, 1996 and Dec. 31, 1996.1 Bingobucks. Jelka Avsec of Wihitby believes the "lucky star" painted on her oeiling played 'a part- in. her $10,000 Instant Bingo lottery win. She picked up her cheque Aug. 15 at the Ontario. Lottery Corporation's(0WC) Toranto Prize Office. Avsec bought the- ticket Aug. 12 -and "lkind of forgot about it." The neit morning,,I bad another oeffeÎe and started scratching," she said. Avsec, 45, works part-time at K-Mart in Whitby. Sh. and hus3band, Poter, are parents of two. Avsec plans te py bille and visit her parents in Slovenia. She bought the ticket at Checker's on Anderson Street. 0~~GhMOLO6U$ " Appraisals On Spot,,Bu v2 Gem' Tm Gemlrds " Repairs - 3 Days Birds ®Get 3rd at *Remodelling Orginal Handcrafted 1/30OFF 211 Brook St. S., Whitby 666-4612 START"O lANuU LANDAPN NOWv t#Unique Designs xeence and *Quality Nursery Stock ýrëDüBtIon since 10_I ethics in government, proper communications and effective coundil meetings. Joining Longfleld on the panel are a former mayor of Tucsonï, Arizona' a municipal politician from the United Kingdom and a German government officiai who was involved in the reunification of that country. The conference gets under way Friday with welcoming remarks from President Cheddi Jagan, Georgetown Mayor Hamilton Green and U.S. Ambassador George Jones. While most of her time will be spent attending the conference, Longfleld wfl have a few hours to visit other parts of the country. She departs today after having spent the. past three days attending the annual meeting of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario ini Toronto and then returns next Tuesday. Don"fgo strandedlI HoUp is ut your fingertips . .F..ee ..co.. n n. e .. ..o.. a $60 v~-OP ~ Sy~t........ ... wa.e. .. ...... . Cleanup coming .1. . . . I