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stouffville suntribune thursday oct 23 2003 9 ent key issue for ward 2 opponents by hannelore volpe staff writer councillor mark carrolls was the only name on the bal lot for ward 2 until ballantrae resident phil bannon stepped up to bat just before nomina tions closed mr carroll is seeking a third term on council for mr bannon its his first foray into local politics mr carroll 41 is married with two children the long time environmentalist is cur rently a member of the whitchurchstouffville environmental advisory committee as well as the whitchurchstouffville her itage advisory committee kettle lakes he believes the main issue facing his predominantly rural ward is the environment par ticularly the areas kettle lakes the new council will have to take action on main street the major issues for stouffville are the traffic speeding con gestion and development issues also shared in varying degrees with ward 2 garbage disposal is another large issue looming on the horizon michigan out michigan doesnt want our garbage anymore mr carroll said and we will have to deal with that shortly mr bannon is a staff ser geant with toronto police the 52yearqld ballantrae resident is married and has two chil dren if he is elected ward 2 coun cillor mr bannon has pledged mark carroll environmentalist seeking third term asward 2 coun cillor to resign from the police serv ice to represent his con stituents fulltime the tremendous pressure of development on a ward entire ly within the oak ridges moraine is one of mr bannons concerns he wants the town to ensure its official and second ary plans are in conformity with the oak ridges moraine mu hi phil bannon police officer enters race near end of- nomination process conservation act and to also implement the plan through its zoning bylaws mr bannon believes this is the only way to achieve a bal ance of growth and sustainable development traffic congestion he looks forward to improv ing the health of musselmans lake and the surrounding environment by working with residents and town staff this includes addressing issues such as traffic conges tion and the quality of the roads as a police officer mr bannon wants to see an enhanced police presence throughout the municipality he advocates having the town help to provide more perma nent accommodations for offi cers this would provide a stronger sense of stability and security he said urban meets rural in lakearea ward for decades the highlight of whitchurchstouffvilles ward 2 was the big dance hall on musselmans lake it drew crowds from all oyer toronto for saturday night dances at the cedar beach pavilion it was also cottage country to city dwellers who came here on weekends to enjoy the areas lakes and peaceful green spaces the area had remained most ly rural except for residential areas clustered around ballantrae and musselmans lake over the past few years several subdivisions have been built the largest is the ballantrae golf and country club which now has approximately 350 homes the adult lifestyle com munity which will eventually grow to 900 homes is situated around an 18hole golf course onhwy48 over the past 10 years this has been whitchurch- stouffvilles fastest growing ward around 4500 people call the ward home many of them in the ballantraemusselmans lake area can look forward to new neighbours since the areas sec ondary plan calls for a popula- tion of about 5700 within the next 10 to 15 years growth in other parts of theward is expect ed to push that total to nearly 7000 residents to serve the growingpopula- the municipalitys second fife hall was built on hwy 48 north of aurora road four years ago the ward- extends from bloomington road in the south up to davis drive and from the yorkdurham town line west to mccowari road acres of corn soybeans and other crops are still a part of the landscape on several large farms in the area there are also cattle farms musselmans lake is the largest of the areas ecologically sensitive kettle lakes the friends of musselmans lake a local environmental group is currently conducting a survey of area residents to see whether they want power boats and snowmobiles banned from the lake and the use of pesticides curtailed among other issues the group conducts a twice- yearly cleanup of the lake and surrounding roads careless of reckless drivers on the wards rural roads have caused some concern for the safety of local residents walking on ninth line around musselmans lake and at inter sections with no traffic lights out of the 17465 electors list ed for whitchurchstouffville 3426 ward 2 residents have the opportunity to cast their ballots in the nov 10 election the wards largest park ballantrae park which started with three ball diamonds was upgraded to include two soccer pitches new playground equipment and a basketball court in the park are shared with the adja cent ballantrae public school and local residents hannelore volpe starting a small business seminar attend and learn from local business professionals who can provide the information you need to start your own small business when where cost wednesday november 12th 2003 700 pm 930 pm stouffville neighbourhood employment resource centre 28 sandiford drive unit 7 stouffville behind mcdonalds 1000 payable at door to register call the neighbourhood employment resource centre at 905 6402856 sponsoredby stouffville neighbourhood whitchurchstouffville business development office employment resource centre superior selection always exciting new items