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Welfare caseload jumps nearly 14 per cent By Julia Dempsey The welfare crisis in Durham Region is not going away. In fact, it's only getting worse --much worse. That's the news Durham Re- gion Council was handed at its meeting Wednesday. In January, Durham record- ed its biggest increase in the welfare roll since the crisis be- gan one year ago. The already swelled welfare roll jumped 13.8 per cent from December 1990 to January 1991. The region picked up over Port Perry BIA unveils plans at meeting tonight Members of the Port Perry Downtown Business Improve- ment Area meet tonight (Tues- day, Feb. 12) for their annual membership meeting. The local BIA, which includes all businesses within the boun- daries of Water, North, Lilla and Mary Streets, will set their budget forthe coming years pro- jects and promotions. One of the highlights of the evening will be the presenta- tion of the consultants report. Daniel J. O'Brien & Associates were hired last year to do a study-of the downtown to show how it could be improved with the BIA's help. The study took into consider- ation - parking, vehicular circu- lation, pedestrian traffic, gener- al streetscape and a 'theme for the downtown shopping area. Copies of the study and large maps of the area will be availa- ble for viewing before and dur- ing the meeting. There are over 100 retail and service businesses within the downtown core. The meeting gets underway at 7:30 tonight at the Kinsmen Hall on Lilla Street. All members are urged to at- tend. - TTT PORT PERRY STAR -- Tuesday, February 12, 1991 -- 3 1,082 new cases in January 1,000 new cases in the month. The Durham caseload is now 8,922, up from 7,840 in Decem- er. And when dependents are added in, the picture gets even worse. About 15,600 people de- pended on welfare in January, up 15.7 per cent from Decem- ber's 13,480 figure. The welfare roll "is still dras- tically going up," said a sombre Diane Hamre, chairman of the social service committee. "It's even more alarming than we predicted." And the social service depart- ment had forecast a gloomy year ahead for Durham Region. When drafting the 1991 wel- fare budget, Councillor Hamre said the department had pre- dicted what they though was the "worse case scenerio" for Durham this year -- a seven per cent month-to-month increase. "Now we think it should have been double," Councillor Ham- re told the mortified council- lors. Durham paid out $12.4 mil- lion in welfare in 1990. The re- COMPARE THE RATE! 165 QUEEN ST, PORT PERRY | 985-8435 Canada Insurance Deposit Corporation y For your Valentine ... @ (MED ol Sterling - Gold Filled - 10 Kt. Starting at $5.95 See our fine selection! maining 80 per cent (about $55 million) was picked up by the province. Expenditures jumped 21 per cent from December to Janu- ary. Nearly $5 million was re- leased in welfare payments in January compared to $4.1 mil- lion in December. Over the one-year period, ex- penditures increased 81 per cent. The drastic increase in wel- fare payments will have a se- vere impact on the 1991 budget. Traditionally, the police bud- get comprises 50 per cent of the net regional levy. Councillors predicted that the remaining 50 per cent will be split 30 per cent on social ser- vices and 20 per cent for every- thing else (roads, equipment, etc.) The crisis isn't restricted to Durham alone. The entire prov- ince is feeling the effects of the recession. For example, Metro Toronto recorded 8,000 new cases in January, an increase of about 12 per cent over December. Although Durham's figures may be higher than in other re- gions, Councillor Hamre said this region's position isn't as bad as other municipalities. "Other municipalities didn't have the good financial plan- ning that we had," she said. During the meeting, council reaffirmed its desire for the fed- eral and provincial govern- ments to assume 100 per cent of the funding for the general wel- fare assistance benefits. The motion, put forward by Brock councillor John Doble, said welfare costs are causing extreme hardship to local tax- payers, the assistance is a ser- vice to the people and is not property related. The change would alleviate the undue tax burden on the real property tax base, he said. Mr. Doble also commented that income taxation is based on ability-to-pay and is a more appropriate means of taxation. Although the motion was passed unanimously, several councillors voiced concerns about the possible implications. Ajax Mayor Jim Witty told his colleagues that in the 11 years he has sat on council this is the forth time this motion has been put forth. He cautioned that the prov- ince may take on the welfare payments, but then it may dis- continue or under fund other services leaving the region to foot the bill. Mayor Witty said Durham could also be left with funding the service after the welfare rolls drop back to a manageable level. Whitby councillor Tom Ed- wards said the idea is "not a simple consideration at all." He said the funds will still be coming from the taxpayer re- gardless of who pays the bill. Four people injured in 3 car collision Sunday Four people were sent to hos- pital after a three car collision late Sunday afternoon. The accident, which occurred about 4:30 p.m. just north of Saintfield on Highway 7, is be- ing blamed on bad weather con- o ANNUAL MEETING BIG BROTHERS / BIG SISTERS of NORTH DURHAM Tuesday, February 19th, 1991 at 7:30 PM Community Memorial Hospital Library Board Room, Port Perry Call 985-3733 for information. ditions. According to an OPP spokes- man from the Beaverton office, a southbound car went out of control and was hit broadside by a northbound car. Another northbound car collided into the accident. Police say each car carried two people. Three people were rushed to- Community Memorial Hospital in Port Perry, while the fourth was taken to Uxbridge Cottage Hospital. The spokesman said the injuries included broken legs, ribs and cuts, but nothing life threatening. The occupants of the cars were from Sunderland, Whitby and Brechin. CME MEN MES NSS ST SE SN iA < pf zz < %. CHINESE BUFFET ° RESTAURANT a'a'a'a a's LICENSED by L.L.B.O. ALL YOU CAN EAT 75 ITEM BUFFET including a wide selection of delicious desserts alt ' Yad [SP ) , 1) --~-- a) C Mon.-Thurs. Fri. LUNCH $595 $5.95 $7.25 $7.25 DINNER $9.95 $10.95 $10.95 $10.95 434-6600 Sat. r ha [MasterC or) TAUNTON AO § A p - Sun. GOLDEN GATE RESTAURANT ga 285 TAUNTON RD.E. 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