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1 6 -- PORT PERRY STAR -- Tuesday, August 1, 1989 The Pout Povey Shar 235 QUEEN STREET - PORT PERRY, ONTARIO PHONE 985-7383 FAX 985-3708 The Port Perry Star is authorized as second class mail by the Elsewhere $60.00 peryear. SingleCopy 50¢ EDITORIAL Publisher - J. Peter Hvidsten Editor - John B. McClelland News/Features - Cathy Olliffe News Reporter - Rob Streich Darlene Hlozan BUSINESS OFFICE Office Manager - Gayle Stapley Accounting - Judy Ashby Billing Department - Louise Hope ADVERTISING Post Office Department, Ottawa, for cash payment of postage. PRODUCTION dvertising Co-ordinator - Valerie Ellis Second Class Mail Registration Number 0265 Annabell Harrison A oor Representative: Subscription Rate: InCanada $20.00 per year Trudy Empringham Anna Gouldbumn Retail Sales - Kathy Dudley, Linda Ruhl, Heather Jones 1) Member of the Canadian Community Newspaper Association Ontario Community Newspaper Association Published every Tuesday by the Port Perry Star Co. Ltd. Port Perry, Ontario Editorial Comment THAT BIG, HUH Gee, the numbers are impressive, if nothing else. Metro Toronto, apparently flushed with the success of big projects like the Dome and the CN Tower, has its sights set on yet another big one, the World Fair Expo in the year 2,000. Metro Toronto staff have been looking at the num- bers and decided to pass on a recommendation to the politicians that the City indeed should hop on the band wagon and go after the World Fair for that year, just 11 down the road, by the way. The report says that hosting a World Fair that year could pump some $10 billion into the local economy, gen- erate up to $147 in profits (for whom it does not say) and create nearly 200,000 jobs (it doesn't say how many of the jobs would be permanent and how many would be for hamburg flippers and souvenier hawkers, but no doubt those fine details will be forthcoming) The bid will be submitted by a combined group from the private and public sector including the Metro chair- man, former Premier of Ontario Bill Davis, and corporate heavyweights like Molsons, Imperial Oil and the Toronto Sun newspaper. And where is the site for this extravaganza that could bring as many as 60 million visitors to Toronto? Right on the lakefront down by the CNE and Ontario Place. Per- fect. Sixty million visitors? Good grief, Toronto got tied in knots when 100,000 Shriners conventioned and paraded there recently. As for the cost, well who knows. Any city that can build a Dome Stadium and just run a few million over the original estimate should not worry about picky things like money. Toronto, which is also bidding to bring the 96 Olym- pics to that city, seems to have a penchant for trying to land mega-projects in its quest to be recognized as a "world class" city. Domes, music halls, opera houses, bids for Olympic Games are all well and good, great projects for the politi- cians to sink their teeth into. But a lot of ordinary folks, you know, the people who get up early in the morning to go to work, the ones who pay for these monuments through their taxes, might not agree right now. A lot of them are thinking that rather than trying to land another mega project, the movers and the shakers might be better off tending to more mundane details: like traffic problems, improving public transit, cleaning up the streets, and building housing ordinary folk can afford. In fact, they likely would not shed more than a tear or +0 if Toronto bailed out of Expo 2000 altogether. " Year ROUND $cHoOL MAY HAVE SOME MERIT, BUT LET% HOPE WE NEVER SEE A YEAR ROUND LEGISLATURE 7" Letters to the Editor ... our policy It has always been the policy of this newspaper to encourage our readers to make use of the letters to the editor column. Our readers have a right to freely express their opinions and view- points on just about any subject, and we feel that a lively letters col- umn helps make a better community newspaper. We insist, however, that a letter writer sign his or her name. On rare occasions, we will agree to with-hold publication of a letter writer's name, if we feel there are very good reasons to do so. Under no circumstances will this paper print an anonymous let- ter to the editor. While we enjoy receiving letters from our readers, we must con- tinue to insist on knowing the identity of the writer. ASKING QUESTIONS? The newly formed Citizens Against Unjusti- fied Taxes have announced ihe) vii be meeting on September 12 at Port Perry High School and have invited members of council, school boards, Regional council and the assessment office to attend. They have some questions....and they want some answers. Personally, | feel the CAUT should tackle one group at a time, and my choice for starters would be the Durham Board of Education. If there is any one institution that is costing the taxpayer far too many tax dollars it educa- tion. Durham Board approved a 15% increase in the operating budget earlier this year and will be spending $266.7 million over the next year. That's just too much! It's time that some of the "frills" are taken out of our education system, and we get back to basics. A lot of the blame falls into the lap of the Ontario legislators who demand school boards provide new programs, without increasing their grants. For example, the Ministry of Education has ordered school boards to decrease the size of classes to 28, and have provided money only for staffing. There is nothing provided for the extra classrooms and equipment it takes to provide this increase in service. Anyway, what's the matter with classrooms of 32 to 36 students. It was never a big deal when | was in school, and I'll bet the graduation rate was no better or worse than it is today. Other education programs that eat up the tax dollars are things like French immersion, daycare centres being built at all new schoolsl and the fact that the Province is funding two school systems....the Public system and the Separate system. Just how the Province got into financing two systems of public education is beyond me. here is no need to be funding two systems. It's just too costly, and is a duplication of services. The Separate School system should be funded by those wishing to send their children to that school. They shouldn't have any more ac- cess to Provincial funding than the Christian Re- form school, or any other private or church affili- ated school system. Jottings by }). Peter Hvidsten But that's just a dream. The funding of Sep- arate Schools began a long time ago, and if any- thing seems to be on the increase each year. This year, the Durham Public Board re- ceived $39.5 million from the province for new school construction, while the Durham Separate Board received $58.9 million. That's almost $100 million for new schools. Can you imagine how many classrooms that money would build if it weren 't being divided into two systems? A lot more I'd bet. The other thing that is going to cost the tax- payer a lot of money is the compulsory building of Day-care Centres at all new schools in Dur- am. Just why we need to provide day-care in S.A. Cawker Public School when we have at least three operating at less than capacity doesn't make any sense. My son attends the YMCA daycare program on Queen St., and they're not running at i- ty. Stonemoor Daycare near the high school has been advertising for some time that they have openings for more children and | understand that tica Daycare is not at full capacity. So why should the school board get into the business of providing daycare facilities? The tax- yer Just can't afford to continue funding this type of facility, when it could be provided by the private sector. ' A good example of that kind of private enter- prise right here in Port Perry was the opening of Stonemoor Daycare last year. The owners bought the former Baptist Church, converted the interior to be suitable for daycare, fenced the yard and provided playground equipment. That's the way it should be done. The Board of Education has no need to be providing day- care facilities at the taxpayers expense! These are just a few of the things that | see costing taxpayers more money in the education system. I'm sure there are lots of other areas and a meeting with Board of Education trustees, administrative personnel and some teachers might prove to be interesting in itself. At any rate | wish the Citizens Against Un- justified Taxes good luck in their quest to make our governing bodies aware that taxpayers are less than pleased with the exorbitant increases in recent months. nea