wkt vol 91 no 39 whitchurchstouffville january 31 197 20 cents 16 pages halfway house is needed in town claims exconvict in and out of prison and penitentiary since 1958 bob neilson of stouffville stands a free man his parole period ends in august with a total pardon in five years he wants to manage a half way house for boys a project he feels is badly needed in the stouffville area jim thomas by jim thomas stouffville a half way house is needed in stouffville a place where teenage boys whove run afoul of the law can go for help and eventual rehabilitation the advice comes from one whos been all the way and back bob neilson currently on parole from kingston pen would like to see one of the local service clubs start the ball rolling towards such a project hed gladly manage the program when suitable ac commodation is found bob neilson in and out of prison and reformatory for more years than i care to remember says too many 17 and 18 year olds are shunted off to penitentiary then returned to society far worse than when they went in i know what goes on there- ive seen it all he said in an exclusive interview every boy he says reaches a point in life where he can turn away from wrongdoing and get on track or continue breaking the law until theres no turning back a halfway house could provide a worthwhile purpose through volunteer work programs group meetings and professional counselling mr neilson says while selfsupporting for the most part it would have to in volve the total community and even beyond extending as far distant as newmarket aurora unionville and markham bob neilson doesnt buy the argument that environment turns kids to crime thats a copout he said he uses his own background as an example- a good home and three square meals a day but i wanted it my way- quick money fancy clothes the whole bit the end result a broken marriage years behind bars and five children he seldom sees bob neilson isnt bitter in fact he readily admits he has only himself to blame still he feels the systems wrong and must be changed hes confident that if given the chance he can help change it and stouffville is a good place to start landfill site legal garbage battle lost stresses town mayor penitentiary a hell on earth by jim thomas stouffville hell hole of the world thats bob neilsons description of millhaven penitentiary the convicted bank robber now out on parole and living m nearvstouffville says nojwords can correctly describe con ditions there you can cut the tension with a knife he said adding that kingston pen isnt much better it was back in 1958 over 20 years ago that bob neilson vnqw44twasconvicted by buildup premature says regiontown stouffville a 128- unit singlefamily subdivision proposed for a 26 acre site on the west side of the ninth line south of main street has been turned down by the region of york their rejection coincides with a decision handed down earlier by the town of whit- churciistouffville lack of adequate water and sewage capacities were given as main reasons for not supporting the draft plan application ownership of the property is claimed by ronald femson bayview avenue thornhill an extension of sunset boulevard was to serve as an exitentrance to the development commenting on the decision mayor eldred king said the dulverton subdivision is a priority project in town and must be dealt with first he said that undoubtedly the time would come when the proposal would be considered in a more favorable light that time however isnt yet magistrate os hollinrake in newmarket court hes been in and out of prisons ever since handsome and cleancut despite his ordeal he talks freely about past experiences at millhaven two high walls circle the compound jvith guards on constant patrol german shepherd dogs some weighing as much as 130 pounds run between theres little personal contact with anyone that i survived was a miracle it was hell he said at kingston convicts in clude murderers rapists and those he described as crazy people look at someone crossways and youre liable to get a steel pipe across the head it wasnt uncommon for someone to be stabbed in the back while attending a movie he said bob neilsons start down the wrong road began when he issued a phony cheque for a gallon of paint it was all so easy i failed to consider the consequences although he has some harsh things to say about officials on the inside he retains the greatest respect for police theyre our best friends im responsible for what happened to me the officer only did his job and did it well -bob- neilson wasireleased from custody dec 22 and firm ly states hes never going back his parole period ends in august with a total pardon in five years time freedom he said while often taken for granted is the greatest thing stouffville york sanitations government- licenced landfill site is located in whitchurchstouffville and mayor eldred feels the town should use it the mayor reaffirmed his position at a press meeting friday i refuse to become emotional he stated firmly i deal in logic at present all garbage collected here 6000 tons a year is trucked out of the municipality he feels this could be costing the town 12000 annually mayor king agrees an application may be received to expand the site this will result in another hearing in his opinion the towns position will in no way be jeopardized by using the facility we lost the battle and theyll expand for their benefit not ours he stressed mayor king said he had attended a meeting of the powr organization protect our water resources jan 24 and while interested in what people had to say he was concerned that newcomers in attendance for a first time might have gone away with the wrong impression at the present time that operation is a legally licenced use and we have every right to use it too he concluded hip high waders required by bride for parolee starts new life stouffville give me a chance thats what 44 year old bob neilsons asking of the people of whitchurch- stouffville a chance to prove hes a new man anxious to start a new life the onetime bank robber now on parole is looking for work but to date with the exception of one days employment since dec 22 all doors have been closed im honest about my past because sooner or later theyd find out anyway but they look at me and wonder whats my game he said bob neilsons certain theres work available he says money is secondary i just want to be happy the stouffville man says hes made welcome when applying for positions but its surprising how fast the doors close when i tell them where ive been municipal employees receive wage hikes stouffville with the antiinflation board no longer wielding an influence over wages some town municipal employees benefitted through increased salaries mayor eldred king told the tribune this week without revealing specific figures he said the top got less and the bottom got more a hike of nine per cent was mentioned but with certain staff people reclassification was a consideration the same policy held true for those in the york region the bride was radiant in a white satin gown that was caught up at the waist and tucked neatly inside a pair of hiphigh rubber boots such a description could have been applied to a wedding ceremony planned for the courthouse last week in newmarket however justice of the peace ivan bates refused to put the couple through that kind of ordeal he shuffled the party over to another section of the building why because the floor of his office was under water the jp didnt shift the proceedings without a fight however he continued to do a mopup almost to knottying time then gave up in disgust the source of the water supply was from the roof not only was his office inundated by the continuous drip but others below as well the flow trickled down through a light fixture it also flowed down the stairs into the cell block prompting one prisoner to comment wryly i hope you can swim the scene was a repeat of last year that saw employees dodging around pails placed at strategic locations although construction on the new courthouse is un derway its not likely to be completed for at least twelve months in the meantime young couples prisoners and the general public utilizing this facility are advised to dress in keeping with conditions gong show stouffville a kinsmenstyled gong show is coming to stouffville amateur talent will put their skills to the test sat feb 24 on stage at stouffville dist secondary school time of the event is 8 pm auditions are being held feb l tonight at latcham hall from 7 to 1030 pm feb 12 and feb 19 single acts or groups are welcome the program organizer is ted coward 6401076 guest entertainers at the show will be the thornhill barbershop quartet with all proceeds going to the cystic fibrosis foundation and community service cable tech company threatened by strike stouffville strike action looms at the stouffville plant of cable tech wire co ltd 500 main street west at a recent vote of inside factory workers 90 per cent are said to have favored a walkout if management refuses their demands to bring in a union dom martino an employee with the firm for three years said hes been trying to get the international brotherhood of electrical workers local 1590 into the plant since last may without success three other attempts met with the same result he stated the workers the tribune was told have applied for conciliation which means the company has 16 days from the date written on the official document to begin negotiations if it doesnt employees will take another strike vote and act on the outcome according to martino management is offering a 60 cent an hour raise he claims however that certain depart ments would be receiving 80 cents and others 45 company spokesmen here declined comment and the president wasnt available at press time progress levels another town landmark brierbush hospital a stouffville landmark almost one hundred years has been demolished to make way for a residential sabdivision at the site the hospital was first opened by er good and later operated by ella malcolm previous to that it was the residence of village reeve rp coalson and councillor aj ward jim thomas public utilities commission the mayor said mayor king pointed out that several new people on staff started in at a low wage level and were held there due to aib regulations this year with the controls off these employees were raised to a standard that seemed fair the mayor explained i nab fraud suspect stouffville on dec 15 a man entered the stouffville branch of the toronto dominion bank and made a deposit of 20 three days later two cheques were cashed one for 18460 and another for 19845 both were later returned marked signature irregular at the bank of nova scotia branch in oak ridges cheques totalling 39310 were deposited later a withdrawal in the amount of 29310 was made this cheque like the two in stouffville was sent back marked signature irregular on jan 26 following in tensive police investigation james edward turner 21 of marybay crescent richmond hill was arrested a warrant has been issued for an ac complice lake home destroyed muss lake an early- morning fire tuesday the second on mitchell drive in little more than a week destroyed a singlestorey home owned by dean falgman stouffville rr 2 the lone occupant of the residence escaped the flames wearing only pants and a t- shirt when fireman arrived he was standing barefooted in the snow i i tt was an inferno when we got there chief walter smith told the tribune falgman he said was lucky to get out although the walls were left standing- the interioriwas guttedchfef smith said he un owner had gone to livewith his father in newmarket