@-Thie Cm_.dihi smapIan, Tiifldy Apli 15,,99 le *'COMMENT Box 249. 191 Mai si E, tý(. 150 hu 10. 2hu81. a 00 et Mlliei Ont LÇT 4N9. MP Kiléffl Dm"" idlStl SOiOMEvol (905) 88 * », K«UCNMi sOign Cxxxd.enfl gua it.10s Fax: 876-2364 «... ýiuUICC axaiM Ghxnxlx ildiifidi mm FmN Classified: 875-3300 PliE 109M 1 ThSiiMUidiFum kW.«; ia Ian Oliver PuMrkher, " %*i Mxiii uiidknlsNm.O TdUr5MU0010 / NeilOlir m. iar Pin, cit.liefl Pen Piaii SSI Won. Polulo'b.tfi Tsq n Il" ffy FA4i, uww xoli Sixlaixi. onS. ?dayis Ss- oni ila Kgm Ilbiil xuilil Manxager m.. miili«~Sx@Wi. Wl. xUotulxWiF*W0lU 0.i Terf Cam a., Manager< nom n. loi a m m gUiwdS uiC li $100111a TIM C"x PnIu .u Manage, UMiou 'W1 bar "W toa.1 tlli &dm#~aF ii i li lad .i" thé PRMtl la Tia Palixa lia 'ON 1. u*om TxdUxiiy dwlîsapMiiR" ixmn Good people, bad deal These arc oif course tense times% for the public service industry. which includes many health care woekers and certainly dhose ai hospi- tls. Il is now apparent ihai Milton District Hospital wiili lie clsely scrutifmzed hy a provincial panel whoiq mandate is te cul costs. , Most healih care workers - management and union - say ihcy just donit know what is going iii happen. and politician'. echo that senti- menti. Howevcr. cscri a cursory look ai Mion'ssituation is not elcottag- lng. for a couple <if simple reasons. Most oif the thing'. that are donc ai Milton Distict Hospital are donc clsecwhercen l-ilon Region And pruhallly mosi of the people whîî go 10 the local hospitl could. witi s(lýne nchinvenlcnce. dlrive 20) minutes or so t0 Oaksîilec, oîr Burfinglon. 'Mis is noi 10 say Milion's hospilal wiil bue closcd or even radically alîcrud. and il is certainly nol to indcate that whai takes place ai the hospilal is unimportant. A great deal of substaritial import bas occurred there. 1'be hospital has ticen tic focus of couniless hoers of charity fundraising by nnu- uscrable people. One has only t<î casi back a handful of ycars to reèal the campaign te modemnize and expand the fîtcily. le make il a point of deep munici- pal pride. As wcll, the hospilal, and ibis newspaper, have boti receised chters praisîng cac ai the institution. U.nfortunately, in the cold glow oif today's fiscal realities, these sen- timents may not couru for much amiorg those who make thc decisions about what closes and whaî siays open. Clear in the mandate !of the pantel i% a lime fraie otf less than Fise years - if substantial new gcowili pressure is noi present in the comn- muniy oser that lime %pan. il is likely current facilities will bce parçd back, In Miltoîn, there is almuîsi no chance <il the type ai* population growth that coulil influence the decision overtie nesi lise years., 'flise whx> make the choice about what siays and what gors in local hoîspital care cannot and will no( ailow themsclses 10 bce swayed by theý enorms goodwîll the instituiiou represents. lte work ihai bas gone intEl making il what il iv today, lte quality of lte people hebind the care. Most probahly they will aci in lte samne manner as corporate esecu- lises chacged with dismissing employei te reduce overbcad in private enterprise - a depressingly familiar scenato in the 1990S. ecuierrly wanî tu know anything about the peoplc tbcy are g 10 ci go. unlcssihey'vc bired a so-called oui-placement agen3 foi wotk witli tem. And esen then thcy !cave mosi of il1 teh htred axe wielders. Miltoni cari'i cort on sentiment t0 sway opinion - that didn't work elsewhere. it won't woric here. On Tlhursday, May 8 a lit e Optimisi Centre dons issue wilI bce dis- cussed in a public forum attended by stakeholder and politicians. ICI; important that esidence and reason, rallier titan emoion, ia âdsane<d titere and te lte provincial panel ltai will make the decisior. The itospital as il is. will likcly change, but te wbat degece may stilI be somectbing of an open question. itere is ro joy in writing something like this. Hopeiully tai is obstous 10 aIl. But we sitould ail understarid whal the won, t case ic- nanto is. what preparalions may need te be made and wvl probahly ait stake. A strong iumi;ut of corcemed cilizens ai te Optimiat Centre meet- ing would probahly bce a good lirai step te finding oi about that, and what can reahistîeally bc donc in terms of damnage controi. -Rob Kelly YoAdI G Pages of the Past One YearAgo From lte AprIl 24, 199 Isaue IlU appeared tuai factîoîalism was threing lu lear apari the Hallsn Board of Education. The boad. wbose immers xSeemd tu tbc disiding inia reform and tradition- alist camps. recbhed a entîcal impasse aihen nîre lustres soted dlown the 1996buget. Only eighî irusteex xuppcailcd thc budget. Taxes sSed loe ic edividîng facto as somne tustees refuied lu support an increas in thc lcsy and oth- cr. argued ibai the odiocation systcmt coutl not wititoman furlter cuis. Afler lthe sole, chair Linda Gloser calmly anixouncdi. "We do nel base a buàdge." - Oaksille regionat coxinclloir Stesen Spariing was puait- isg ta kick-%taai Uic italion IUtian Structxure Plan (HUSP). Titis plan insuîised building waier and sewage pipelines ixîrti tlrxm Lake Ontarioî toi accommodate lang-lerm groîmth in Milton and more immediate buiding plans in nonhi Oakville and Burlîngion. Coimicillor Spaeiirg a&*cd for an updatc on ihe HIJSP pracess ai a meeting af the planning aid public works commiltre. As Mr. Sparling explaned. 'Ihere ix a buge pressure for additional mater and wasiewater capacily ini parts of (Mksîl-l and Burlînglon. Some (deselopers) are going te launcb major marketing drives &M spend coraiderulîle dollars." 20 Ya rs Ago From die April 27, 1977 lsit. * Halixas Regioxai Coxincil wouki fol lue deterred n lhx-ir aitempls te situate a laidfit site in Milton. claimred chair Rîc Morrow. Mr. M<)row suid the Region would connue work on phase thuc of a consultant's report on the contrl- sersial Site F landiiii1 and would appiy toi the Tuown of' Milton foîr tbe rezanixg of the site near Tremaine and Bitanni roads. The Supreme Court of Ontanio liadt previ- uusly quuasbrd a by-law pa&sed hy Uic region indicating utue Milton site as a fuure laridfill. 'flic oniy alternivîe the Regioa has," csplained Mr. Mnîrrow, "uis te spendJ anoiher quarter of i million dollars siudying anuther s ie and evex iben peole wuuld tire a lawycr aid we'd bave the saine legal problexs." 50 Yea rs Ago Fri lihe April 24, 1947 iau Th 'fi16lb insialimeni of the Halls Music Festival (bul, the firsi sunce thc beginxing of the wau) mas bcid ai Knoxs Preshyterian Cburct ix Mutain. Becau'e of the discointinu- axe of %citxii-taught mus.ic durng ili w.ur )car,, exil as many Youang peuple look part in lthe festival as had heen ttc case before the war. The y5diornum was packcd lu capacîiy. ihougu, espccially dîr>ng the csrxnlg perfor- mances. Elizabeth-Anne Marcellus and Gladys Hysiead fromn Milion Higis Sebool took home lthe piie for tihe bugit sebool girls' duel under 17-yemr-old catcgory. In lus lirai singini c0mo.UlDpn's Freddie Ambroise mas imanrdi honours for bis solo in the clsi 0f tumn boys, il yeam old and osver.