The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

whrrckurckstouffville public library fridaydec282007 b serving the community of whitchurchstouffville b 1 6 pages1 including gst remembering 2007 in photographs opinion 6 real estate 7 coming up 17 classified 13 best towns offer something for all ages planners say by hannelore volpe staff writer theyre the towns develop ment guys they get excited about bridg es parks homes and streets and the people who get to enjoy them tom parry the towns direc tor of development services and andrew mcneely manager of planning services keep a close eye anda guiding hand on whats being built and developed the most effective commu nities they say offer something for all ages from newborn to seniors the planners find themselves doing a lot of communicating with developers residents and business owners who want to build up or change their premis es theyre the first to hear some times fairly loudly about trees being cut down when theyre not supposed to be or when houses are too high for their commu nity nevertheless this is the best part of the job for the planners we enjoy the communica tion with the residents and busi ness community mr mcneely said we want to work with the community to realize its full potential he finds their job has been made easier by responsive and progressive politicians the most successful commu- sec wellrounded page 2 e staff photohannelore volpe mayor wayne emerson left and blair purceil of lionels pony farm visit with one of the horses that will provide horsedrawn sleigh rides at memorial park on new years eve the mayors new years eve party starts at 630 pm monday with fireworks at 845 pm there will also be hot chocolate and games at latcham hall counci by hannelore volpe staff writer while wmtchurchstouffvilles 2008 draft budget shows an increase of 79 per cent the figures wont be in until after final delibera tions which are set for jan 29 if that increase does remain however it would mean a taxpayer with a house valued at 330000 would pay about 70 more in municipal taxes per year last years draft budget also indicated a 79percent increase however when the dust settled it had been cut to 39 per cent the total amount of expenditures is set at approximately 28 million the leisure services department takes 22 per cent of the 28million total while public works is close behind at 19 per cent water and sewer takes 13 per cent development services are at 12 per cent while sre and emergency services require 1 1 per cent capital projects such as the new arena which will have two ice pads are fully funded by development charges and not taxpayer money mayor wayne emmerson said at last tuesdays council meeting many other proj ects in town are also funded to a large extent by development charges to keep up with a growing town more staff have been added there were 118 fulltime permanent employees as of july 31 thats up from 107 in 2006 and 9 1 in 2005 the budget meeting begins at 9 am jan 29 in the council chambers 37 sandiford dr comments are welcome and residents are welcome to attend the budget deliberations to read the 2008 draft budget online visit townofwscom and click on the council meet ing calendar agendas and minutes section from there go to council agendas and choose appendix a to report 12 dated dec 1807 8030 beocfioofriber hoi till v savings savings savings at 50 womens fashions footwear and accessories all winter merchandise 35352 137 main street north markham 9052943882 wwwpeppertreeca new year and your fafniliesl town and country brokerage 9056400888