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economist suntribune looking ahead jt1ursdaydec262002 bu more york farmland expected to be lost to development by joan ransberky staff writer the view remains the same from the front porch of any farmhouse in york region the next few years will look much like the last few more farmland will be lost to urban sprawl most farmers will struggle to make a buck and the local agricultural community will await news of a new regional airport in the pickering- markhamarea jay reesor of markham calls himself a realist while the 46- yearold farmer recognizes that people deserve a nice place to live he wonders why prime agri cultural land has to be sacrificed in the process mr reesor and his wife miriam grow strawberries and sweet com to sell at their road side market on the ninth line just south of stouffville he also grows 75 acres of soy beans and wheat while mr reesors from a farm family its doubtful daughters leah 17 and jessica 14 will pursue a career in agriculture agricultural land in york region is indeed shrinking today york region has more than 1000 farms covering just shy of 176000 acres in the past eight years the number of farms in the region has decreased by 16 per cent while the total area of farm properties has dropped by almost 10 per cent on the brighter side farmers produce more on less land total farm revenue now at 1786 mil lion is up by 5 per cent over the staff photosjoerd witteveen jay reesor of ninth line in markham sits atop a mound of topsoil just north of 16th avenue the topsoil was removed to facilitate development of the area past eight years fanners are more efficient said don stevenson york regions service representative for the ontario federation of agriculture todays farmer is producing more on less land theres more efficiency said mr stevenson still urbanization is viewed as a critical issue urban sprawl is especially evident in the southern part of york region farmland in markham is evapo rating much faster than agricul tural lands in such northern municipalities as east gwillimbury mr reesor has been tracking the urban takeover for most of his adult life a product of a pio neer farm family mr reesors roots matter from where i grew up on the ninth line the city has encroached on farm lands at the rate of 15 kilometres every five years said mr reesor it wont take long before its all gone in markham an all too famil iar scene often plays itself out a farmer sells out and buys a big house on a twoacre estate lot near vandorf the farmer is 60 years old a developer paid him a visit and waved a bundle of cash under his nose the farmer took stock of the situation hes land rich and cash poor the kids are long gone they made it clear 10 years ago they were not interested in work ing sevendaysaweek for noth ing its time to quit time to sell its hard to sell but its harder not to after a time markham coun cil agreed to rezone the farm from agriculture to a residential in order to accommodate a threephase subdivision the 175acre farm made way for 725 houses a few markham council lors ranted and raved about he dire need to protect markhams prime agricultural land meanwhile a standing- roomonly crowd will turn up at the council chambers and tell council residents cant live beside semis and town houses in the end democracy prevailed and the farm gave way to a brand new subdivision life went on theres was only one change the farm disappeared its disappointing i recog nize the need for people to have a good place to live but to build on good farmland is very sad said mr reesor its just disap pointing to see it happen and it is happening king township mayor margaret black tells yet another familiar story her farmer father was forced to sell the centuryold family farm in king township when he was 69 years old her father sold the mixed farming operation and the land to another farmer in 1969 mrs blacks father kept a 10acre par cel of land located directly across from his main farm the small piece of land had been in the family since the mid 1800s urban sprawl is viewed as a major issue here the york region agricultural advisory liai son group made up of farm organizations and individual farmers recently asked ontario agriculture and food minister helen johns to have the province establish and fund a land trust it wants the province to acquire lands for agriculture and other rural uses mrs johns along with oak ridges mpp and tourism frank klees told the farmers and area mayors including mayor black that theyd take the farmers appeal to queens park and work on their behalf while farmers stress the need for changes in planning at the provincial level they notice re- kindled interest in the pickering airport lands its been 30 years since the fed eral and provincial governments started to slowly erase farmsteads and small crossroad communi ties in eastern markham and north pickering in the name of an airport plans for a regional airport and two massive greenspaces on federal lands north of hwy 7 are now being discussed kids are expensive just ask an easter seals amity forget the latest clothes the best video games and pricey dance lessons a imagine if your everyday need included expensive equipment and sup port the easter seal society ontario is about helping kids with physical disabilities motorized quit reach their 5 highest level of per sonal inde pendence but we need crutches your help to s make this happen in 2001 we helped fam ilies by van lift fund s 9999 ing over 15 million for highly special ized equipment alone for kids with physical disabilities freedom doesnt come cheap but you cant really put a price on that succeed please call 18006686252 or visit wwweastcrsealsorg to make a donation today this message brought to you as a community service ol the economists suntribune toshiba 27 tv badstripe ii picture tube double baffle cabinet design 42 key glow universal remote 3 line digital comb filter 560 lines j curs7 to s h i b a cineim series eh s3 projection tv dual tuner 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letterbox mode raster shift 32 pulldown detection wide band video amplifier srs extra large capadty 2 washspin speeds 3 washrinse temperatures water level control wmw- frost free fringe super capadty dryer 70 cu ft 4 temperatures end of cyde signal auto wrinkle free cyde 41000 manufacturers seate 2870 lg frost free fridge 18 cu ft adjustable class shelves spill proof shelves adjustable door shelves 3u cis pull size over r thp panae 1 5 cu ft 1000w jhf stoppable turntable microwave system auto cook ovetl auto defrost mirfoi washer largest front load washer in the industry 68h less water use liiigii lg compact fridge 35 cuft 328 hx183w reversible door 2 wire shelves super capacity washer 32 cu ft gentle power agitator 10 cycle washrinse temperature option all stainless appliances priced to sell 191 king st w oshawa siost 7ss3goo 2104hwv7 iunm concord 41g 22g1001 1837 uxhsdowm st iv boo dundas st e peterborough mississhugum 70s 7433833 90s 2726773 the regional municipality of york expropriations act notice of application for approval to expropriate land in the matter of an application by the regional municipality of york for approval to expropriate lands and interest in lands described in schedules a b and c hereto in the towns of aurora and whitchurchstouffville in the regional municipality of york for the purposes of a the widening and reconstruction of st johns sideroad yr 26 from yonge street yr 1 to bayview avenue yr 34 in the town of aurora to a basic rightofway width of 360 metres with additional widenings at cuts fills water course crossings and intersections to provide a basic four lane road with leftturn and rightturn lanes at key intersections b the widening and reconstruction of st johns sideroad yr 26 from bayview avenue yr 34 to woodbine avenue yr 8 in the towns of aurora and whitchurch- stouffville to a basic rightofway width of 360 metres to provide a basic twolane road to regional standards with leftturn and rightturn lanes at key intersections c adjustments to existing traffic control signals and associated illumination to accommodate the proposed revisions to the road layout at the intersections of st johns sideroad yr 26 with yonge street yr 1 industrial parkway bayview avenue yr 34 and leslie street yr 12 and d the provision of an underground conduit system and illumination at the intersections of st johns sideroad yr 26 with pinnacle trailjohn west way trent streetearl stewart drive and woodbine avenue yr 8 notice is hereby given that application has been made for approval to expropriate lands and interest in lands described in schedules a b and c hereto any owner of lands in respect of which notice is given who desires an inquiry into whether the taking of such land is fair sound and reasonably necessary in the achievement of the objectives of the expropriating authority shall so notify the authority in writing a in the case of a registered owner served personally or by registered mail within thirty days after the registered owner is served with the notice or when the registered owner is served by publication within thirty days after the first publication of the notice b in the case of an owner who is not a registered owner within thirty days after the first publication of the notice the approving authority is the council of the regional municipality of york 17250 yonge street newmarket on l3y6z1 the regional municipality of york denis kelly regional clerk 17250 yonge street newmarket on l3y6z1 this notice first published on the 12th day of december 2002 schedule a an estate in fee simple in the land described as follows part of lot 86 concession 1 in the town of aurora in the regional municipality of york designated as part 2 on a plan deposited in the land registry office for the land titles division of york region as no 65r25217 schedule b an estate in fee simple in the land described as follows lands in the town of aurora in the regional municipality of york being composed of those lands designated as parts on plans deposited in the land registry office for the registry division of york region more particularly described as follows part of lot 86 86 concession 1 1 schedule eartts 3 3 and 4 plan 65r14410 65r25218 temporary easement a temporary easement or rights in the nature of a temporary easement expiring on december 31 2005 in under over along and upon the following lands for the purpose of entering upon and occupying the lands with all necessary machinery equipment and material required for or in connection with grading part of lot 85 concession 1 in the town of aurora in the regional municipality of york designated as part 1 on a plan deposited in the land registry office for the land titles division of york region as no 65r25397 t-s1z- i- yovkbemon if wei oriljr had a dime for every someone stdbdfm disabled means lyctof can imd a ffiinji wed havstssfi to helj thousan more disabled aduli ft live indepcodenu because what you really wanted was to get away service 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