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stouffville suntribune thursday nov 10 2005 rm i stouffville 03ioujjvmemmi suntnbune a metrotand community newspaper 34 civic ave 3rd floor stouffville on l4a 7z5 publisher ian proudfoot editor in chief debora kelly business manager robert lazurko director production interactive media john futhey advertising director distribution director marketingpartnerships retail flyer sales nicole fletcher advertising director classified real estate events management gord paolucci circulation barry black director circulation systems lynn pashko director debra welter york region printing general manager bob dean editorial protecting children must be top priority robert levene was awaiting sentenc ing after pleading guilty to 88 counts of making and distributing child porn in columbus ohio back in june 2003 but fled to thornhill where his parents live a warrant was issued for his arrest and remains outstanding according to franklin county court officials in columbus the charges carry a maxi mum prison term of more than 300 years but prosecutors were asking for 40 years he is a fugitive from justice living with his parents and many of his neighbours are none the wiser the canadian justice system is well aware he has infiltrated a york region community he was arrested in november 2003 ordered extradited back to the us to face sentencing yet for two years he has lived and worked in the community while his case crawls through a lengthy appeal process should the community have been informed of his presence you bet police often wrestle with the idea of telling residents when a convicted sex offender is being released back into the community after serving a sentence it happened in york last year when convicted child molester david dolson who served six years of an eightyear sen tence for sexually assaulting boys was released to his mothers home in georgina yet the levene case is different mr dolson did his time and arguably could have been rehabilitated at least the opportunity was there as mr levene hasnt yet been sen tenced there has been no chance to cure him and yet he has been free to ride through the neighbourhood on his motorcycle and hold down a job police can be hesitant to issue warn ings fearing reprisals in the form of vigi- lantism yet in canada such acts are rare while police are sworn to protect resi dents including convicted child pornog- raphers the safety of children should always be an overriding factor in deci sions about warning residents a sex offender is living and working in their neighbourhood providing the right information is key to this process not just between parents and children but between parents and the justice system if an individual poses a potential threat parents and schools should be informed someone who has so far evaded 40 years in a us jail is a threat police should have let us know whats happened to my indian corn decoration letters to the editor bungahigh could be built in any stouffville neighbourhood re new home too big neighbours say oct 20 im sure youve heard of a bungalow single story low profile house but have you heard of the new style bungalow called bungahigh bungahigh bungalows are still a single story but their distinguishing feature is their use of the maximum height allowance by code about 34 feet this may sound unbelieveable but mayor sue sherban was quoted as saying yes that is a legal bungalow if youd like to see an example of this newstyle bungalow created by brundale fine homes ltd and approved by the towns planning department please drop by the intersection of rose and lloyd avenues and see the new bungahigh being built at on a 40foot lot keep your eyes open a bungahigh may be coming to your mature neighbourhood soon chris ledgard stouffville community backed student concert the 13th annual student music scholarship concert friday at stouffville district secondary school proved a marvellous success with 600 young people from six whitchurchstouffville schools taking part the event raised 5600 all of which will be divided among participating schools to assist their music programs receipts over the past 13 years now total 45600 the committee is truly appreciative of support provided this event by local businesses service clubs and individuals also the assistance of school the stouffville suntribune welcomes your letters all submissions must be less than 400 words and must include a daytime telephone number name and address the stouffville suntribune reserves the right to publish or not publish and to edit for clarity and space write letters to the editor 34 civic ave po box 154 stouffville l4a 7z5 email jmasonyrngcom music directors parents high school office admin istrator doris jackson high school custodial staff and others whose participation made for such an enjoyable evening congratulations to lillian wild recipient of the 2005 st james presbyterian church 100 scholar ship please watch for next springs announcement so you the public can submit nominations for the 2006 award jim thomas gayle atkinson stewart mcelroy concert committee stouffville big pipe no joke mr fisch re big pipe one of best systems in great lakes area oct 15 york region ceo bill fisch must take us all for fools his letter included the following the big pipe continues to enhance the environment and ensure our public health york region has never done anything to enhance the environment in fact it has done just the oppo site urban sprawl dry wells gridlock and bad plan ning do not enhance the environment this must be mr fischs idea of a joke but it isnt funny david rout markham editorial editor jim mason jmasonyrngcom administration office manager vivian oneil voneilyrngcom events management shows manager bonnie rondeau brondeauyrngcom production manager pam nichols pnicholsyrngcom advertising classified manager ann campbell acampbellimgcom retail manager staceyallen allenyrngcom managing director new business flyer sales dawna andrews dandrcwsymgcom managing director real estate mikerogerson mrogersonymgcom editorial 9055131717 fax9055i375a5 advertising 9055131717 classified 18007433353fax 9058531765 distribution 905513i7j7 caudal ontario owattowebelsl p aua board member simtribune a york region newspaper group community newspaper the suntribune pubfehed every thursday and saturday is a member of the metroland printing publishing and distributing ltd a whollyowned subsidiary of torstar corporation metroland is comprised of 70 community publications across ontario the york region newspaper group includes the liberal serving richmond hill and thomhill vaughan citirenljie economist sun markham the erabanner newmarket aurora stouffville suntribune georgina advocate york region business times north of the city yorkregtoncom and york regton printing off the top with jim mason see you in 12 months municipal voters the front lawns of your subdivi- son will look different a year from now the autumn leaves will be joined by signs in a multitude of colours promoting candidates whitchurchstouffville and all other municipalities across ontario will elect new councils mayors and school board trustees on nov 13 2006 lucky us you say municipal election voting is up there in the popularity ranks behind getting a flu shot and jury duty we know somebody has to do it we just want somebody else to do it on our behalf fewer than half of eligible voters show up at the polls and dont try and tell me this politically active community we call home is any dif ferent even with the tightest of races for mayor decided on the last poll counted only 36 per cent of whitchurchstouffville adults both ered to vote in 2003 even sadder that number has been decreasing every election for the past four since 1994 there is no shortage of potential candidates at least at the cocktail parties and softball games ive attended in recent years but its a different story every third autumn when its time to sign up as a real candidate those loudmouths who suggest they could run the town plow the roads and cut the grass themselves and turn a tidy profit at the same time cant be found municipal politics just doesnt have enough cache obviously unless someone proposes a nuclear power plant for a neighbour hood the same half dozen people will show at council meetings staff and politicians outnum bered taxpayers this week as coun cilors decided how to spend the towns money for the next year maybe it will all change the ripped up roads and over sized homespeople are complaining about in this town under transition may spark a new wave of political activism not seen in 25 years when residents fought to close a landfill site on hwy 48 south of ballantrae but dont count on it see you in 12 months voters jim mason is editor of the sun- tribune